First Years: Forcing Made Easy

by Jim Gerrish, with excerpts from Eleazar Goodenough and Professor Spellbinder

Magicians use forcing in card magic, to make someone select a particular card. Wizards may do the same thing with the Tarot, to make sure a certain card is chosen.

Magicians force other objects as a part of Mental Magic, or Mentalism, to make it seem as if they can read thoughts or predict the future. Wizards, do the same. When you make a person select a particular object, card, number, color, word, or idea... that is called forcing

In 1932, Theodore Annemann wrote a book called "101 Methods of Forcing." A couple of years later, he added another 101 methods, renaming the book "202 Methods of Forcing." Since that time, Magicians, Wizards and Mentalists have continued to add new forces by the bunches every year. I have no idea how many ways there now are to force, but it is probably in the thousands.

Don't let that worry you. You don't need to learn all the ways to force. I will begin with some of the easiest methods and then point the way to more difficult forces you might wish to learn next. After that, you're on your own.

Includes lessons on Direct forces as well as Range Forces.

Back to Wizards' Journal #8 Contents - Back to All Journals Contents - Back to The Magic Nook