“Aaron has created a very effective method for the ‘Think of a card’ plot,I will be using this!” ——Ran Pink
RUM Aaron Ye With special thanks to Jisoo Nam
Foreword First, I want to thank those who helped, especially Shiro lshida and Ran Pink, because they gave me a lot of help and advice. This effect was a small idea, but it turned out to be a really good one. This Think of a Card effect is one of my best material; hope you like it.
Why and How did I develop this Think of a Card Before I write this, I think I have to talk about how did I developed this routine. First of all, I am really into the idea of people thinking of a card and tell them what card they were thinking of, but I didn’t have my version of Think of a Card. One night, for some reason, I could not fall asleep, and I was thinking of a about of random things, but somehow I started to think of area of Magic. I thought of every single Think of a Card effects I know and one idea just came into my mind. At first, I was thinking how can I know the card in others’ mind. Because we are not real mind reader, so we have to somehow figure out the card they were thinking of. I thought of pure psychological forces, but I cannot rely on it. So I started to think why not just use a little force at a time, and use force to make sure I know what they are thinking of. If I really want to make sure what card my audiences are
going to think of, why don’t I just ask them what they are thinking of? But if they told me their card, it won’t be impressive though. What should I do? “Then just ask them without them noticing~” A voice from my head. yup. And I was thinking of the method of this little idea. The most original method is to use minimal amount of psychological forces and “ask” audience remaining informations.
Few days later, a lot of new ideas started to come into my mind. I talked to a lot of friends, so I got more and more useful methods. Now, I have the final version of my Think of a Card. Let’s talk about it. Enjoy!
NOTE: White Room by Ran Pink is the main inspiration. I can say that this is a very pure, and very close to real mind reading, so I highly recommend this book.
Effect: Mentalist asks audience to imagine he is in a round building, there is a table in the center of the building, also a paper on the table. Audience imagines his card is printed on the paper; don’t need to write down nor say out loud just think and imagine. Ask the audience to roll the paper into a little ball and throw it in Mentalist’s head. Slowly, mentalist can tell what card they were thinking of. No gimmick, do not even need cards. Just only pure imagination.
Method: This effect was inspired by Ran Pink’s white room. That is a great effect and really close to real mind reading effect. I really recommend you to buy one and have a look. In this book, I am only going to talk about my version.
Spectator is going to think of a card, but not any card randomly. The reason they think they have thought of any card is because of False Memory. All they will remember is that they have thought of any card they want ( a free choice ), and Mr. Mentalist read their mind and told them what they were thinking of.
We will apply a hidden force that the spectator will not notice. Lets divided the force into parts. First, you have to limit their choice of number between 1 and 10, but they will not think they were limited by anything; they will think they had totally free choice. False memory will be explained later.
Imagine you are in a huge round building, you are in the center of the building. This is your own space. There is nothing but a table in front of you.Can you imagine?” Audience said yes. I want you to take a deep breath and relax, imagine nothing is in here but a table, Look on the desk, you find a piece of paper, and a number, which is between 1 to 10,appears on the paper . Remember the number.”
Now, he is thinking of a number between 1 and 10. This is a totally free choice, but make sure it is not 10, so you can do some limitation using your favorite method. I have performed it to a lot of people but almost no one thought of 10, so you do not have to worry about it. You can also emphasize on the word “between” in order to reach this
goal.
“Imagine the paper floating in the sky, pleas do imagine that and stare on the number on the paper.” (This line is really important, we need the audience to focus on the imagination but not how they choose the number. It is the main session in building false memory)
If your number is an odd number, then think of Club or Spade next to the number(Stop for a second to make sure they really are doing what they were told to do.If the audience is really thinking of a odd number, they will have some kind of reaction, like nodding the head, or looing upward.).” If they got any reaction like looking away or nodding, then you may think their number is an odd number and they are thinking of Spade or Club. If the audience has no reaction, you can basically say that the audience is thinking of a even number.
If you are thinking of an even number, please think the suit hearts or diamonds, can you imagine?” ( stop for a second to let them imagine, and do the same
observation as odd number. ) After doing the above, you will have the first idea on the number, which in an odd number or even number.
You have a number in your mind that no one in the world would know, right?
( Build the mindset that is only known by
him alone. )
You also have a Suit, and no one know what suit you are thinking of right? It could be any suits like Clubs, Hearts, Spades, and Diamonds. (You have limited their choice based on the number they are thinking of. If they are thinking of an odd number, then they will get a black suit. If they are thinking of an even number, then they will have a red suit in their mind.) “You now have a number and a suit on the piece of paper in front of you, and they make up a playing card aren’t they?” He says, “YES”
“Imagine that paper is floating over here(Point in front of you,
which is between you and him). This will give the audience a strong feeling that the card is belongs to them only, which the mentalist do not know about it. When the audience is focusing on the imagination, they will miss lots of stuff and create a false feeling.
Look at your card. It could be any card, and it was totally free choice, right? You can choose any card beside JQK and Jokers, right”
Audience will agree your word even you have already limited the odd and even number also the suits. The mindset in the audience is that mentalist don’t even know what number I am think of, so they have no clue which suit I am thinking of. We need to emphasize on “look the card is floating in front of you”. If the audience do it right, he will have the feeling that the card is only his card, no one in the word will know about it. You can choose any card beside JQK and Jokers, right?” When you say this line, the audience will not consider how they choose the card. He will only focus on how to imagine
the card in the mind. So, when you say choose any cad beside JQK and Jokers, they will agree with you. At this point, the false memory is created.
Next, you are going to imagine the color of the card to double confirm the number. “I now want you to imagine, if your card is a red card, then imagine this card is on fire. It is burning into ashes. Can you imagine?” (Check if they have any reaction toward this statement.)(If the audience shows reaction, number will be even, if not, it will be an odd number.)
*How do they react and how to catch it --People will look up if you ask them to picture something in their mind, so they will look up for a moment if you ask them to picture something. When you ask a person to picture something visual in their mind , they will have to break eye contact,they have to be look up or look away in order to picture the things . human's brain just work like this.
the brain
have to command the body and commend the eyes to looking away and so that the mind can solely concentrate on the only one thing without the information input from the eyes.This is an old NLP technique and it works perfect! --Some people may just look away when you ask them to imagine something --They might nod or say something like “Yes” or “Ok” to you unconsciously
“If your card is a black card, then imagine numbers and pipes are getting smaller and smaller and they finally disappear so you card turn into a blank card.:(Check one more time) Now you should know if their number is odd or even, then you also should know the color of their card. If they are thinking of an odd number ,then it should be 1,3,5,7,or 9. If their number is an even number, then it is 2,4,6, or 8. Only few people will think of 1, so you can eliminate this number first (Ace). You have to check if their number is 5 or not.. “Loop the number you are thinking of in your head again and again. Like 5,5,5.” If their number is 5, then they will have some kind of reaction or they will have some kind of response. If they are not thinking of 5, then continue “fishing”.
“Imagine turn the paper into a paper ball, and I walk into you inside world. I want you to imagine put the ball on my hand, The clearer you imagine, the clearer I can get. (Stop a second for the audience to imagine) Seems I have got something. I don’t know for sure, I feel that is smaller than five, your number is not bigger than five, right?”
See the audience reaction, if he shows something, then you get a hit, if no say the following immediately
Oh, the paper change, more spots have been shown, it show be bigger than five ,yse?” If the audience haven’t shown you anything, you can just simply ask them to answer you “Yes” or “no. You say the miss was made by the audience’s concentration.
If their number is higher than 5, then it should be 7 or 9 if they are thinking of odd numbers, or 6 or 8 if they are thinking of even numbers. If their number is low than 5, then it is 1 or 3 if it is odd number, or it is 2 or 4 if they are thinking of even numbers. (Almost no one will choose 1, so if they are thinking of odd number lower than 5, then just take a shot. go with 3)
If their number is higher than 5 and it is an odd number “Really imagine your card is floating in front of you. I see the card 9 of space,(if the audience shows nothing say the
following.) I think I can see 9 pipes. You are thinking of 7 of spaces? On the card 7 of spaces, there are two more suit symbol on the corners” Same method, you can use it on number, 6,8, 1,3, 2,4. If they are thinking of 9, then they will have some kind of reaction. If they are not reacting, then continue.
Another method is to use Double Lift. As soon as you find out if their number is either higher or lower than 5, take out 6H 8H, or 2H 4H, or 7S 9S, or AS 3S. Cards are back to back, and show them the side with their card. Or, after you find out if their card is higher or lower than 5, then just take out one of two you think is their card. For example, If they are thinking of odd number higher than 5. You may just take out 9S and put it on the table, but do not draw too much attention. And say “You are thinking of 7 of Spades!” If you got it right, then you can just take the card back, but if you got it wrong, then just show them the card on the table. Also, you may use same script and method with different cards.
Or,another method to reveal the thought of card is simplely use Equivoque. For example ,once you know the card they thought of is higher than 5 ,and it is an even card, you can just pull out the 8H and 6H ,face down onto the table . ask
the
spectator what card he thought of ,after he
told you the card he thought of, Let’s say
the 6 of heart, all
you need to do is to force the 6H to him. magictrucos.com
let him to point one of the two card, and if he point the 6H,just let him take it ,and you reveal the card he choose is the card he though of.
if he point the 8H,all you need to do is
simplely get rid
of the card he just pointed and the only card left on the table is the card he thought of.
For those who doesn’t want to guess of the suit: If you really worry about getting the suit wrong, you can use NLP to find out what their suit is. If their card is black: “If you are thinking of clubs, then imagine there is a flower blooming in front of you.” (look if there is eye flicker or any kind of signs of they are imagining this image) “If you are thinking of Spades, then imagine this Spade just JUMPS out of the card.” If their card is red: “If you card is Heart, then I want you think of someone who is very close to you.” “If you are thinking of Diamond, then I want you to imagine their is diamond in front of you and it is growing bigger and bigger.” I am just giving you some examples, you may use your own scripts to do this, but you have to make sure images they are going to imagine is completely different, otherwise they won’t really do what you have told them to do. Also they all need to be different, otherwise audience will imagine
before you ask them to do so.
I personally think the suit is not so necessary , because most of people will go with either spades or hearts, but many magicians like clubs and diamonds. If you just take a chance, the effect will look a lot cleaner; it is only 50/50. Even if you got the suit wrong, it is still a strong effect, because spectators think they could have think of any card.
Notes: This think of a card routine seems very complicated but actually not. When you perform this, the rhythm is really fast like one to two minutes. To audience, they really think of any card in 52 choses, which the mentalist have no clue. If you think there is too many finishing, I recommend a method to limit the number to be less than five. “Imagine you are in a round building……….Please imagine there are couple lines appearing on the paper and count the number of the line on the paper.” Mostly, people wont think more than five lines. Also you need to use the word couple as people will not think 2 to three lines.
Idea from my friend Sunny: Due to NLP- Law of attraction, people will think of the things you tell then not to think. For example, (try this with me) “Imagine an pet in special color but not think of a blue cat.” I am sure that you have imagined a blue cat in your mind. By applying this theory, don’t say “please don’t think more than ten.”
When I was chatting with Shiro lshida, he told me to give audience more free choice, which means add Jack, Queen, and King in this routine. “Imagine there is a number on the paper. This number is between 1 and 13. Remember the number. If your number is between 1 and 10, then just remember it. If your number is between 11 and 13, then I want you to imagine them turning into Jack, Queen, or King. Jack and King represents Men, and Queen represents Women.” Check if there is any reaction. “You are thinking of Jack, Queen, or King. If this is a Jack, then I want you to imagine a picture of a little boy on the card. If this is a King, then I want you to imagine there is a old men on the card. If you are thinking of a Queen, then I want you to imagine there is a lovely lady on the Card.” Shiro lshida’s idea is quit useful if you want to give your
audience more choice, but it can make the routine longer and harder. I personally think it is not necessary. Shiro lshida also gave me an incredible idea. He used my
method of Think of a Card to make a ACAAN. No Gimmick Any Deck Instant Reset
Effect: “Think of any card,ok?” “Yes” “I may know what you are thinking” “No way” “Give my a number between 20-40” “25” “What’s your card” give the deck to the audience. “3 of Spaces” “Ok, take the deck and deal to 25 cards” Then you got a miracle!
Setting: Get a complete deck and find AS, 3S, AC, 3C, 7S, 9S, 7C, 9C, 2H, 4H, 2D, 4D, 6H, 8H, 6D, 8D. S is Spades, C is Clubs, H is Hearts, and D is Diamonds. Put these cards in 21st through 38th position of the deck in this order. 20 Random Cards,
AS, 3S, AC, 3C, 7S, 9S, 7C, 9C,
Random Card. Random Card, 2H, 4H, 2D, 4D, 6H, 8H, 6D, 8D, rest of random cards. *17th and 18th cards should be Jokers. *Everything is from the top, not bottom, not face of the card.
Method: First, you have to know if their card is higher or lower than 5, and if it is an odd number or an even number. You do not specifically know the suit of their card, because it does not really matter that much,and it makes this routine too long. After you knowing their card(they never tell you their card), you ask them for a random number between 1 and 52, and all you have to do is do a little bit math and move or add few cards on
the top using your favorite method(I.E. Pass). For example, If their card is an odd number and it is higher than 5, then it is 7C, 7S, 9C, or 9S. These four cards are in 25, 26,27, and 28th position of the deck. If audience named 29, then you just have to pass four cards or cut four cards to the top. Now 7S is in 29th position. If their card is 7C, then just tell the audience to remove Jokers from the deck, then 7C is in 29th position. If their card is 9S. 9S is at 30th position of the deck if you have added 4 cards to the top. so you can just deal down 29 cards, and 9S should be the next card. If their card is 9C, then just tell your audience to remove two Jokers and deal down 29 cards and next card is 9C. Conclusion: You just need to use simple control to add or subtract cards from the top or bottom. And you also have to make sure their number is between about 20 and 40. Make sure the Joker is at 18th and 19th position of the deck.
Special Thanks “Thank you so much for purchasing this book and your support. This is the best think of a card I known. I hope that you can try this and make use of this system. You can use this system to create lots of routine. Creation is unlimited, think and create more.”
21/6/2014
Credits Ben Harris
Ran Pink
Silent Running
White Room
Ben Seward Cog
