A Newsletter of Humorous Writing: Special Jen Spyra Edition
A Newsletter of Humorous Writing
A News-Spyra of Humorous Jens
Our next show, a celebration of Jen's new book, is April 2nd at 8 PM ET, streaming on The Squirrel Theater's Twitch!
Hello and welcome to A Special Edition Newsletter of Humorous Writing, the email propaganda arm of the acclaimed humorous readings show, An Evening of Humorous Readings. We rarely deviate from our usual Thursday publishing schedule, but we're presenting a special edition today to highlight one of our absolute favorite writers and her first book! We're of course talking about Jen Spyra, and her new book, Big Time. If you subscribe to our newsletter, you're well-read, good-looking, and surely already are familiar with Jen's writing. To celebrate the book's debut TOMORROW, we're presenting a special edition that's all about Jen! We hope you enjoy it.
Also: Do yourself a favor and order a copy of Big Time! Tell 'em "the niche humor writing newsletter sent me!"
Jen answered a few questions for us about writing, her inspirations, and the new book.
How much of the collection is new material vs. work you’ve published previously? How did you go about choosing what went into the collection? Are there any stories that were left out that were particularly tough to cut?
All new material. Early on, my editor at RH suggested that we leave the shorter, already published stuff out, since it was starting to feel slight alongside the new stuff, which was heftier.
There was just one story from the new batch that we ended up cutting, because it felt a little gimmicky–it was an epistolary piece based on my real-life relationship with a child I sponsored at Children International. I still love that one though and want to use it somewhere else. I did insist on keeping one cutbait-y story, however--a parody of the famous "Sullivan Ballou" Civil War letter. Mine is called, "My Dearest Caroline." I just couldn't bear to cut it.
Do you have a favorite story in the collection?
I do. The title story! It was an ambitious idea close to my heart. I wanted to deconstruct a classic Hollywood rags-to-riches memoir while telling a real story with an emotional core. Also, it was the longest story I’ve written so far. It’s actually a novella.
My runner-up for favorite story is Birthday Girl, because it surprised me--and was the first story I wrote after I left Colbert. It was exhilarating to write something that was so un-TV friendly.
Is this an “all in one sitting” kinda read or a “one story at a time” kinda read?
I think this can be enjoyed a few stories at a time--but probably best to buy the Kindle and Audiobook versions too, and read those to be safe.
Are there any books you looked to for inspiration while working on Big Time? Any you would recommend for people who enjoy your book?
Yes! I definitely read a bunch when I’m writing–both for inspiration and then if I’m writing in a certain genre, I’ll need to marinate in it a little bit.
These books inspired me in recent years, as I was writing: Miranda July’s debut novel The First Bad Man, Jen George’s short story collection The Babysitter at Rest. I read that George was inspired by the surrealist English writer Leonora Carrington, so I read her short stories and loved those. Shirley Jackson’s short stories, and I was (and am) constantly reading PG Wodehouse. He's the king. If you’re new to him, I’d start with Carry on Jeeves, then check out one of his earlier novels, Quick Service. The breeziness of the writing, the sheer joy of it—not even touching on how imaginative and surprising it is--kills me, and his work ethic is so inspiring.
For straight humor collections, I think your readers would also love Jean Kerr’s Please Don’t Eat the Daisies, Jack Handey The Stench of Honolulu, Simon Rich’s collections, Jon Stewart’s Naked Pictures of Famous People--and if you like my story Big Time, which plays with Old Hollywood stuff, you’ll love the Robert Evans autobiography The Kid Stays in the Picture and this interview with Ava Gardner in Vanity Fair.
How did you feel about the experience of writing a whole dang book? Is there anything you noticed about your own writing while working on this project?
The best part of the writing experience was surprising myself. Also, I already knew this about my process, but it’s 99 percent brute force. It’s getting that bad draft out, damn the cost. Deadline-induced adrenaline helps a lot with that.
Was there a story that was difficult to write? Was there a particular idea for a story that was more difficult to get down on the page?
The title story was a doozy. It took me so long to crack it. I went through two full, devastatingly crappy drafts, and then finally got Ruby’s, the main character’s, voice right. The key was realizing how conversational it wanted to be--and making Ruby as vulnerable as possible. She’s been through hell and she’s got such a thick armor--I needed to make sure to show the cracks in it, so you’d root for her and actually care about her transformation.
Monster Goo, a more experimental story that takes place in the world of RL Stine’s Goosebumps, was also tricky. I inserted real-world stakes into a whimsical make-believe world, which took me to some unexpected, and quite sad, places. I wrote the ending that felt right for the story, but then I ended up really feeling for my sweet main character and hated leaving him like that... I wanted to change the story and give him a happy ending. But then I nutted up and honored my artistic intention.
What’s the difference between a short humor piece and a short story?
The short story has an emotional arc and characters you truly care about. I found that the short humor piece is more about a premise that you heighten in surprising ways--but you don’t have enough runway to take the reader on an emotional journey.
Are there any themes or bits that recur in multiple stories in the book?
Yes indeedy. Some areas I find myself coming back to: childlike optimists grinding up against the pain and indignity of adult life--the magic of friendship--and feminist dystopian fantasies. Also, my characters are also constantly head-butting and drop-kicking stuff. It’s a problem.
What time of day do you write the worst?
10 AM to 3 PM, outside the apartment.
Where’s the strangest place you worked on the book?
This feels pretty square, but the train? From NYC to DC. And not your fancy Acela, either, where they’ll wipe your ass and practically write your short story collection for you.
What’s the most important element of an author photo?
No visible pubic bone. Or, show it sparingly.
Some Favorites By Jen
The Boyfriend Identity by Jen Spyra (The New Yorker) Serialized in three parts, this is a great parody and a sneak peek selection from Big Time!
Ultimate Dreidel Fighting Rules by Jen Spyra (McSweeney's) A holiday classic that plays to Jen's strengths of finding the most fun in a very heightened, very high stakes version of something everyday or mundane.
Zillow Listings of New York City by Jen Spyra (The New Yorker) Brian wrote in Newsletter #121, "Jen read this at a previous Evening of Humorous Readings and it absolutely killed. Don't believe us? Host your own reading show, and have Jen read this. Then, let us know what happens. We'll be waiting..."
Sunday Routine by Jen Spyra (The New Yorker) Another classic parody, this of the most navel-gazing, out-of-touch reoccurring column in the Times.
A Teenager Tries to Make the Best of Hosting Her Middle-Ages Themed Party at the Same Time as Her Older Brother’s Lacrosse Team’s Kegger by Jen Spyra (McSweeney's) The voice of the narrator here is so fun and earnest, that it makes her soldiering on despite the shittiest brother imaginable all the more fun to read.
One More Brief Plug For Our Show (With Jen)
We'll be toasting Big Time at the next Evening of Humorous Readings on Friday, April 2nd at 8 PM ET, on the Squirrel Theater's Twitch and YouTube pages, featuring readings from the Jen as well as from Karen Chee, Taylor Garron, Riane Konc, and Colin Nissan.
If you use a Google calendar, you can click this link to add the event to your calendar! Otherwise, all you have to do is click on The Squirrel's Twitch link at showtime.
Oh, and don't forget to get your own copy of Big Time!
See you soon!
@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!