So many excellent phrases here, Nathan, that it would be too time-consuming to list them all. I thought at first you were talking about new books, then really expensive first editions, and then I realised what you were up to. The overall effect was to make me (a) want to find out where I can go and see a close-up magic show, even though I haven't seen one since circa 2000 and not patrticularly missed it; (b) ask when you are going to record a video of yourself performing a trick or two; and (c) ask if thiis presages a return, on your part, to doing some close-up magic. You've done a great job of conveying, from your point of view, the magic of magic.
This was my intention at the start, so I'm glad this is what happened when reading. Some ambiguity at first that then expands into clarity.
There's probably a good number of great shows on in London all the time, though I'm not familiar with that local scene these days to know. The Blackpool Magic Convention just happened, and there's some great overview videos of the magic on display there. Just have a search on YouTube for "Blackpool magic convention 2025" and have a look at a few compilations to see if anything interests you.
RE: b) hmmm, I'm not sure. I've thought about it. There's actually some videos hosted on our local club library, but more of demonstration of specific sleights rather than any effects. You're better off watching the uber pros on YouTube or a live show if you can find one.
RE: c) maybe. The last year "work" was Jo's niece's wedding (hey Meg, if you see this!), which is a week away from being two years ago. Part of my issue is I only have so much brain space for hobbies, and writing has taken up a lot of that time since I've discovered my love for writing here. I'm still a member of a local club, though, and we meet once a month.
Another clever sleight of hand. It’s not all surprising to me that you’re a magician. Your prose is so tightly crafted and the subjects you write about so slippery and elusive.
I'm not sure why, but i kept thinking you were talking about cassette tapes. I continued to think they were cassette tapes even as the descriptions mounted that said they couldn't be. It was a pleasurable confusion, and I kept reading. All of this is apropos of not much, so forgive me, I just really enjoyed this piece and I would have, and now do, knowing my mistake. Great writing.
Such a lovely comment, thanks Joseph. Deliberate on my part to not let it be clear until the end, along with the photo that had a sort of cassette-tape quality to it.
Happy to have sowed some pleasurable confusion. ;)
Eavesdropping on a conversation with the third eye of a Master Of The Deck . An advanced course in creative writing for those working towards a doctoral degree in The Art of Card; how to become one with the deck. Where inanimate becomes the animate.
Maybe this is a similar feeling when I lay my skis down in the snow and hear that satisfying click into my bindings.
( And to think, I almost missed out on reading these stunning intricacies of your magical mind).
So beautiful, Nathan. I can feel the texture of those decks and each card in my hand: the sound, the smell. It’s all so vivid; I’m pleasantly surprised. I didn’t know about your passion for magic or that you actually practiced it. I’ll go read your early piece on it. I’m so curious now! :)
I haven’t looked at your other piece yet. :( Just to give you some context: I’m in the middle of two moves happening pretty much at the same time, and I’m going insane. But getting to read your stuff is one of the few things that could give me some respite, so I plan on doing it soon!
One (almost) down; one to go. It is hectic, and I know I don’t have to express these concerns with you. I'm now starting to tackle all accumulated comments. Hang in there with your things! We’ll be here when the dust settles. :)
Wonderful to see you back here. (I’m just catching up on some notifications now. My week has been non-stop and with almost zero time for writing and reading!)
Thank you, my friend. I’m still on and off (much more off than on). I can imagine how hectic your schedule must be. Take it easy on here, nobody runs away. :)
What a sensual piece! I will never hold a deck of cards the same, you opened my senses and reminded them that beauty lives everywhere, our own failing if we miss it.
⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️I mean! LOVE THIS SO MUCH.
“The cards come gliding out, gliding as though their freedom has finally arrived. You are their saviour. You have accepted them just as they have accepted you.”
I was thinking of your magic post before the postscript. So much symbolism - cards of fate (etc etc) and the magic element. We are doing Streetcar in one of my classes and were focused on the card motif today. So much to discuss!
Really love the atmosphere you create here and the second perfect effect is lovely. I also tackled second person this week! Great read, Nathan.
Yeah, a nice coincidence with the double up of second person this week! I think I had this mostly penned when I read yours, and it felt like a nod that it was the right decision to go with second person. 😁
Oooh, Streetcar. Nice. We saw a production of that recently in Melbourne. Well, I say recently. It was last year sometime. Six months ago? Who knows. 😆
I seem to recall reading elsewhere of your love for magic - not the link I just read, another. It doesn't surprise me Nathan, you weave so much magic into your prose and your stories and with such gifted expertise, it has to come from deep within, from a passion and a love! It shows!
Writing in the second person... you nailed that too!
Beautiful piece full of wonder & promise. As the narrator caresses the cards, your words caress the reader.
Interesting that I probably read some things differently than intended. Mainly I thought (hoped) it was a tarot deck rather than playing cards because like you with playing cards, I had a slight obsession with tarot cards not so long ago & still have many decks that I use every now & then. Some also stupidly expensive...
Secondly, this sentence "Enclosed within their sacred box, you slide them into your pocket." pushed me out of the second person immersion just a tiny bit because women-marketed trousers don't have pockets large enough for a pack of cards. It's an eternal pet peeve! Just a minor detail in the story though.
Thanks, Vanessa. That's a very good point about pockets and something I didn't think about at all! Great to know, though. This was, in essence, from my own perspective, so the pockets were there for me. ;)
Unusual piece, Nathan. Second person is the best choice for the intimate voice here. Great call. Until you clarified in the afterword, I heard the voice of a man addicted to gambling, with his microscopic, sensual description.. Magic never occurred to me!
Love this image "They are slippery, like little flat fish, yet somehow they retain their whole."
Your writing delights like a close-up magic trick--graceful and smooth until it takes a mysterious turn! I always enjoy the playful spirit you conjure.
Thanks, Ann! This one was a bit of a relief and joy to write, actually, especially compared to the last few entries that have been somewhat dark and more intense.
Nice piece, Nathan. I love the words “one-after-another-after-another whisper until the whole deck is interlaced.” A wonderful image for me of both the cards speaking to the subject (which I guess is me) and the cards speaking to themselves. And what a clever use of the first footnote: you hope this is second person. Awesome. Thanks for this one!
Love the way you are able to make such drama of a simple ritual. Never would have thought I’d be on the edge of my seat for a person selecting a deck of cards! (At first I thought it was cassette tapes, ha.)
Second person is so intriguing, and a struggle to write in my opinion. Nicely done.
Thanks for the lovely comment. I think I've learnt over the years that I really enjoy when a process is described in somewhat minute, intimate detail. So thought I'd try it myself.
Yeah, I wanted that ambiguity there at the beginning as even the image isn't all that clear unless you read some of the text.
Definitely agree re: second person. Quite rare. And quite rare for me to enjoy it. I bounced off of Fifth Season a little because of the second person, though I totally respect and admire the choice.
Yes the ambiguity works well - I think it added to the propulsion of the passage, as the reader is pulled along by their curiosity, trying to figure out what the item might be.
So many excellent phrases here, Nathan, that it would be too time-consuming to list them all. I thought at first you were talking about new books, then really expensive first editions, and then I realised what you were up to. The overall effect was to make me (a) want to find out where I can go and see a close-up magic show, even though I haven't seen one since circa 2000 and not patrticularly missed it; (b) ask when you are going to record a video of yourself performing a trick or two; and (c) ask if thiis presages a return, on your part, to doing some close-up magic. You've done a great job of conveying, from your point of view, the magic of magic.
Thanks so much, Terry.
This was my intention at the start, so I'm glad this is what happened when reading. Some ambiguity at first that then expands into clarity.
There's probably a good number of great shows on in London all the time, though I'm not familiar with that local scene these days to know. The Blackpool Magic Convention just happened, and there's some great overview videos of the magic on display there. Just have a search on YouTube for "Blackpool magic convention 2025" and have a look at a few compilations to see if anything interests you.
RE: b) hmmm, I'm not sure. I've thought about it. There's actually some videos hosted on our local club library, but more of demonstration of specific sleights rather than any effects. You're better off watching the uber pros on YouTube or a live show if you can find one.
RE: c) maybe. The last year "work" was Jo's niece's wedding (hey Meg, if you see this!), which is a week away from being two years ago. Part of my issue is I only have so much brain space for hobbies, and writing has taken up a lot of that time since I've discovered my love for writing here. I'm still a member of a local club, though, and we meet once a month.
Another clever sleight of hand. It’s not all surprising to me that you’re a magician. Your prose is so tightly crafted and the subjects you write about so slippery and elusive.
Thanks, Ben!
Themes of my life, haha. 😆
I'm not sure why, but i kept thinking you were talking about cassette tapes. I continued to think they were cassette tapes even as the descriptions mounted that said they couldn't be. It was a pleasurable confusion, and I kept reading. All of this is apropos of not much, so forgive me, I just really enjoyed this piece and I would have, and now do, knowing my mistake. Great writing.
Such a lovely comment, thanks Joseph. Deliberate on my part to not let it be clear until the end, along with the photo that had a sort of cassette-tape quality to it.
Happy to have sowed some pleasurable confusion. ;)
Thanks so much for reading and leaving a comment.
I love that you are so passionate about something so simple. Beautifully described.
Thanks so much Joanna. 🤗
Eavesdropping on a conversation with the third eye of a Master Of The Deck . An advanced course in creative writing for those working towards a doctoral degree in The Art of Card; how to become one with the deck. Where inanimate becomes the animate.
Maybe this is a similar feeling when I lay my skis down in the snow and hear that satisfying click into my bindings.
( And to think, I almost missed out on reading these stunning intricacies of your magical mind).
Those are all excellent titles that perhaps I should have used for the post. ;)
I imagine it's exactly that feeling. Something done over and over again towards mastery and a sense of it being an extension of your body and self.
(Glad to have you back!!)
So beautiful, Nathan. I can feel the texture of those decks and each card in my hand: the sound, the smell. It’s all so vivid; I’m pleasantly surprised. I didn’t know about your passion for magic or that you actually practiced it. I’ll go read your early piece on it. I’m so curious now! :)
Thanks Silvio. If nothing else, this was a good exploration of Second Person for me.
Magic is an old hobby for me, but one I’ve never fully let go of. That other linked piece goes over a bit of that history.
I haven’t looked at your other piece yet. :( Just to give you some context: I’m in the middle of two moves happening pretty much at the same time, and I’m going insane. But getting to read your stuff is one of the few things that could give me some respite, so I plan on doing it soon!
Never any need to be concerned with getting to a piece in any kind of timely manner, my friend.
Hope the moves go well. Sounds hectic.
I'm also dealing with a few significant things at the moment that are hurting my brain and making me wish it was all a bit simpler!
One (almost) down; one to go. It is hectic, and I know I don’t have to express these concerns with you. I'm now starting to tackle all accumulated comments. Hang in there with your things! We’ll be here when the dust settles. :)
Good to hear you’re almost there. One to go!
Wonderful to see you back here. (I’m just catching up on some notifications now. My week has been non-stop and with almost zero time for writing and reading!)
Thank you, my friend. I’m still on and off (much more off than on). I can imagine how hectic your schedule must be. Take it easy on here, nobody runs away. :)
how did I not know you were a magician?? or did I know??? the sensory details in this were perfect.
Thanks, Clancy. It’s something that’s only come up twice in two years here I think, haha.
At first I thought MCs! But then of course! I knew. And now I am wondering… will we see you perform on Substack? A live magic card shuffle…? Hmmmm
Hehe. Maybe I can film something.
I can only speak for myself but I would love to see some magic :)
What a sensual piece! I will never hold a deck of cards the same, you opened my senses and reminded them that beauty lives everywhere, our own failing if we miss it.
⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️I mean! LOVE THIS SO MUCH.
“The cards come gliding out, gliding as though their freedom has finally arrived. You are their saviour. You have accepted them just as they have accepted you.”
Hehe, yay, may you forever feel inspired whenever you hold a deck of cards.
Thanks so much, Kimberly!
I was thinking of your magic post before the postscript. So much symbolism - cards of fate (etc etc) and the magic element. We are doing Streetcar in one of my classes and were focused on the card motif today. So much to discuss!
Really love the atmosphere you create here and the second perfect effect is lovely. I also tackled second person this week! Great read, Nathan.
Yeah, a nice coincidence with the double up of second person this week! I think I had this mostly penned when I read yours, and it felt like a nod that it was the right decision to go with second person. 😁
Oooh, Streetcar. Nice. We saw a production of that recently in Melbourne. Well, I say recently. It was last year sometime. Six months ago? Who knows. 😆
Oh that’s great! Never seen it live. There’s one playing here but only tickets left were about £400 so opted out 🫣
Ouch, yeah, that's mega expensive!
I seem to recall reading elsewhere of your love for magic - not the link I just read, another. It doesn't surprise me Nathan, you weave so much magic into your prose and your stories and with such gifted expertise, it has to come from deep within, from a passion and a love! It shows!
Writing in the second person... you nailed that too!
Thanks so much, Susie.
Yeah, I might have mentioned it elsewhere at times. Actually, it's there at the start of my post about Solenoid (and probably elsewhere too).
I'm really behind this week! I have two of your posts open on my laptop that I'll be getting to soon. 🤗
Beautiful piece full of wonder & promise. As the narrator caresses the cards, your words caress the reader.
Interesting that I probably read some things differently than intended. Mainly I thought (hoped) it was a tarot deck rather than playing cards because like you with playing cards, I had a slight obsession with tarot cards not so long ago & still have many decks that I use every now & then. Some also stupidly expensive...
Secondly, this sentence "Enclosed within their sacred box, you slide them into your pocket." pushed me out of the second person immersion just a tiny bit because women-marketed trousers don't have pockets large enough for a pack of cards. It's an eternal pet peeve! Just a minor detail in the story though.
Thanks, Vanessa. That's a very good point about pockets and something I didn't think about at all! Great to know, though. This was, in essence, from my own perspective, so the pockets were there for me. ;)
Tarot cards would be an excellent one to cover.
Unusual piece, Nathan. Second person is the best choice for the intimate voice here. Great call. Until you clarified in the afterword, I heard the voice of a man addicted to gambling, with his microscopic, sensual description.. Magic never occurred to me!
Thanks Sharron. Happy that it was a surprise and ambiguous, though it certainly could apply to gambling.
Love this image "They are slippery, like little flat fish, yet somehow they retain their whole."
Your writing delights like a close-up magic trick--graceful and smooth until it takes a mysterious turn! I always enjoy the playful spirit you conjure.
Thanks, Ann! This one was a bit of a relief and joy to write, actually, especially compared to the last few entries that have been somewhat dark and more intense.
I think that's my favourite line, too.
Nice piece, Nathan. I love the words “one-after-another-after-another whisper until the whole deck is interlaced.” A wonderful image for me of both the cards speaking to the subject (which I guess is me) and the cards speaking to themselves. And what a clever use of the first footnote: you hope this is second person. Awesome. Thanks for this one!
That's a great analysis of the cards in that moment. Thanks, Brian.
(I must admit, I mostly wrote that footnote to amuse myself, hehe.)
Love the way you are able to make such drama of a simple ritual. Never would have thought I’d be on the edge of my seat for a person selecting a deck of cards! (At first I thought it was cassette tapes, ha.)
Second person is so intriguing, and a struggle to write in my opinion. Nicely done.
Hey Stephanie!
Thanks for the lovely comment. I think I've learnt over the years that I really enjoy when a process is described in somewhat minute, intimate detail. So thought I'd try it myself.
Yeah, I wanted that ambiguity there at the beginning as even the image isn't all that clear unless you read some of the text.
Definitely agree re: second person. Quite rare. And quite rare for me to enjoy it. I bounced off of Fifth Season a little because of the second person, though I totally respect and admire the choice.
Yes the ambiguity works well - I think it added to the propulsion of the passage, as the reader is pulled along by their curiosity, trying to figure out what the item might be.