Including Humor in Your Fiction

Including Humor in Your FictionTo quote comedian Gina Barreca, "Laughing together is the closest you can get to another person, without hugging them." Humor in fiction writing is one of the most powerful elements an author can use to engage the reader. It's also frustratingly elusive; newbie comedians and veterans alike struggle with comedic writing, afraid their jokes will fall flat and their punchlines won't hit. This bundle includes eight OnDemand webinars and one digital

To quote comedian Gina Barreca, "Laughing together is the closest you can get to another person, without hugging them." Humor in fiction writing is one of the most powerful elements an author can use to engage the reader. It's also frustratingly elusive; newbie comedians and veterans alike struggle with comedic writing, afraid their jokes will fall flat and their punchlines won't hit. This bundle includes eight OnDemand webinars and one digital Writer's Digest edition, all offering advice on how to add humor into your writing. With everything from practical comedy writing skills to advice on overcoming your self-doubt, fiction writers of all genres and styles will find inspiration and guidance in this bundle, and will have a blast listening to professional comedians and published comedy writers along the way.

Being Funny, Fearing Failure, and Doing It Anyway (OnDemand Webinar): In this OnDemand webinar, instructor Gina Barreca discusses how to write for an unknown reader. You’ll learn that only specific and personal stories reach a universal audience. You’ll learn not only to get your best work into the spotlight but learn to survive under the glare of attention—and embrace the illumination that comes from writing humor and telling the truth. ($79.99 value) 

Things Can't Get Worse, But They Can Get Funnier: The Value of Humor in Your Writing (OnDemand Webinar): Mary Tyler Moore once said, “You don’t have to be chicken to recognize an egg.” Pontificating on the different forms of comedy and understanding the philosophy of humor has never made anyone funnier. And everyone is very busy. This presentation is Bob Eckstein's best tips, which he learned from some of the best humorists in the world. This OnDemand webinar will not only teach you how to make your writing funnier, but also how to have more fun writing. ($79.99 value)

How Thinking Like a Comedy Writer Can Improve Your Writing, No Matter the Genre (OnDemand Webinar): Join humor and nonfiction writer Leigh Anne Jasheway in this OnDemand webinar for a fun and funny look at how you can take your writing projects to the next level, by learning some simple comedy writing techniques. Leigh Anne discusses how adding more funny can help you establish a stronger bond with your readers, think more creatively, and boost your own mental health! Whether you’re working on a dystopian novel, a sci-fi screenplay, or a memoir of your life raising badgers in your basement, there’s something in this workshop for you. ($79.99 value)

Laugh Yourself to Death: Mixing Humor With Darker Topics Like Murder and Suspense (OnDemand Webinar): Real humor can come in many forms and arrive at the most unexpected times; for instance, it can appear in a murder-mystery or horror novel. In fact, the humor often helps propel the story forward and make it memorable. In this OnDemand webinar, Mia P. Manansala will discuss incorporating humor in unexpected places. ($79.99 value) 

Keeping the Promise: 10 Unwritten Promises Readers Expect You to Keep (OnDemand Webinar): Every time a reader purchases a book, they’re entering into a contract with you. You promise them certain things…and if you fail to deliver, you’ll get bad reviews. The hard part? You (the author) made promises that you didn’t know about! This OnDemand webinar will help you understand the unwritten promises that readers expect so that you can satisfy them, sell more books, and get to the next level of your author career.($79.99 value)

Everything I Wish I’d Known Before Writing the Book (OnDemand Webinar): From writing to querying to publishing, the path of a debut author is full of surprises—both good and bad. In this OnDemand webinar, debut author Nathan Makaryk recounts his own many mistakes learned along the way, and lessons any aspiring author should take to heart before even setting finger to keyboard. Learn the “things nobody tells you” about getting published, and how the reality of getting the book contract compares to expectations. ($79.99 value) 

The Importance of Light and Humor in Crime Fiction (OnDemand Webinar): How does a writer pull a reader through the emotionally-ravaged realism of today’s gripping crime fiction, without losing that reader to the compounding distress and wearying battles a character is facing? In this OnDemand webinar, learn the importance of balancing weighty topics with an occasional light touch, and how to make sure your reader and material are respected in the process. Types of characters, different stylings of prose, and an examination of timing are explored in both classic and contemporary examples of crime fiction. ($79.99 value) 

How to Evoke Emotion in Every Scene (OnDemand Webinar): From fast-paced thrillers to contemplative literary novels and everything in between, readers need to connect to your characters to create a page-turning story. Emotion is the thread that binds readers to your characters’ experience. Emotion must be demonstrated, not told, to the reader, and there are many powerful tools to do so without falling back on narrative short-cuts or blunt expressions of feeling. In this OnDemand Webinar, Jordan Rosenfeld brings her experience as an author of six books on the craft of writing, and three novels, to discuss writing compelling characters and expressing emotion without relying on overt sentiment or melodrama. ($79.99 value)

Writer's Digest July/August 2018 (Digital Edition): The July/August 2018 issue of Writer's Digest is themed: The Comedy Issue, our first humor-centric edition in more than two decades at the time of publishing, with features covering how writers can elicit laughs across genre and category. The hearty feature package includes articles from Don Vaughn, Elizabeth Sims, Scott Dikkers, Dinty W. Moore, and Jorjeana Marie. ($6.99 value)