5 Lessons on Writing Humor

By Chris von Halle, @ChrisvonHalle

Part of the How They Do It Series

JH: There's an old joke about dying is easy, but comedy is hard, and Jack Lemmon knew what he was talking about. If you're struggling with the funny, Chris von Halle visits the lecture hall today to share some tips on writing humor.

Chris von Halle is pretty sure he has superhuman powers, if only he could discover and untap them. Until he does, he’ll just have to be satisfied with living in Ridgewood, New Jersey, engaging in such extraordinary activities as watching tennis and basketball, playing video games, and trying to improve his already sublimely muscular rear, if he says so himself.

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Take it away Chris...

Where to Stick It – Three Types of Scenes That are Begging for Humor

By Tiffany Reisz, @TiffanyReisz

Part of the How They Do It Series

Hi Writing Writers!

I’ve got a new erotic novella out today called MISBEHAVING (Harlequin/Cosmo). It’s the story of Beatriz, a sex blogger, who has to write a review of a sex position manual. The only problem is that she’s stuck at her sister Claudia’s wedding without a date. Enter Ben, the one who got away in college who is acting as groomsman to his friend Henry. MISBEHAVING is loosely based on Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing, which is the precursor to our modern day romantic comedies. My readers who are used to my darker erotic works were shocked to hear I wrote a rom-com. But I had a good reason to do it—I wanted to.

Get Serious (But Not Too Serious): Why Serious Books Need Humor and Levity to Work

By Sarah Skilton, @Sarah_Skilton

JH: Please welcome YA author (and literary agency sister) Sarah Skilton to the blog today to chat with us about why even serious books need a little laughter now and then. I'm a big fan of dark stories, but I have noticed that when it's all dark all the time it lessons my enjoyment. If you write dark or serious tales, these are good things to consider.

Sarah lives in California with her magician husband and their son. By day she works in the film and TV business. She is a black belt in Tae Kwon Do, which came in handy when writing Bruised (Abrams/Amulet Books, March 2013). Visit her online at sarahskilton.com.

Take it away Sarah...

Guest Author Sally Harris: How to Write Laughworthy Stories

By Sally Harris, @franklybooks

I'd like to welcome middle grade author Sally Harris to the blog today to help us be funny. Or at least, help us make our stories funny.

Sally grew up in Mildura and wrote her first book when she was in Grade 4–it was a joke book, full of some seriously corny jokes. Since then she has barely stopped writing stories and while her taste in jokes may not have improved, she likes to think that her storytelling skills have. She lives in Melbourne and when she’s not writing, you can find her teaching, dancing, drinking chai lattes, reading children's books and scouring the paper for unlikely news articles to turn into exciting fiction.

Sally's book for middle grade readers, Diary of a Penguin-napper, currently is available from Amazon as a paperback and for Kindle. It is also flying off the shelves (or should that be waddling?) in a range of e-book formats from Smashwords.

As part of her blog tour, Sally appeared yesterday over at Lost in Lit and tomorrow, you'll be able to check her out being interviewed by Stephanie over at Read in a Single Sitting.

Take it away Sally...

Laugh and Cry Like A Nine-Year-Old

By Vonna Carter, @VonnaCarter

Part of the How They Do It Series   

JH: I'd like to welcome Vonna Carter to the blog today to teach us all how to be childish. This is a very undervalued skill, believe me, especially if you happen to write for children. If you don't write for the younger readers, then you can still learn how to tap into your inner child to make your stories stronger.
The books Vonna read between the ages of eight and fourteen opened windows to fantastic worlds. Now she writes books her eight-to-fourteen-year-old self would have loved—stories of magic, mystery, humor and love.

To find an agent who would be an ideal match for her writing, Vonna compiled a list of conferences where agents who represented middle grade literature, young adult literature, and picture books would be speaking. She made a similar list for editors. Happily, Vonna found her perfect agent—Kristen Miller of D4EO Literary Agency. But to help others find their agent or editor, Vonna posts the Agents at Conferences and Editors at Conferences lists on her blog, VonnaCarter.com, and updates them throughout the year.

Take it away Vonna...

Guest Author Anna Staniszewski: Write What Makes You Laugh

Today we have YA author Anna Staniszewski talking about what makes her laugh, and why humor is such an elusive beast. I've always enjoyed funny books, but never had the skill to really pull them off well (I'm much better at causing trouble). But now I have some pointers to bring in the funny.

Born in Poland and raised in the United States, Anna grew up loving stories in both Polish and English. She was named the 2006-2007 Writer-in-Residence at the Boston Public Library and a winner of the 2009 PEN New England Susan P. Bloom Discovery Award. Currently, Anna lives outside of Boston with her husband and their adopted black Labrador, Emma. When she’s not writing, Anna spends her time teaching, reading, and challenging unicorns to games of hopscotch. Her first novel, My Very UnFairy Tale Life, was released by Sourcebooks Jabberwocky on November 1, 2011. You can visit her at www.annastan.com.

Take it away Anna...