A Newsletter of Humorous Writing #239
A Newsletter of Humorous Writing
A Newsletter of Humorous Writing
For June 1-7, 2022, a roundup of the week's finest prose and prose humor-related news.
Hello and welcome to A Newsletter of Humorous Writing, the email propaganda arm of the acclaimed humorous readings show, An Evening of Humorous Readings. In his great poem "Crossing Brooklyn Ferry," Walt Whitman asks, "My great thoughts as I supposed them, were they not in reality meagre?" which we think is a reference to when you have a great premise, but at the moment that you sit down to write it, you realize it actually doesn't have legs for a full piece.
What We Enjoyed This Week
Honest Instructions for Your At-Home Bikini Wax by Gracie Beaver-Kairis (McSweeney's) An excellent example of a piece that heightens as it digresses. Starting with strong format and a solid premise, Gracie uses the moments of avoiding the task at hand to build character and humorous tension.
That’s a Tough Age by Eddie Small (The New Yorker) There's a nice rhythm that this piece establishes, that gives it a good crisp pace. The risk with a strong pattern like this is that the reader will get ahead of it, but Eddie keeps us engaged with a fun point of view and clever specifics.
The Obsessive’s Guide to Dipping Your French Fries by Lillian Stone (The Takeout) The definitive guide to french fry technique. Sometimes, the mark of a good piece is how it sticks with you, and in this case, I haven't been able to walk by a section of outdoor seating in the last few days without scanning for the Lothario’s Knot.
An Old Favorite
Every Man Has His Price, In Some Cases, 13 Cents by Julius Lowenthal (Spy) Not our typical short humor fare, but this piece from Spy magazine is a classic in the genre of funny, stunt journalism. Spy has an outsized legacy in media and this piece--examining which rich New Yorkers would cash checks for minuscule amounts of money--is one of the most well-known Spy pieces. What makes it successful is what makes a lot of short humor work: a clear premise, crisp writing, and heightening that explores the premise more deeply. If you like this, check out the full archive of Spy here. It’s a treasure trove of snarky vitriol, voice-y journalism, and (frankly too much of) an obsession with New York celebrity and society.
Do you have an Old Favorite of your own? Let us know by filling out this form and we may run your pick in a future edition of the newsletter.
Updates From Your Hosts and Friends of the Show
Luke's got just 4 spots left in his Let's Write a Short Humor Piece workshop starting on July 9th! In it you'll write a short humor piece in four weeks, going from idea to draft, getting feedback every step of the way. And if you're looking for a shorter course, you can also still get a spot in Luke's single-session workshop on Form and Narration in Short Humor this Sunday at 1PM!
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Hot off the podcast presses, straight from the pages of the Daily Planet, it’s The Unsuper Friends! Join Ron, Jim, and Mark as they apply incisive social commentary and art criticism to the utterly goofy 1950s adventures of Jimmy Olsen, Lois Lane, and (occasionally) Superman. Worried because you don’t really read comics? Don’t worry—nobody’s read these ones in years! Available at your local podcast newsstand now!
(Do you have an ad you'd like to place in the Newsletter? Fill out this form!)
See you next week!
@lukevburns & @jamesfolta
We started this newsletter with our dear friend Brian Agler, and we want it to always honor his memory and his love of all things humorous. You can find our newsletter tribute to Brian here.
This newsletter is free, but if you enjoy it and want to support the work we do putting it together, you can send us a tip here. Any amount is greatly appreciated, and 1/3rd of each donation will go to Stand Up To Cancer.
If you have any thoughts, notes, wishes, or dreams for this newsletter, please email us or respond to this email and tell us what the score is!
See you next week!
@lukevburns & @jamesfolta
We started this newsletter with our dear friend Brian Agler, and we want it to always honor his memory and his love of all things humorous. You can find our newsletter tribute to Brian here.
This newsletter is free, but if you enjoy it and want to support the work we do putting it together, you can subscribe to our paid tier, or you can send us a tip here. Any amount is greatly appreciated, and 1/3rd of each donation will go to Stand Up To Cancer.
If you'd like to place an ad in the Newsletter, please fill out this form.
If you have any thoughts, notes, wishes, or dreams for this newsletter, please email us or respond to this email and tell us what the score is!