Posted in: 2023

238. Irony, Art, and the Art of Irony

Wayne is solo today and he talks about a concept that he and his co-host Jennia D’Lima were discussing recently—important in approaching any kind of fiction. Irony. What exactly is it? Why is it important to be aware of as you read fiction, or frankly experience any art form? And how can an appreciation of irony help you perhaps even enjoy a novel that you might otherwise despise or avoid outright?

David Cross
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GTz9x_RFq94&t=220s&ab_channel=DavidCross-Topic

Ricky Gervais
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovSe80zSptE

 A Dictionary of Critical Theory, 2nd ed., by Ian Buchanan (Oxford, 2018)
https://doi.org/10.1093/acref/9780198794790.001.0001 

Posted in: 2023

201. “Writing It Down in Pen or Pencil First”: Making and Editing Funny

My guest today is Haji Outlaw, who is a former touring standup comedian, and now is a comedy writer, and has written a series of books called Hey Doorman, about his experiences as a bouncer at comedy clubs. We talk about his career, his writing method, and some of his favourite out comedians.

Haji’s Amazon Author Page
https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B00NY5KH9M

Posted in: 2023

177. Mental Health, Suicide, and Comedy

My guest is Frank King. Frank has a long career in comedy, even as a writer for The Tonight Show. After, in his words, he held a gun in his hand and found out what the barrel tastes like, he changed. He didn’t pull the trigger and now focuses on public presentations for corporate and other groups in which he uses comedy as a way to talk about the difficult topic of suicide.

Frank King
https://thementalhealthcomedian.com/

Posted in: 2023

147. This Episode Is 0.00159 Scaramuccis Long

Hi, I’m Wayne Jones. Welcome to Writing & Editing. This is episode 147, which is 0.00159 Scaramuccis long. My guest is Neil Berliner, who is a comedy writer and coach. In his career, he’s also performed standup, and his writing has appeared in media from Mad Magazine to the New York Times to the Village Voice. He’s now also an author, having co-written the Ha Ha History joke book, which was published in January.