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Mark_Chandaue Inner circle Essex UK 4191 Posts |
Thanks for those wonderfully kind words Alex, just a small correction, the description for first date is actually second date. First date is essentially the same effect but without the envelope. Also just to clarify another point regarding those effects, the loose change belongs to the spectator.
Mark |
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Mark_Chandaue Inner circle Essex UK 4191 Posts |
I didn't mention it in the initial announcement but the hard back collectors edition also has an extra effect and an extra essay from me and contributions from Michael Murray, John Carey and Mark Elsdon.
Mark |
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Mark_Chandaue Inner circle Essex UK 4191 Posts |
Had a few questions one was a while ago and the answer has changed so thought I'd answer here.
Illustrations or photo's? I originally said it was going to be photos but illustrations are easier to learn from and they simply look better even though they are more time consuming to do. I want this to be a book people are proud to own. So Harpercrown will be illustrated. I keep getting asked about page count and its hard to give a definitive answer until all of the illustrations are in but expect the standard edition to be around 250 pages and the Collectors edition to be a little over 300 pages. Mark |
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Mark_Chandaue Inner circle Essex UK 4191 Posts |
Quote:
On May 12, 2016, IAIN wrote: You get a nice discount because unless my memory is failing you suggested the name HARPACROWN and I did promise a free copy of the standard edition to whoever came up with the final name for the book, Mark |
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Mark_Chandaue Inner circle Essex UK 4191 Posts |
Just to keep everything in one place
Quote: On Apr 13, 2015, Magic.Maddy wrote: |
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Daren Inner circle 2051 Posts |
Any idea when we can start placing orders?
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Mark_Chandaue Inner circle Essex UK 4191 Posts |
I will be taking pre-orders very soon, the book is very close to being in a print ready state, the cover has been designed and the text has all been typeset. Once the illustrations are in we should be good to go. I don't want to take orders and then leave people hanging waiting for the book. By the same token I don't want to compromise on quality in order to hit the release date.
Mark |
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billion New user 93 Posts |
The essays sound intriguing. Excited! !
Billion |
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Mark_Chandaue Inner circle Essex UK 4191 Posts |
Actually I'd like a couple of people to review the essays as many will simply focus on the effects. I'm not going to do the first 5 because I want to send these to people who will write considered and honest reviews rather than simply the essays are good. If you are interested in reviewing the essays respond here or by pm and I will select a few people to send the essays to.
Mark |
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Mark_Chandaue Inner circle Essex UK 4191 Posts |
Last minute addition to the Collectors edition. Myke Phillips has generously donated his Searchlight principle from Olivia. So if you missed it in Olivia you will find it here.
Mark |
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Mark_Chandaue Inner circle Essex UK 4191 Posts |
All review copies have been sent out. Thanks for all of your pm's and apologies to those who were not selected.
Mark |
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IAIN Eternal Order england 18807 Posts |
I don't think it was me that suggested that, sir...
I've asked to be banned
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Mark_Chandaue Inner circle Essex UK 4191 Posts |
Quote:
On Jun 11, 2016, IAIN wrote: Actually I just checked the original thread and you are right it was me lol, you merely commented that it was great. However it was your post that moved it from an idea to a decision so you deserve at least a 50% discount off either version. Mark |
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NeilS Inner circle 3237 Posts |
Mark sent me copies of the essays from Harpercrown and I was engrossed. Some of the essays are personal and describe Mark's background and the way he has coped - and grown stronger - through certain adversities. In what Mark writes there are valuable lessons to learn and his words and story inspire.
Some of the essays are also thought provoking. They include his thoughts on becoming professional and all this entails, of how we - as magicians or mentalists - explain what we do, as well as how to make effects more relevant and applicable. Here Mark's idea on the effect Kioku can, for instance, really transform the presentation and make it more memorable for the spectator. The essays are very well written and it is obvious Mark has laboured long and hard over this book. On the strength of these essays, I will definitely be buying the book and, if what I have read is anything to go by, this could be one of the major publications of the year. Neil |
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RedDevil Inner circle Deep South 1315 Posts |
REVIEW of HARPACROWN Preview Essays...
If there is a story about the truth of magic, one of the truest ones is that a lemon and a thum8tip can sometimes save your arse from starving. And more, the roots of magic over the centuries are buried proudly in such tales...tales of street urchins dressed in purple velvet pitching to the common folk, of wandering gypsies promising love with a potion (for a price), and of children trailing after burdened souls who are fighting the woes of life with the only weapons they own...cards, coins, scarves, and a triumphant, wistful wink of the inner eye. If you aren't careful and you think about this too much, you might arrive at the conclusion that the essence of MAGIC is not so much about the superficial goal of performing "tricks," but about life's struggle to "feed something"...starting with the base hunger of the belly and ego, rising toward filling the practical voids of our purses and responsibilities, and then eventually ending up at where those things were pointing all along: our heart's craving for meaning and context. If that makes any sense at all, we have magician Mark Chandaue to thank for pointing in that direction. As he prepares his debut release of HARPACROWN, his new book of magic and mentalism, he was kind enough to send me a preview of some of the essays that readers will enjoy in the publication. Mark and I have had limited correspondence over the last few years, and I was familiar with his thinking only through the exchange of a few ideas from time to time. So I didn't know what to expect as I awaited delivery of the preview drafts. After completing multiple read-throughs, I have to say I was little surprised. I enjoyed all of the essays, and I think he is spot on and practical in all of it (more on that in a second). But of the seven essays he sent me, I was most engaged not in advice about "going pro" or "magician's guilt," but far more in the story about his father (titled "Ross Chandaue"). And I must say, I wondered at first if this was a good thing or not. But as I write, I say resoundingly...it's a very good thing. It's a good thing because what I think he is putting together is a treatise that not only appeals to our "hunger" for tricks and more tricks, but also reminds us that magic literally FEEDS us, that magic is just as much of a "why" as it is a "what" in many of our lives. In "Ross," Mark details his childhood and his journey to and in magic through the frame of his physically ailing father, an accomplished magician in his own right. At first, I thought the essay powerful but an awkward contrast with what I saw as the purpose of a typical magic book. And then I realized that I wish more magic/mentalism books connected tricks to life more often. Truth be told, the essay was telling me that I wasn't reading a typical magic book, and for me, reading the autobiographical tidbits planted throughout caused me to think about my own life stories with my own ghosts tied to that wonderful art of magic...which ignited my passion for the art even more as I read. And that is what I believe Mark's overall purpose is in these brief musings...to share his passion for the art (and its integrity) and invite you to do the same. Reading through them, you will hear his thoughts about the disease of magician's guilt, and the underlying mental virus that causes the symptoms. The solution is very simple and dead-on true (stated in just a few paragraphs), but not easy and not for the casual student. In his essay on "Respecting the Art," he speaks to the ubiquity of secrets accessible to to the curious, but does so without the cynicism and elitism that I read and hear from other artists in the recent years and months. Instead, he focuses on how we can better treat each other as performers and reminds us of basic things that need repeating when it comes to crediting of the past as we move our art forward. In "Making Sense of it All," he reminds us that we have to pay our dues in magic, and the values of hard work and receptivity to criticism are keys to success. Again, he subtly points to magic as a metaphor for just about any other learning we do in life. By relating a few autobiographical sketches about his growth in magic, he reminds us that humility and learning from failure are just as vital as praise and fame as we develop in the art. He then moves on to discussion of the "logical disconnect" (as named by Bob Cassidy) in designing presentations for our effects, and I would have loved to see more specific examples of this concept illustrated elsewhere in the book. (I am at a disadvantage here because I have only read the essays, not the effects, in HARPACROWN). If you want a sobering wake-up about the ideal of "Going Pro," Mark attempts to keep us grounded in the realities that go with living in the shoes of a professional magician/mentalist. He points to the common tendency for us to dream only of the highs of being the life of the party while forgetting that in order to survive, we have to master the tricks of the business end (taxes, accounting, marketing, etc.). If you are not careful and you forget about the less exciting details of going pro, you might just find yourself living on a park bench sooner than you wish (which ironically means that while magic can indeed feed you, it can also do the opposite!). One essay in particular, "WWPTD?" (an homage to his friend Peter Turner), is a well-communicated teaching on the use of "process" to build more compelling and believable presentations for mentalism effects. Using the base example of stealing a person's birthdate with an i#p, he walks through how you can not only make the revelation more entertaining, but also hide the method as well. The purpose is to start a frame of thinking as we design any presentation because let's face it: Presentation is far more important than method, and the best of the best know this (thus, the nod to Peter, who is pretty decent in his presentation skills.... I must digress here (and I don't think Peter would disagree), but I think the best way to become the next Peter Turner is...not try to act like Peter Turner. With that said, Peter and many others have figured out the "best practice" of presentational scripting, and I get what Mark is saying. Mark is an entertaining and clear writer, though he will admit to you his grammar/editing might need a little work. Unless you are OCD, you won't be distracted, and I believe you will find as I did that his ideas are very clear and engaging...and inspiring. I can't wait to read the effects that these essays tie together, and I must say that Mark is a very generous and helpful human being. I can almost picture a blind master magician's son, living hand to mouth with a broken heart and cold fingers on the streets of London...He is surrounded by a 100 people...They are in the presence of a son of the art of magic...He has them spellbound and captivated...With a lemon and a thum8tip... Robert "RedDevil" Cosley
www.reddevilmentalism.com
F-F-U-L-Ri-F-F-Li-R-U-F-F |
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Orlan Loyal user WA 223 Posts |
Did the title of this thread change, or am I just going crazy?
In my mind, the title of the book was HarpERcrown, and I have an email notification from earlier (I double checked), where it says HarpERcrown. I was confused when the most recent notification said HarpAcrown. Regardless of my own confusion, count me interesting. |
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Mark_Chandaue Inner circle Essex UK 4191 Posts |
Yes the title changed, the book is called HARPACROWN but for some reason my Android tablet always autocorrects it to HARPERCROWN. I started the thread on my Android tablet and missed the autocorrection so reported the post and asked the mods to correct it for me which they have kindly done.
Thanks for the lovely reviews Neil and Robert and thanks for the kind words about me personally. One of the things the struggles in that first essay taught me is that the only thing of true value on this planet is people. You can have all the riches that this world has to offer and it means absolutely nothing if you have nobody to share it with. On the other hand you can have not a pot to pee in or a window to chuck it out of and you will still get by if you have at least one true friend. There is nothing on this planet worth losing a friend for, don't trample over gold to get to tin. Incidentally one of the reasons this book has taken around 2 years to write is because I am dyslexic. This is rarely apparent in my posts on here because unless someone replies quickly I edit them 3 or four times (this post required 3 edits so far) after posting to remove all the errors. I only put this here to say that whatever you think your limitations are, they aren't. Mark |
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DrewBstoss Special user SLC, Utah 583 Posts |
Mark has graciously shared some of the essays with me and although I've not made NEARLY the dent in reading them as I would've liked (life has been busy lately) - I wanted to jump on here for a quick moment to share my thoughts on the Introduction and the essay titled "Ross Chandaue".
As I've mentioned before, I've been fortunate enough to appreciate a few select ideas that Mark has shared on forums/groups that we're both a part of. I recognized early on that Mark had a special talent for mentalism but these essays have revealed deeply rich and inspiring aspects of Mark's life outside of the discipline. The Introduction is just that - an overview of Mark's purpose for sharing the material as well as some frank admissions about what to expect from the contents. I've never been fortunate enough to meet Mark in person but he does a great job letting his personality emerge through the text. The essay on his father, "Ross Chandaue", was poignant, utterly captivating, and (for me) a welcome breath of fresh air in our community's literature. As I continue my path in mentalism I find myself less and less interested in the "how" and more and more drawn to the "why's" and "what's". WHY do YOU structure your routines in a certain way. WHY did you choose THAT technique over the others available. WHAT motivates YOU and WHAT are you communicating as an ARTIST. This essays provides insights into Mark - as a son, father, friend, and magical thinker - that are at once vulnerable yet inspiring. No doubt the recent loss of my own father a month ago made it all the more personal and relevant - but I can't imagine that this story of struggle and triumph won't touch all who read it looking for more than methods. I've skimmed over a number of the other essay's but haven't been able to "sink my teeth in" - from what I've seen though I'm confident in saying that Atlas' "The Intrepid Rogue's Manual of Deception" will find a welcome companion in "HARPACROWN". If you appreciated Atlas' initiative to move beyond the tricks than I imagine that you'll feel similar motivation behind Mark's work. I'm fond of a quote by Eugene Buger, "Magic is about LIFE, not the props." I sincerely hope that authors continue this recent trend to share more than "props" (ie. methods) and help readers connect with them as PEOPLE. More to come. Best, Drew
"The world always seems brighter when you've just made something that wasn't there before." Neil Gaiman
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Mark_Chandaue Inner circle Essex UK 4191 Posts |
I've now had the quotes for printing etc. Unfortunately I'm going to have to raise the price slightly to £125 for the Collectors Edition and £50 for the softback. The reason for this is that I have gone for the highest quality in every aspect such as using illustrations rather than photos and the top options on the printing and binding. I want this to be a book that people will be proud to own. The material is also very solid practical routines.
Now that the print ready files are done and are with Mr Haresign I will be setting up a page to pre-order the book. However if you wish to pre-order immediately you can PayPal markbsh1(at)gmail.com. It's going to be tight to hit the deadline of 10th July for both editions but should there be any delays they will be minor ones. I will cover the shipping worldwide on all pre-orders. Also please specify whether you would like it signed. If signed state whether you want it signed to a specific person or an undedicated signature. Mark |
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Daren Inner circle 2051 Posts |
Just sent payment Mark, please confirm you got it ok?
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