A Newsletter of Humorous Writing #67
A Newsletter of Humorous Writing
A Newsletter of Humorous Writing
For December 27 2018-January 2, 2019, 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. Did you make any resolutions for this year? Maybe you want to finish that long project that's been nagging you. Maybe you want to complete a writing challenge. Maybe you want to finally chase away those bats, both metaphorically and physically. Those damn bats have made a nest not only in your mind, distracting you from the work you have to get done, but they've also made a nest amongst your old copies of Army Man: America's Only Magazine and are eating your coffee beans. These bats are jacked up on caffeine and cult humor 'zines and making a ruckus, is what I'm trying to say.
What We Enjoyed This Week
List: Acceptable Reasons to Wake Up Your Parents in the Middle of the Night by Lauren Spinabelli (Points In Case) When you get a spooky little narrative within the humor list, that is what we humor enthusiasts call a "LMFAAHHHHHO."
American Alternatives to the Irish Exit by Ginny Hogan (The New Yorker) A fun list with a great kicker from Friend of the Show Ginny Hogan, who you can see at our show next week! Scroll delicately past the bats for details below.
You may already be running by Alexandra Petri (The Washington Post) Alex Petri is one of the very few people who can find consistently fun angles for topical pieces these days. Her stuff always feels more immediate and fresh by making fun choices, both in approach and voice, and always avoids the typical cliches --when's the last time you read a fun joke about John Delaney in a comedy piece?
Due to Unforeseen Circumstances, We Are Ending the "Kids Eat Free If They Can Kick the Manager's Ass" Special by Ryan Ciecwisz (Points In Case) Ryan Ciecwisz has published a lot recently and all of his stuff has such a wacky, off-kilter voice that constantly keeps the reader guessing. Ryan also makes great use of parentheticals asides to get in more jokes.
An Old Favorite
A Guest Columnist Still Getting The Hang Of It by Ellie Kemper (McSweeney's)
James here! I think about this piece a lot, because it seems to get more and more relevant as think pieces and op-eds self-replicate in print and online. This piece feels like the character Ellie Kemper is channeling is writing it while falling down the stairs -- the character's struggle to maintain writerly composure and a throughline for the piece is so much fun to read.
Updates From Your Hosts and Friends of the Show
We popped a bottle of champagne on New Year's Eve and the cork's been ricocheting around Humorous Reading's Headquarters (HRHQ). We can't do anything until the cork hits the ground, so nothing from us this week. Plus the bats.
News About The Next Show
Our next show is: January 7th at The Gallery at (Le) Poisson Rouge. Doors at 7PM, Show at 8 PM. Featuring these wonderful guests:
- Ginny Hogan (Little Old Lady, The New Yorker, Cosmopolitan, McSweeney's)
- Evan Waite (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, The President Show, Clickhole, The Onion, MAD Magazine, A Newsletter of Humorous Readings Best of the Year Writer)
- Carrie Wittmer (New Erotica for Feminists, The Belladonna, McSweeney’s, The New Yorker)
See you next week!
@brianagler, @lukevburns, & @jamesfolta
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 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.
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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!