Jay, Joshua (editor): Magic In Mind ©2013 Joshua Jay Hardcover, w/dj, 551 pages Also in eBook (PDF) format

Image courtesy eBay seller Slacks!

Comments: Essential Essays for Magicians. Essays by a wide variety of magicians. No tricks! Hardcover was released in very limited numbers. Available as a free eBook from Vanishing, Inc. 

Contents (from eBook ToC);

3 Acknowledgements
11 Introduction (Joshua Jay)
 
15 Part One - Thinking Like a Magician
17 The Limitations of Theory (Tommy Wonder & Stephen Minch)
27 On A Definition of Magic (Charles Reynolds)
35 The Illusion of Impossibility (Simon Aronson)
39 Astonishment is Our Natural State of Mind (Paul Harris)
49 Approaches and Artifice (John Carney)
57 The Search for Mystery (Jamy Ian Swiss)
 
69 Part Two - Thinking Like our Audiences
71 Processes within the Spectator’s Mind (Dariel Fitzkee)
83 Why, What and Who?
89 Working with the Spectator in Mind (Derren Brown)
97 The Big Lie (Michael Close)
105 Inducing Challenges (Pit Hartling)
115 Creating Interest (Eugene Burger)
123 Popularity (S.H. Sharpe)
129 Spectators (René Lavand)
 
131 Part Three - Categorizing Magic
133 The Art of Conjuring (Jean-Eugene Robert-Houdin)
139 Classification of Effects (Dariel Fitzkee)
155 Tricks vs Illusions (Henning Nelms)
159 Fundamentals of Illusionism (Juan Tamariz)
 
167 Part Four - Effect
169 The “Too Perfect” Theory (Rick Johnsson)
183 Too Perfect, Imperfect (Tom Stone)
193 On the Structure of Magic Effects (Eugene Burger)
 
199 Part Five - Method
201 The Method is Not the Trick (Jamy Ian Swiss)
215 Picking the Best Method (Darwin Ortiz)
221 The Three Pillars (Tommy Wonder & Stephen Minch)
233 Method and Style and the Performing Mode (Pit Hartling)
239 Kort’s Cardinal Rules of Magic (Milt Kort)
 
241 Part Six - Technique
243 Showmanship as Technique (Darwin Ortiz)
263 Performing Principles (Arturo de Ascanio)
269 The Critical Interval (Darwin Ortiz)
275 Getting the Mis out of Misdirection (Wonder & Minch)
289 In-Transit Actions (Arturo de Ascanio)
293 Practice and Technique (John Carney)
301 Manipulating Memory (Darwin Ortiz)
321 Assumptions (Michael Close)
 
229 Part Seven - Presentation
331 The Other Half (David Regal)
341 Doug’s Theory Section (Doug Conn)
343 Language Skills (Ken Weber)
353 It’s Not the Destination It’s the Ride (David Kaye)
365 Character (David Regal)
 
371 Part Eight - Construction
373 The Horrible Truth (David Regal)
375 Conviction (Darwin Ortiz)
403 The Mind Movie (Tommy Wonder & Stephen Minch)
 
407 Part Nine - Get Your Act Together
409 Construction (Roberto Giobbi)
417 Secrets (Eugene Burger)
439 The Team (Eberhard Riese)
445 Distraction Progression Theory (David Kaye)
451 Making Contact (Derren Brown)
455 Lessons and Learning (Jamy Ian Swiss)
 
467 Part Ten - Originality
469 The Tyranny of the New (Eugene Burger)
477 Brushwood/Teller Correspondence
483 Against Originality In Magic (Whit Haydn)
489 Next Book Syndrome (Darwin Ortiz)
497 Perspective on our Personal Planets (John Carney)
503 Divisive and Illusion (Max Maven)
 
507 Epilogue - Art in Magic
509 Drama as Magic (Henning Nelms)
511 The Hierarchy of Mystery Entertainment (Ken Weber)
521 Secondhand Drama (Tommy Wonder & Stephen Minch)
527 The Real Secrets of Magic (Nevil Maskelyne)
531 Meaning and Vision (Derren Brown)
 
541 Final words (Joshua Jay)
543 Bibliography