Jokewriting workshop!
Taking jokes *very* seriously
Goooooooooooood morning, afternoon, or evening, wherever you might happen to be!
A quick note regarding the next installment of PBP: I’ll be away at a conference next week, so there won’t be a Page by Page post until Friday 4 July (but it’s going to be an extra-special one!).
This week, I’m excited to announce that I will be running my very first workshop on ‘Jokewriting for Nerds’ on 1 July! This will be a 90-minute free online workshop for academics or other specialists who want to learn about how to write one-liners (or two-liners) about their areas of expertise. You can sign up via Eventbrite here.
Writing a one-liner about a super specialist topic is a great way to improve one’s writing. Given the constraints involved (ideally one or two lines only) and the relatively high stakes (ideally you want to make someone laugh!), it forces you to find unusual connections, incongruities, and new perspectives regarding a topic you know very well. Whether you’re a researcher, a teacher, or someone writing about your specialism for the public, this is a very handy skill to have! But most importantly, it’s a chance to get silly and have fun.
Participants will be asked to come to the workshop prepared to share their own favourite one-liners (or two-liners). This also means I get to share one of my personal favourites, by the great Douglas Adams:
I love deadlines. I love the whooshing noise they make as they go by.
Over 90 minutes, workshop participants will learn how to use freewriting, mind mapping, and a few sneaky shortcuts to craft quips, groaners, and—if we’re really lucky—maybe even a few knee-slappers.
Because this is the first time I’m running this workshop online, I’d like to keep it rather small, so it’ll be limited to 8 places.
I hope to see you there!
As ever, thanks for reading. This is a reader-supported publication, and the best way to support it is to become a paid subscriber (either at $6 per month or $60 per year). Paid subscribers can access everything on the site, from the archives to the “Things That Worked” sample materials…and they can send in questions to get answered for “AMA Q&A” posts.
If you’re really feeling generous, and you’d like access to the archives, the “Things That Worked” series, the “AMA Q&A” series, and regular feedback on your own writing, as often as you like, you can become a Founding Member ($150). Not a bad deal at all.
VB,
M