How Do I Get a Trick Released With Vanishing Inc. Magic?
By Joshua Jay - Tuesday, October 22, 2019
This is, perhaps, the most common question we receive at conventions. I'm genuinely flattered when people are eager to be part of our brand and community. But sadly, most people go about it entirely wrong, and I thought it might be helpful to outline some Dos and Don'ts of getting publishing with our company. Here are five "commandments."
Be patient. At any one time, we're working on approximately seventy projects. George Luck, our project manager, manages an unwieldy agenda of tricks, videos, books, and downloads through a circuitous route to the marketplace. Some tricks are being prototyped in Asia, others are with an artist, others are being proof read. We have tricks that take three months to go to market, and we have several projects that have been in the works for more than three years. When we encounter an artist who's in a rush and pestering us to release his or her product "immediately," our inclination is to drop the project. There are many factors that go into a product's development, and nobody likes the added pressure of an impatient artist. We always strive to expedite things, but great tricks take time.
Do your homework. Suppose you submit a beautiful Book Test idea with a note that it's based on ideas by Ted Karmilovich and Luke Jermay. Great. But have you asked those people for permission to use their ideas? Have you sought permission for the copyrighted image you use on the cover? If we have to do your homework for you, we're less inclined to take on a project.
360 Degree Tricks. We like working with artists who think through their ideas completely. If you send along a "neat" gimmick but have no idea what presentation to use, or how to present it, we're less likely to accept it. We're looking for performance-tested material. Our tricks go through a rigorous test on our end, but in the best cases, they also have gone through hundreds (thousands?) of performances and improvements on your end, too. We love to receive two videos, one of a performance and one of an explanation. Of late, many performers are coy with the explanation video, but here's the thing: knowing how something works is key in our decision of releasing it. We have to know what we're manufacturing. Please, don't make us beg you to send the method.
Contact us through email. Let me make this clear mathematically:
Email > Facebook > IG DM > WhatsApp > personal email > private number. I'll say it bluntly: if I've never met you and you call my private number to pitch a trick, the answer is going to be "no." We love hearing from aspiring creators, but we have development meetings with our team where we look at and discuss new tricks. The best and only way to submit should be through our work email: magic@vanishingincmagic.com.
- Non-card, Parlor Effects are our jam. We like anything original and strong, but the marketplace particularly loves non-card tricks and things that can be done on stage. So, that's our priority at the moment.
If you'd like to read more on this topic, check out Andi's article on 1000 Performances.
Back to blog homepage
Similar posts on the blog:
