The Writer’s Digest Podcast, Episode 4: Deconstructing Humor — Interview with Laurie Kilmartin
In this episode of the Writer’s Digest Podcast, author and comedian Laurie Kilmartin discusses writing comedy and jokes that keep your audience laughing, balancing the specific tug-of-war between writing for your job and writing for yourself, and combining humor and death in a way that’s both funny and poignant.
Comedians Laurie Kilmartin, Andy Kindler, Gary Gulman and Nikki Glaser Share Their Best Writing Tips
The latest issue of Writer’s Digest features four veteran comedians who shared their thoughts on what writers of every genre can glean from stand-up. To explore just a few of their comedy writing tips and see their joke-telling acumen in action, we’ve included some of their advice here, plus a video clip...
American Psychos: The Onion Founder Scott Dikkers Discusses Writing Satire During Dark Times
Scott Dikkers, founder of the satirical news publication The Onion, is the master of writing satire. Here, he discusses the role of in today's challenging sociopolitical atmosphere.
Mean Ladies: One Writer’s Search for Fun & Friendship at New York’s Oldest Library
In this column, Leslie Cohen shares the humorous take of her quest to make the New York Society Library her new writing hangout—and make a few friends along the way.
How to Transform Funny Stories into Comedy Writing Gold
Funny stories that comedians perform in clubs are called anecdotal stand-up. These stories can be based on real-life experiences or they can be made up. In either case, there are three keys to transforming a funny story that your friends enjoy into anecdotal stand-up that can entertain an audience. Build frequent...
Thrilling Humor: 5 Tips for Incorporating Humor into Thriller Novels (and Other Serious Fiction)
[Value Pack: 5 Resources to Help You Write and Sell Bone-Chilling Horror] Photo by Owen Kemp on Unsplash by Andrew Mayne Humor is such a subjective notion that I’m hesitant to say that I’ve figured it out or point to something I did and say that it’s funny. That said, I try. As a...
New Literary Agent Alert: Jennifer Wills of The Seymour Agency
Reminder: New literary agents (with this spotlight featuring Jennifer Wills of The Seymour Agency) are golden opportunities for new writers because each one is a literary agent who is likely building his or her client list. About Jennifer: Jennifer has five years of experience in some of the publishing industry’s leading literary agencies. She worked...
7 Comedy Writing Techniques & How Clichés Are Used in Writing Humor
Explore the fundamentals of humor writing with these tips taken from Comedy Writing Secrets by Mel Helitzer with Mark Shatz. You’ll learn the different techniques used to create a play on words, what a cliché is, and how it can be used to surprise a reader or listener. Seven Techniques (And Definitions)...
Write for Platforms of Yore
Friends, Romans, countrymen—lend me your ears. We come to bury Reject a Hit, the back-page humor column of WD. Since the March/April 2010 issue, RaH has treated readers to the satirical letters of imagined “curmudgeonly or fool-hearted” editors, as they bluntly dismissed the manuscripts of classic novels from Lolita and War...
Comedy Writing Secrets: Triple the Funny
This guest post is by Mark Shatz, author of Comedy Writing Secrets 3rd Edition: The Best-Selling Guide to Writing Funny and Getting Paid for It. Mark A. Shatz is the author of KISSing Golf: The Keep It Simple (Stupid) Instructional Method, a humorous instructional book for beginning golfers. He is also...
7 Things I’ve Learned So Far, by Mark Peters
1. Embrace the heck out of your obsessions and inclinations. I’ve always known I loved to write, but it took me too long to realize that all I really want to do with my life is make jokes.
Rejection Letter Bingo
From the March/April 2013 issue of Writer’s Digest, here’s Rejection Letter Bingo. Print it out and play along. But hurry—I’m getting close! —Zachary Petit is an award-winning journalist, and the senior managing editor of Writer’s Digest magazine. He’ll be at the Writer’s Digest Conference East April 5-7 in New York, doing some fun panels on...
Bug-Out Bags for Writers
As we all know from watching shows like Doomsday Preppers, you’ve got to be ready to get out of dodge fast if things hit the fan. So what should a writer have in their bug-out bag? Whether you’re escaping the zombie apocalypse or just fleeing to a cabin for a weekend...
Wade Rouse: Top 10 Ways to Stay True to Yourself in Publishing
Since many TANR readers seem to have enjoyed Erik Larson’s list of the Top 10 Essentials to a Writer’s Life and Sherman Alexie’s Top 10 Pieces of Writing Advice I’ve Been Given (Or That I’ll Pretend Were Given to Me), today we offer you another list from another brilliant mind: memoirist...
Flowchart: How Do I Publish a Book?
One of the questions we get asked the most at Writer’s Digest: How do I publish a book? Well, we decided to finally answer it in this flowchart from our November/December 2012 issue, which is on newsstands now. Hope you get a kick out of it. Happy Friday. Want more?...
Writer’s Digest Annual Competition
For 80 years, the Annual Writer’s Digest Competition has rewarded writers just like you for their finest work. We continue the tradition by giving away more than $30,000 in cash and prizes! Win a trip to the Writer's Digest Conference in New York City !