Listen to Paddy, he knows.

Also, you can still have problems in a small community. One thing that bigger cities have less of a problem with, is familiarity. Just like in School it'll be hard for your friends to separate you as a person and you as a performer. Cellini and others talk about if you want to make it busking you MUST travel. I don't know if Paddy travels or not, but his situation is different. He's an established entertainer. That's how people know him. At this point, you're not. If you think your friends and family heckle you now, wait until a large group gets together away from the comfort of your home or school. They can be BRUTAL.

I've said it before, and it's not an age bias thing but TAKE SOMEONE WITH YOU. There's safety in numbers, plus you have the advantage of having someone in the crowd on your side. Have trouble gathering a crowd? Perform for him. People will stop to see what's going on and people attract people.

It'll be tougher, and as Paddy said you'll suck... BIG TIME. But if you survive that, you'll do fine.

Thanks for the words of warning and confidence paddy. I appreciate it.

i can tell u got a serious interest in busking since you signed up over at the sidewalkperformers.com forum .. me n everyone over there are full time on the street -- - i've been at it for almost 2 years , but the other guys over there have been at it much longer than me.. you should learn a lot from them..

get jimmy talksalots book too "lure with spectacle"

I was thinking about picking that up when I get my next paycheck George.

It's very good, but don't get it if you have already read Jimmytalksalots Blog.

actually, if you've read Jimmy's blog you'll have an idea of whats in the book... But he left out the most important things and saved them just for this publication ...

If you've read Jimmy's blog, don't think you've read the book ... you haven't..!

I honestly don't believe a word in any post that you make

In all honesty, Maloney, you won't be taken seriously. I am 17, and I don't think anybody would take me seriously either. It's just the image of a kid as an entertainer that puts people off, and leads them to the "Aww, look at him try" sort of attitude. Part of the problem is that hecklers will not only heckle you about your act, but also about your age, and that won't get you anywhere. So unless you are very intimidating, or you have something that will subtly but legally keep hecklers from mouthing off, I would wait some years.

But if you really think you can and will do it, go right ahead. And do keep us updated as to your first performance when you complete it.

I like the integrity of this post, but STRONGLY disagree with the example. You are diminishing the art of sleight of hand by saying that.

No he is not. Magic is VERY EASY!!! I can teach anybody how to do tricks in a few hours. The problem is once you know how to do a trick, you think you are a magician and can perform. Showmanship is what's entertaining and what makes a magician. kozmo is teaching his street act to anyone who buys a DVD. But I will gaurantee you that less than 10 people will be able to perform those effects and make money like koz does.

Well, first... I think it totally depends on the sleight used. Easy magic tricks are easy (obviously...), Hard magic tricks are... hard. Some sleights take a LOT of practice to do right.

I would however, totally agree with you that the thing that makes magic entertaining is all presentation. It's easy to find someone who can perform magic. It's hard to find someone who can perform it well.

I wasn't disagreeing with what he said. I was saying that I don't think that any old joe, 10 or older, could learn a sleight in 30 SECONDS!