tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416913236621309814.post7349575826907066452..comments2023-05-24T08:06:43.882-04:00Comments on Romance Writer's Revenge: Funny Bones: Not Everyone Is Blessed With OneTerri Osburnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17176989488447450585noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416913236621309814.post-14602667405111422262013-04-01T13:29:36.473-04:002013-04-01T13:29:36.473-04:00Thanks, Hel. I enjoyed the parrot joke. The think ...Thanks, Hel. I enjoyed the parrot joke. The think with Miranda is that being a time traveler she often is the only one who gets her own jokes, but that is okay with her. You do what you can to keep a smile on your face...<br /><br />Pat, I think there is a difference between black comedy and humor. Blood making a smiley face is black humor and it has it's place. I can totally appreciate it. And the thing about any rule is the delight one takes in breaking it...Maureenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01517092592545660754noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416913236621309814.post-42337027762687846892013-04-01T12:12:31.472-04:002013-04-01T12:12:31.472-04:00Heh. Honestly? I can't say I agree. The use of...Heh. Honestly? I can't say I agree. The use of "don't" in the post making me particularly prickly. *Shrugs*<br /><br />Short answer is I love sarcasm and acerbic humor that slays sacred cows and mocks the absurdity of life. Stuff that says, "Yeah, there's a dead body on the floor, but check it out, the blood splatters made a happy face!"<br /><br />And while certain mean humor turns me off (TV show Family Guy is unwatchable for me), I see successful humor as requiring a measure of edginess, a winner and a loser. <br /><br />I've only watched a few bits of House, but yes, I find House (the character) very funny because he says what other people are thinking, but don't dare say. So...funny, asshole.<br /><br />Similarly, Captain Mal from Serenity/Firefly puts a big shit eating smile on my face because he's delightfully, obnoxiously funny. Heck, even Harry Potter's Snape is cuttingly droll. As is Alan Rickman's character, Alexander Dane, in Galaxy Quest (one of my fave funny movies). Rickman is king of a dry delivery that is accented by the suggestion that he is rolling his eyes at everyone.<br /><br />Because DH and I are watching Season 2, on DVD, I'm reminded that Tyrion from Games of Thrones (and the books) is exquisitely, brutally funny. He wields his sharp observational humor like a scalpel, slicing through the political and cultural bull of the world of Westeros. The writers who are adapting book to movie must agree, because Tyrion, of all the characters, has the most lines transferred directly from print to screen.<br /><br />Janet Evanovich's earlier Plum books are always a reliable laugh for me, but not necessarily for the slap-sticky stuff, but rather the fond barbs she slings at the cultural trappings of life in the burg. I love it when a writer loves a setting enough to pick out its failings and hold them up to the light.<br /><br />Actually, an underlying tone that suggests the writer/characters recognized the absurdity of life, even at its worst, is how I define a great voice. That's ultimately the root of my humor (I'm told I'm a funny writer). I know we're all ultimately food for worms, so why take stuff so seriously? Especially...the serious stuff.<br />P. Kirbyhttp://www.patriciakirby.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416913236621309814.post-2789279804290330242013-04-01T10:09:02.291-04:002013-04-01T10:09:02.291-04:00Janga, I'm now going to have to look up the di...Janga, I'm now going to have to look up the difference between the two satires you mentioned. I didn't realize there was more than one kind. *LOL* <br /><br />But love the shout outs to all those authors: I agree with your picks! Great humorous reads without really being "humor" writers, it all feels more organic and natural to the character. Hellie Sinclairhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03933713255844695337noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416913236621309814.post-36554433626556285112013-04-01T10:06:45.380-04:002013-04-01T10:06:45.380-04:00P.S. to Q--I wasn't a big fan of Kinsella'...P.S. to Q--I wasn't a big fan of Kinsella's shopaholic series either because I don't get the allure of shopping, racking up debt like that, and just making everything worse like she did. She did feel shallow and vapid and I didn't feel particularly empathetic towards her. <br /><br />Which is why I like her Undomestic Goddess book best. *LOL* That was relatable, I thought. You screw up huge at work and you just want to run away...<br /><br />But I have read the shopaholic series--and you have to be in the right mind-frame. I do enjoy them too.Hellie Sinclairhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03933713255844695337noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416913236621309814.post-80055880718772477602013-04-01T10:04:37.369-04:002013-04-01T10:04:37.369-04:00Terri, no, I don't think your humor is mean. Y...Terri, no, I don't think your humor is mean. Yes, there's sarcasm, but it's not the "mean kind" of sarcasm which sarcasm can easily roll over into if the writer is in the wrong frame of mind when writing or whatever. <br /><br />It's probably better for you if you don't think you write romantic comedies. As Q said, the moment you were aware of it, you'd probably overthink it. *LOL*Hellie Sinclairhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03933713255844695337noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416913236621309814.post-26104132423971231842013-04-01T10:02:53.944-04:002013-04-01T10:02:53.944-04:00It's hard to define, but I think it stems from...<i>It's hard to define, but I think it stems from the odd ways that a funny person perceives the universe. An eye for a situation which although superficially tragic, with a slight change of circumstance can become hilarious.</i><br /><br />I agree this is humor in the nutshell, the way the writer looks at a situation and presents it. And yes, CONTRIVED IS BAD. But I wouldn't say writers don't work at being funny. Just like comedians don't work at being funny. They work at it; and it takes a LOT of work to make stuff NOT look contrived. <br /><br />Natural talent is one thing, but practice is what gets the attention. :) Hellie Sinclairhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03933713255844695337noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416913236621309814.post-71526366714882563322013-04-01T09:36:34.286-04:002013-04-01T09:36:34.286-04:00Janga's comment reminded me of an author I fai...Janga's comment reminded me of an author I failed to mention. Vicki Lewis Thompson is HYSTERICAL in every way. She's been writing Blaze stories lately, which do not provide the opportunity for her humor to shine through, but pick up anything from her backlist and laugh away. To this day, she's the only author who has ever made me cry laughing while reading one of her stories.Terri Osburnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17176989488447450585noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416913236621309814.post-67862244580604989942013-04-01T09:33:15.015-04:002013-04-01T09:33:15.015-04:00I don't like humor that is mean-spirited, whet...I don't like humor that is mean-spirited, whether the meanness is aimed at an individual or a group. I love satire, but I generally prefer the witty wisdom of Horatian satire to the barbed bitterness of the Juvenalian. Thinking about my favorite funnies among romance novels, I realized most use banter, wordplay, situational humor, or some combination but that the humor feels organic to the characters rather than a display by the author. Some of my favorite authors for humor (Eloisa James, Anne Gracie, Julie Anne Long, Tessa Dare, Connie Brockway) are not conventional humourous writers, but they all weave funny scenes into their fiction and often evoke laughter and tears within the same story. Teresa Medeiros and Julia Quinn are favorites who are often included on lists of romance authors who write humor. Among contemporary romance authors, Elizabeth Bevarly, Jennifer Crusie, Susan Elizabeth Phillips, Kristan Higgins, and Trish Jensen are favorites. <br /><br />An almost forgotten author of trad Regencies, Judith Nelson, is also an author whose books I often turn to when I need a laugh. Her <i>Kidnap Confusion</i>, Medeiros's <i>Charming the Prince</i>, Mary Balogh's <i>The Famous Heroine</i>, Jill Barnett's <i>Bewitching</i>, and Georgette Heyer's <i>Frederica</i> are the most frequently reread among the romances that make me laugh. Jangahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15128188159653860806noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416913236621309814.post-5754701500717439382013-04-01T09:20:30.932-04:002013-04-01T09:20:30.932-04:00Most who have read my books mention the humor firs...Most who have read my books mention the humor first. When I have a new idea, my agent asks, "Is it funny?" Which is interesting since I never set out to writ funny books and I don't believe I write Romantic Comedies. But I also know I couldn't write a book without humor sliding through. <br /><br />I think of my humor as sarcastic, but maybe not how you describe it. I never think of mine as truly mean. Sarcasm is an inherited trait in my family. When my siblings and I are all together, my daughter calls us the kinds and queens of sarcasm. Since she's my daughter, she sees this as a good thing.<br /><br />I think I like subtle, intelligent humor. Not so much the physical stuff, but that has its place as well. Lucille Ball made it an art form. Terri Osburnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17176989488447450585noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416913236621309814.post-28541398124362083742013-04-01T04:09:38.880-04:002013-04-01T04:09:38.880-04:00I think that to be successful in a novel, humour h...I think that to be successful in a novel, humour has to be latent in your make-up. You can't work at it or it will come across as contrived. If you are a 'funny' person/author, the humour will just flow from you in conversation or from the keyboard while writing. It's hard to define, but I think it stems from the odd ways that a funny person perceives the universe. An eye for a situation which although superficially tragic, with a slight change of circumstance can become hilarious.<br /><br />I also think that one needs to be in the right mood to read a humorous book. Initially I disliked Sophie Kinsella's shopaholic books, finding the heroine shallow and stupid. But picking up 'Confessions' again, a few months later, it clicked and I loved it. Becky is one of those characters who just can't help getting into scrapes, it's built into her character and she sails through life leaving a jet steam of chaos without really noticing. I needed a second look to recognise the genius of Kinsella! Quantumhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08686409685564115213noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416913236621309814.post-70659765034786662552013-04-01T01:26:01.438-04:002013-04-01T01:26:01.438-04:00One of my favorite humorous books is BEWITCHING by...One of my favorite humorous books is BEWITCHING by Jill Barnett, about an inept witch. The absurd, whimsical kind of funny; very sweet...and a little bite to it when you meet the hero who has no sense of humor.<br /><br />I love the Edgar Allan Poe joke--that's funny! Yes, those types of inside jokes we all have with ourselves...<br /><br />I like some snark, but it must be tempered with more other kinds of humor. Snark and sarcasm can get too snide for me; absurd can cross some lines if it's too out there...but I adore Leslie's books; and there was a book called KNIGHT OF A TRILLION STARS that had a bit of the absurd about it that was hilarious and good. Jillian Stone's steampunk lite books of the Scotland Yard have some absurd elements but they're balanced with the action and wit. All about balance, I guess.Hellie Sinclairhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03933713255844695337noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-416913236621309814.post-41263581292548290322013-04-01T00:12:10.070-04:002013-04-01T00:12:10.070-04:00Well, one of my favorite laugh out loud books is s...Well, one of my favorite laugh out loud books is so dated...but Binding Spell by Elizabeth Arthur was a delight.<br /><br />As for the humor I use, I often have my time traveling witch enjoying inside jokes with herself. Like teaching a parrot to recipe Edgar Allen Poe's, The Raven, but changing it to The Parrot...she knows she's the only one who gets it.<br /><br />I'm not a fan of snark. I am a fan of the absurd, which is why I adore Leslie's books...Maureenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01517092592545660754noreply@blogger.com