For July 15-21, 2026

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. This week we had a sad thought: There must be at least one person out there who has a really funny social security number, and it must be such a bummer for them to not be able to tell anyone about it. :(

What We Enjoyed This Week

As Your Manager, I Don’t Think It’s Too Much to Ask That You Read My Mind by Brandon J. Talley (McSweeney’s) There’s some terrific joke writing in this piece. Brandon’s sentence-level twists and reveals are very funny and deeply satisfying. For example: “I just can’t keep reminding you to do things I haven’t told you about.“

I Give My Kid the Talk by Jesse Eisenberg (The New Yorker) We always appreciate when a piece has a nice, clear, straightforward (and also funny) premise like this one. The juxtaposition of Sondheim specifics with “the talk” just works!

In Paris, in Tokyo, in Singapore, in Prague, I Stumble Out, Insane with Coffee by Ed Park (The Paris Review) Not a traditional short humor piece by any stretch of the imagination, but we love this collection of moments for its dry wit and well-observed details: “In the theater a guy in the row behind me says knowingly to his friend, ‘One of the best scenes in the movie.’ His friend assents earnestly. Then they’re quiet again.”

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NYC Writers! The editors of The Belladonna are meeting up at The Four-Faced Liar in the West Village on Wednesday, July 29th at 6 PM. Please join us! We would love to see you. (Even boys allowed!)

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Have a phone? Dial 765-633-8226 right now. Let it ring. Become a character. Wait for the beep. Leave a message. Felt good? Call again.

765-ODD-TACO is a new collaborative, experimental audio theatre micropodcast publication feeding hungry humor heads since a few months ago.

Submissions always welcome 24x7. DM for credit.
Please, no AI. Only HOETECC*.

Together, we're creating a universe of people in situations, living moments, having ideas, making decisions, experiencing emotions, uttering recollections.

So many telephonic possibilities.

Call 765-ODD-TACO today. That's 765-633-8226.

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America's ONLY late-night comedy show, On the Watchlist with Jay Servedio, is going to Edinburgh Fringe! Come see our fringe preview show on Sunday, 7/26/26 at 5:00pm @ Caveat! Featuring character interviews, investigative desk pieces, and wild sketches, join us as we search for the answer to the age old question: what's wrong with America!

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Hosted by Lana Schwartz (The New Yorker, The Onion, McSweeney's) Letters & Sodas brings together standup comedy, humor pieces, fiction, and essay readings in a way they never have been before (or at least not in recent memory). The next show is Wednesday, July 29 at Greats of Craft in LIC at 7 p.m. and features:

Amanda Eisenberg (Politico, author of People are Talking)
Ysabel Yates (The New Yorker, The New York Times, Reductress)
Hunter Gardner (RISK!, McSweeney's)
Heather Akumiah (Limousine Podcast, author of Bad Witches)
Reid Pope (Going Down, PAPER, Vulture)
Fareeha Khan (Decoded, Adult Swim, Jimmy Kimmel Live!)

Tickets available online and at the door.

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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 #127.

Aww, Our Newborn Baby is So Beautiful...Right? by Kristen Mulrooney (McSweeney's) This piece is a great example of voice and specifics coming together in just the right way. The voice (and the confidence in that voice) lay the groundwork. The reference to Wallace Shawn takes it to the next level. That's the secret to comedy writing folks...Wallace Shawn.

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 Editors and Friends of the Newsletter

Nothing from us this week! Too busy trying to figure out a non-scammy sounding way to ask people about their social security numbers.