Today we’d like to introduce you to Aaron Stone.
Hi Aaron, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
How brief should I be? Here’s the short answer: First, I learned that magic can be good. Second, I learned I can get paid for it. That’s how I got here! But the details are amusing…
Absolutely, I can walk you through how I got to where I am today! I have always found magic interesting, but there’s two moments I can pinpoint as the moments that set me on my path. First, when I was in junior high. My class had gone to visit the high school on a “shadow day,” where we got to pretend to be high-schoolers for the day. In hindsight, it was more akin to a guided tour — and I found myself separated from the group, fascinated by what I saw inside one of the classrooms. The teacher was performing a trick for his students, and it wasn’t like the inexpensive (read: cheap) magic tricks I’d had, no, it was like something right off of television. I was amazed. I mentally noted the room number, and came back after school. I asked the teacher if he would show me how to do that magic trick I’d seen earlier, and he responded with a warm and confident “no.” He did, however, offer to teach me another trick — an easier one. If I practiced that one, and showed him I put in the effort, he’d teach me another tomorrow. That became a pattern, and I began learning something new to practice nearly every day. As an introvert who didn’t get to socialize outside of school much, “performing magic tricks” forced me out of my shell and made me interact with other people. Because really, what’s the point of a magic trick if you’re only showing yourself?
Flash forward two years, and while not Mr. Popularity by any means, I had garnered some attention as a magician. One day, a classmate asked me if I’d do some tricks at his birthday party, Excitedly, I said, “sure!” I was going to get to do a whole… “show”, instead of one or two rushed tricks between classes. I was a kid, and I was just happy to get asked to show off my work. It went well, and I had a lot of fun, but then his mom handed me an envelope with my name on it, and the words “for the magic show.” Inside was $75. To a 16-year-old in 2004, that was nothin’ to sneeze at, but my mind was blown: I can get paid for this?!
And I’ve been full steam ahead ever since.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The road here has been anything but smooth. I keep a good sense of humor about them all, though.
I don’t feel my struggles are unique, but my friends tell me otherwise.
I’m not sure how personal I should get, seeing as how the service I sell is myself.
Businesswise, stability is the biggest struggle. As a self-employed small business owner, sometimes a single client can make or break you. While we all strive to get ahead, to have a cushion for emergencies. It is often “feast or famine,” and we have to plan accordingly.
That said, I’ve said “yes” to a whole lot of jobs that I probably shouldn’t have, because I wanted to perform, regardless of how low the budget was or what awful circumstances I’d be subjecting myself to. Looking back, I can’t help but laugh at how many times I nearly died because “the show must go on!” At 36, I’d like to think I make much more responsible choices, now.
Personally, my struggles would probably be best collected in a book. That way, people could pretend they are fictional, and laugh them off like they do in real life. I don’t mean to sound cynical, I literally mean that people often tell me that my life sounds more like a sitcom than reality, wholly unbelievable. If you could only hear how hard I’m laughing. It’s a real struggle to share my struggles, ’cause most of ’em just seem too ridiculous.
In other words, I’ve taken on many jobs as a magician that have taught me a whole lot about the world and the people in it, and I’ve turned my “horror stories” into amusing anecdotes with life lessons attached. My magic show now includes several of those stories peppered throughout.
My struggles have taught me one truth about the universe: real magic is other people.
Ergo, my mission is to use magic to convince others to care more about each other.
Magician instructor John Reed once said, “I’m not trying to make people into better magicians, I’m trying to make magicians into better people.”
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I’m a professional magician, and that requires me to have a wide array of skills to pull from. My performance specialty is close-up sleight of hand, but I am often a sought-after consultant for stage illusion design, fabrication, and presentation.
When other magicians have an idea they want to try, I’m often one of the first people they call.
My skills in photography, graphic design, video production, voiceover, printing, machining, sewing, construction, electrical engineering, programming, and more are all called upon on a daily basis to solve unique problems for my fellow entertainers. As such, I am behind many of the promotional headshots, websites, and physical merch of many performers around the U.S., including many of our local greats!
What sets me apart from most of my colleagues is that Magic is my full-time career. That’s not to say someone not paying their bills with magic is somehow lesser, not at all, many “part-timers” are incredible performers. What I mean is that all of my spare time, when not performing or rehearsing my own show, is spent researching, studying, practicing, teaching, improving, and sharing magic with the world.
As a result, the magicians decided to keep me, haha. In 2024 I was the president of the Fort Worth Magicians Club.
Are there any books, apps, podcasts or blogs that help you do your best?
Books! I enjoy Randall Munroe’s “What If?”, specifically in how Randall exemplifies the concept of “there are no stupid questions.” I like reading on magic theory, and “Strong Magic” by Darwin Ortiz is a great one. I am a big fan of the writing resource “Building Believable Characters,” as well as the AP Style Guide.
Sometimes I pick up and read “A Song of Ice and Fire” to remind myself that some things will never be finished, and that’s okay. If I could do real magic, among all the wholesome and altruistic things I’d do, I’d squeeze in making “The Winds of Winter” appear on bookshelves.
Podcasts: there is one podcast I listen to with any regularity. “Welcome to Night Vale.” It has nothing to do with magic, but it’s full of it nonetheless. It’s a small community radio station, in a town where things are not as they seem. The writing is great, the narrator Cecil could read the phonebook and I would listen, it’s a great way to relax and forget about the real world for short stints at a time.
Oh, and spiritually, there’s a book called “The Four Agreements.” My aunt gave me a copy when I was 17. It’s got some pretty solid general life advice. I’ve since bought copies for several other people who I felt might benefit from it, and I am so not a “book-gift giver.”
Contact Info:
- Website: https://fearlessace.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fearlessace/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@magicofthestone
- Other: https://about.me/fearlessace
Image Credits
All photos are mine, by me, except the group shot from Magic In the Living Room, that’s credited to Daryl Howard. The fire breathing photo should be credited to USA Today.
