But do they think it's magical?

[Jonathan Townsend]

Not sure if the book is well known as available here in the US yet - but anyway here's some advanced notice. There's a recent work on empathy that may guide some insights into effective scripting for audiences and realtime performing tips.

This is about the "what do they think/feel/believe" aspect of our craft. Some have noticed and started to discuss the mirror neuron system and its basic relation to a "that's not what would happen if I were doing that" type model of a perception of magical effects. What's discussed in the book is the larger issue of people having a "if that were me" sense.

So here we are - we have a magic mental mirror that lets us see ourselves wearing a different shirt or when it's used in context - to have a sense of what others might be experiencing as if this reflection were not visual but mental.

The more fantasy oriented might want to reread the Alistair Reynolds story "The Great Wall of Mars" or reconsider which characters have a sentimental dimension in the movie 2001.

I hope this topic and its fledgling studies brings some useful insights into our studies of how to use what we know to bring small (and hopefully delightful) surprises into the worlds of others.

Jon