On The Art Of Misdirection In Literature..
Christopher Priest for the Huff Post…
While I was researching my novel The Prestige, I came across a technique that was sometimes used by stage magicians. In the present day television has largely made it unworkable, because it is difficult to distract the unblinking stare of the electronic lens. But like all magical methods it remains part of the silent armory of techniques at the disposal of illusionists.
It is the kind of misdirection which makes use of distraction: The magician allows something to happen which grabs the attention of the audience. It might be something funny or unexpected, something seeming to go wrong or making a sudden loud noise, something ridiculous or shocking. But during those few seconds of distraction, the magician is briefly invisible to the audience and makes good use of it – the next stage of the trick is made ready.