The Ways of Wizards

The most good you can do for the world is to become a wizard.
— Deepak Chopra

Dear friends (from Tobias):

As I write, Jeff and the Mystery School Magicians are off to The Magic Castle for our second “Magic & Mystery School Week,” bringing their own special brand of magical mysteries to that iconic home for magic. If you can be in L.A. between November 30 and December 6, be sure and let us know — and drop by to join the festivities!

We’ve just wrapped up our busy fall season of classes and conferences which kicked off with Magic & Meaning, followed by Magic for Medical Professionals, and finally, theMaster Class for Mentalists. These are always three of our favorite events, and this year proved no exception. We had at one point considered making some of these classes every other year events, but both growing attendance and the overall excitement generated have encouraged us, and all three events will be offered again next fall. As a Muse Letter subscriber, you get to see announcements of our newly added classes before they appear to the general magic community in our magazine advertising — so please feel free to go to http://www.magicalwisdom.com and register early for next year’s events. If attendance continues to grow as it has this year, they’re likely to be sold out well in advance!

As many of you may be aware, I’ve been spending a fair amount of time thinking about my new book, “Wizards Ways.” It’s about the methods, mind-set and secrets of “real” wizards. The book will combine a series of short teaching stories with advice on wizard techniques readers can use in their own lives — and even a few original tricks that can be used to help the readers created real magic!

Since we who perform magic often present ourselves playing the role of a real wizard, I thought you might find a brief overview of some of the book’s premises to be of interest. First, the question of what it is that makes a wizard a wizard. That is, what is it that sets him or her apart from the rest of the population. Here’s my initial list:

  1. Wizards do extraordinary things.
  2. Wizards love secrets and secret knowledge.
  3. Wizards take responsibility.
  4. Wizards love role-playing & disguises.
  5. Wizards know they can change the world by changing themselves.
  6. Wizards love to work the web, or, in the parlance of the Indian mystics, ‘Indra’s Net.’
  7. Wizards are fascinated by underlying patterns.
  8. Wizards are willing to pay extraordinary prices for their powers & knowledge.
  9. Wizards find hidden connections and exploit them.
  10. Wizards know that perception creates reality, and learn to manipulate perceptions.
  11. Wizards seek visions.
  12. Wizards collect extraordinary experiences the way other folks collect stamps! (This last was added by Jeff).


And so, my question to you: What else can you think of that really sets wizards apart from the rest of us? What can you or I, or anyone who wishes to become a real wizard, do that will help them become ‘the real thing?’ Feel free to e-mail me with answers: tobias@yourmagic.com.

With the gift-giving (and getting) season fast upon us, I suppose I should tell you just a bit about some of our more recent offerings at our online shop:

First and foremost, we have the most recent creation/ collaboration between Jeff & Alan Wong: “Butterfly Blizzard.” Jeff has been performing his own special version of the Butterflies for many years — but only now tips his personal secrets for the routine – expanded here to make use of Alan’s beautiful butterfly blizzard effect. The package includes everything you need to get started with your own version of the effect: Beautiful Chinese Fan, DVD instructions, special thread required for the effect, and a dozen butterfly snowstorms. You can view the video for this effect by clicking here (http://www.yourmagic.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=214).

We also have two new books by one of our favorite authors, Robert E. Neale: “Magic Matters,” and the recently expanded and re-released “Magic & Meaning,” by Bob and Eugene Burger. In addition, I’m pleased to announce I’ve just upgraded and updated my “Get Your Career in Gear” 12 week course teaching you how to manage and promote your own business as a magician. Of course, we continue to carry the full McBride / Burger / Johnny Thompson line of incredible books, DVD’s and magic effects.

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