A Newsletter of Humorous Writing #24
A Newsletter of Humorous Writing
A Newsletter of Humorous Writing
For March 1-7, 2018, a roundup of the week's finest prose humor 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. Once again, the Newsletter of Humorous Writing was shut out at the Oscars. We really thought we made some headway with the Academy, but once again, they told us that, "Short humor prose isn't movies." Their loss.
What We Enjoyed This Week
The Season's Hottest New Podcasts by Riane Konc (The New Yorker) Reading Riane is good...but hearing Riane read is even better. If that sounds like something you'd be interested in, be sure to check her, and others, out at An Evening of Humorous Readings this Monday.
The Old-Fashioned Way by Luke Roloff (The Higgs Weldon)
Addressing the Allegations that I Left the Sleepover Early Because I Was Scared of the Movie by Ryan Ciecwisz (Points in Case)
Women Just Aren't Funny by Ginny Hogan (The New Yorker)
An Old Favorite
My Letter to Time Warner Cable by Eugene Mirman (eugenemirman.com)
Eugene Mirman is the Babe Ruth of writing letters to protest minor inconveniences. This one may be his finest example. Is a letter mocking Time Warner Cable humor prose? The judges say yes. Also, we are the judges, so that one wasn't really up for debate.
What makes this letter (and really, the rest of Mirman's stand-up) so wonderful is his "corkboard full of red yarn connecting pictures" style of comedy. He'll make a reference that comes out of nowhere--one that just toes the line of non-sequitur--and then deftly land the joke. By the end, you're not quite sure how you got there, but you're happy you went on the journey.
Updates From Your Hosts and Friends of the Show
James is performing live and in person at Encyclopedia Commedia at Caveat on Friday, March 9th, at 9pm. You'll laugh. You'll learn. You'll...love?
News About The Next Show
By next week's newsletter, the show will have happened!
The Dirty Details:
Monday, March 12th
8pm (Doors at 7pm)
The Gallery at (le) Poisson Rouge
We can't wait to see you there!
Did we miss a piece you loved? Did you love a piece we mentioned? Let us know! This is an experiment and we're hoping to continue to make it better and better. If you have any thoughts, notes, wishes, or dreams for this newsletter, please respond to us or this email and tell us what the score is.
See you next week!
@brianagler, @lukevburns, & @jamesfolta
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.
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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!