wowbound BlogSpace: April 2010

Chris Wasshuber overseas his prized baby, Lybrary.com with passion and care--growing to be the number one ebook supplier in the magic/mentalism market. He's been a strong supporter of our BackStory Project and CrossRoads was his best-seller of 2009. I find his take on the current situation (the slamming of Silent Running from a vocal minority) to be refreshing and balanced.

It's reprinted from his newsletter 406 (8th April, 2010).

"Many creations by Ben Harris seem to polarize the fan base. I experienced
this first hand with his best selling "Crossroads" last year. It was a
highly anticipated effect. The majority of customers loved it but there was
a vocal group that voiced their disappointment mostly because Crossroads
used equivoque.

Equivoque is a powerful tool, but it is not easy to do well, so I
understand that some were disappointed. Now with "Silent Running" we again
have a very similar response. Most are very happy with the purchase, many
are even creating their own versions and takes on the Silent Running method
(see product forum posts and posts on public forums). One of the strengths
of Silent Running is that Ben has eliminated equivoque. However, now the
criticism is often: "Why did you take out equivoque? Equivoque is so much
stronger!" Which proves that you can't please everybody all the time.

Now that I had some time to reflect on Silent Running and come up with a
few changes for my own use it is time for me to make a few more comments.
After all I wrote that this is likely going to be the best effect of 2010,
perhaps of the decade.

If with 'best' we mean 'best selling' then Silent Running has a very good
chance to actually achieve what I have predicted. If we mean with 'best'
'best NEW method' then I think the chances are also pretty good, because
Silent Running is in total a new procedure, a new method to achieve certain
effects. If we want to understand 'best' as the 'strongest effect ever
created' then no Silent Running is not that. However, if we form a ratio of
effect versus effort, then I think Silent Running ranks up there with the
very best effects created. And this last measure was really the measure I
had in mind when I wrote my comment about possibly the best effect in 2010.

Silent Running is a sleight-less concept. It is so easy that some routines
can be performed 10 minutes after reading the description. There is really
nothing to it. You give a few directions and boom a strong effect hits the
spectator. I have a love for self-working tricks and Silent Running ranks
among a handful of really great self-working effects. From that perspective
I have no issue at all to stand behind my word and to highly recommend it.

However, it is certainly not stronger than say a well executed classic
force. But that would be comparing apples to oranges in my opinion. Of
course, a well executed classic force leaves no trace for a spectator to
backtrack and reverse engineer a possible method. Silent Running does allow
a clever spectator to find cracks and chinks in the armor and with thought
find the solution or at least come closer to an explanation. But the
execution of a classic force will take you years to perfect and pull off
consistently under fire. With Silent Running you can step out after a few
minutes and do a very impressive trick. As always it depends on your
circumstances if this is a 'best of' trick or not.

Well, at least that explains why for me it is likely going to be the best
trick of 2010 because my primary metric is effect/effort and not the
absolute effect by itself--but then again what do I know, I am merely a
hobbyist and do not make my living performing magic. Your milage may vary.
But if I look at what some of the top professionals in this business have
to say about Silent Running, it seems to be highly useful for them as well."

Why not purchase Silent Running from lybrary.com by clicking this link:

http://www.lybrary.com/silent-running-p-64823.html

Cheers

Benny