A Newsletter of Humorous Writing #304
A Newsletter of Humorous Writing
A Newsletter of Humorous Writing
For August 30 - September 5, 2023
Hello and welcome to A Newsletter of Humorous Writing, a roundup of the week's finest short humor pieces and funny articles, and a celebration of the fantastic writers who wrote them. As summer is winding down, we're starting to transition all our meals to rich and hearty stews: for dinner, a rich and hearty beef stew; for lunch, a rich and hearty sandwich stew; for a midday snack, a rich and hearty handful of pretzels stew; and out with friends, a rich and hearty Miller High Life stew.
What We Enjoyed This Week
7 Refreshing Summer Cocktails That Say “I’ve Been Arrested Shirtless Before” by Nathan Kamal (The Hard Times) A simple and silly premise that sets Nathan up for some really funny turns of phrase: "Let everyone know you’re Mother’s beautiful little boy, and beautiful little boys don’t wear shirts if they don’t want to." "Sensei Ryan has always told you that shirts impede your kata." The simple plot that builds throughout is a nice way to heighten, and never gets so complicated that it distracts from the premise.
Passionate Kisses: The Soundtrack at CVS by Mitch Therieau (The Paris Review) This being a piece in a proper literary magazine, the premise isn't terribly silly, but this is a great example of how to have fun through grounded exploration. The attention to detail and specificity is so evocative and funny -- the store and songs really come alive through Mitch's inventive phrasings. We do have one quibble, though: the definitive version of CVS BANGERS isn't the Spotify playlists, but rather the chaotic mixes by DJ Hennessy Youngman.
Roommates in Deadlock Over Whose Turn It Is to Threaten Landlord by Freddie Shanel (Reductress) This is another example of making a strong choice about silliness. This premise could be taken in a fairly grounded direction: the idea of "threatening your landlord" might be played a bunch of different ways. Freddie makes a really absurd choice to make the threats mob-enforcer-level violence, which makes a fun and silly juxtaposition to the dynamic of roommates quibbling over chores.
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An Old Favorite
This week's Old Favorite is a Brian Agler Selection (TM)--a piece whose accompanying note was written by Brian--from Newsletter #109.
Back in My Day by Sarah Hutto (The New Yorker) Right from the get-go, this premise works. Sarah Hutto does a great job of establishing a point of view and then using it to make some pretty insane ideas feel totally grounded.
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
Nothing from us this week! We're too full on account of too much stew :(
Other Humorous Writing News
And in strike news: For the studios, the strike clearly seems to be mostly motivated by a desire to demonstrate their power over workers, because the numbers don't add up: they're losing a lot more than the Guilds are asking for. They're losing so much that they can't even keep track of it. Defector has an interesting piece on Hollywood's trade publications, and how their ownership complicates their ability to fairly cover the ongoing strikes. Last week's disability picket got some great coverage! A good, long piece in The American Prospect on one of our favorite things, anti-trust, and how it might help end the strikes. That AI open comment call from the U.S. Copyright Office is already getting some good responses, it looks like. And we've shared it before, but Contract TK has been putting out some really funny and informative videos!
If you're looking to support striking workers from WGA and SAG, as well as Unite Here 11 hotel workers, Teamsters, and IATSE members, here's a great list of mutual aid funds that could use your donations!
There's lots of info and ways to show solidarity on the WGA's Strike Hub!
(A few of you have shared links and updates from the picket line with us--thanks! If there's anything you'd like us to share, a link, or a resource, or your personal thoughts or anecdotes from the strike, please reply to this email!)
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!