There is no such thing as a 'picking up secret'. Be normally polite and friendly. Whether or not your social contact develops further, becomes more intimate or even perhaps sexual, will depend entirely on where you are, what the mood is and how the personal chemistry works. Be confident in yourself without being brash or aggressive. It'll become clear at some stage that the lad who is being friendly maybe wants more than a nice chat. Usually this either becomes clear in the conversation or perhaps something rather more obvious. Again it depends on situation. Clearly if he smiles at you a lot over drinks he might just be a nice friend. On the other hand, if youre sharing a shower after, say, gong swimming, and he looks at your body a lot and gets an erection theres more to it. LOL

Yes, there is a secret~! SHHH~ I'll tell it to you. Confidence. Be confident in your actions and be true to yourself. There is someone out there for everyone and when it's time for a match to be made, Cupid will draw his bow and show you the way. You may not know just what to do and things may be awkward at first but that special someone is out there and just as curious as you are.

Please don't rush yourself.

To address your statement "the same rules apply to picking up guys that a hetero would use to pick up a girl"

Nope~Sorry. it isn't that easy. First of all I need to know you age. I am assuming since you are asking this question, you are a teen, and that's ok. I applaud your being brave enough to be here and ask. If I'm right about your age range then it is really a lot more difficult because you have to be concerned about the other guys reaction. If your older and your going ot a gay bar, then it might be a little easier, but I don't recommend bars as a place to meet ppl for serious relationships.

I'm no expert on the subject but if you let us know your age then it's easer to give age appropriate advice.

Thamks. I am older. In my early 40.

Ydie pretty much said it all I think.
When you say "pick up" are you looking for a relationship or just fun? If you're looking for a relationship I would rely on the bars too much. We used to say there's three things that are easy to pick up in a gay bar: A closet case, an alcoholic, or a social disease. Kfidding aside, don't count any place out.
There's a lot of guys you could become "friendly" with almost right away. Usually they are as nervous as you are - no one likes the possibility of rejection. Whether you're in a bar or not, smiling says you're approachable. Eye contact says you're interested. Walking up and talking to someone says you're not afraid to make the first move... or take risks.
If I were dating all over again, I'd join a local gay group so I could meet guys with similar interests. If you start searching the internet, depending on your area, you'll find some. I used to buildsets and work backstage for community theaters - easy to find gay guys there. I'd also stick myself on dating websites and start meeting as many guys as I could. Even if the date didn't work, you pick up info to help you later.