The Humour Club discussion
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Joel wrote: "Jay wrote: "Brena wrote: "I just got an email from Goodreads with their picks in several genres. There was no humor group. I think we have our work cut out for us..."WARNING: This almost qualifie..."
This is the second time we have been writing on top of each other. Should we coordinate our schedules?
I have been working on the cover for my latest book, Death and Dawn. I noticed some of the books on my shelves have A NOVEL under the title. Then I saw the pattern. How To Be Good by Nick Hornby could be mistaken for a self-help book. The Rosie Project could be a science book. Exploring Diabetes with Owls could be about medicine. The obvious fiction titles don't have the label.Death and Dawn could be a book about grieving. It is humorous detective fiction. I am definitely going to add A NOVEL. Those wily publishers think of everything. Something to think about when doing self-publishing.
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Cover art is key, too. It needs to match the genre.
Rebecca, I agree that cover art is important. I have a design background and enjoy doing my covers. I have found some of the professional covers to be quite hideous. They tend to be too busy.Flat art has been popular (ex. Where'd you go, Bernadette), but I am not a fan. Lettering that looks like it was done with a stick is also popular. I like the covers for the Jenny Lawson books. Taxidermy animals is really what she is all about.
I read a study that said yellow books with red lettering sell best. I looked at my bookshelves and probably a third of my books are yellow with red lettering. Who knew?
Writing a book is hard work. Figuring out the cover is fun.
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I might go so far as to put that the opposite way :) Writing is hard work, but for me, with few to no skills in the visual arts, the cover is very hard. I hire the art done, but still have to generate ideas myself.
Brena wrote: "I read a study that said yellow books with red lettering sell best. "Hmmm . . . I guess that means my book REVENGE CAFE falls within a narrow end of the bell curve.
Rebecca wrote: ""Writing a book is hard work. Figuring out the cover is fun."I might go so far as to put that the opposite way :) Writing is hard work, but for me, with few to no skills in the visual arts, the co..."
There are many examples of great book covers on the internet. Showing the cover designer the ones you like helps a lot. Does the artist read the book?
On my latest book I did an encaustic painting of a tattoo common among Russian criminals. The book is about a Russian mob...sort of. I considered a dozen ideas before that. It is hard.
Lisa wrote: "Brena wrote: "I read a study that said yellow books with red lettering sell best. "Hmmm . . . I guess that means my book REVENGE CAFE falls within a narrow end of the bell curve."
I like the cover of your book!
Covers are so hard! I knew what I wanted, but I had to hire an illustrator for mine. Worth every penny.
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Damn! Lied again!
If you don't normally check out The Humour Club's Blog thread, can I ask you to take a look now. While I did post on that thread, it's something that I've never tried before, so I'm risking a second post here in Chat. AND, I really could use a bit of feedback.
Here's the direct link to my blog post:
Trump vs. Baby, The True Story
Thanks in advance.
I like it! The pictures are great of course. I think you portrayed the Trump fiasco very well.
First, what is a DELETED member? Can one be rubbed out by the Humor Mafia for posting something decidedly wrong? And WHO does the deciding? I am a tad frightened. I just got into this group, and now I face possible DELETION? Are there any measures I can take to stave off such a terrible fate? Actually, I am writing to learn how to pose a challenge. I want us to come up with a new word or phrase to describe shameless hucksterism. Mine is PIMPOSITY. Your turn. -Dickie Fleegle
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Excellent question, Dickie! A deleted member refers to when we use Photoshop to make naked celebrity images meet our high, family-friendly standards. We're always looking out for our own members here at The Humour Club. As for avoiding this happening to you, I'd recommend refraining from posting photos of yourself in the here-and-now. Oh, and try not to piss off any moderators.
Dickie wrote: "First, what is a DELETED member? Can one be rubbed out by the Humor Mafia for posting something decidedly wrong? And WHO does the deciding? I am a tad frightened. I just got into this group, and no..."I had to look this up. Evidently most deleted accounts are by the author's request. You can be deleted for sexual role playing. Someone may complain that you drink too much or smoke too much weed. I don't know how that works??? If you post a picture of yourself in your underpants, they will delete you, so try to refrain from doing that.
Shameless hucksterism is now called Trumping.
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Thanks for the feedback, Brena! Much appreciated.
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After exhaustive research, I have determined that the vast majority of deleted members have been deleted, so there's no telling what happened.
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fried bread dough(shaped like pancake) and molasses(instead of syrup) there's a nice fulfilling Newfoundland Breakfast(possible not exclusively newfie) it's the only place I've eaten it though....is this unique enough?
On another note there's something I have to share with you all. I was just in the bookstore and spotted a bargin book entitled 50 Things to draw or something like that....it may of been 100. Anyways I opened it up figuring it would have pictures and a blank space to draw. Nope. it was 50 or 100 pages of blank with a word on each page....apple or bat or bike..... I thought wow. whoever was responsible for this lazy ass book is a total genius! I had to look for a name I was that impressed with the idea. I could have wrote that book with a dictionary in a day. I laughed out loud for about ten minutes. then picked up the "book" and carried in to the shelf of blank notebooks. :)
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Other than eating filet mignon on a plane to Spain when I was a kid, my only memorable meal occurred quite recently. My real-life book club gets together at a restaurant every May to celebrate another successful year of reading and sort-of discussing books.
This year, one of the members suggested a Middle Eastern restaurant, situated, somewhat literally, in the middle of nowhere -
https://www.google.com/maps/uv?hl=en&...
It was prearranged that the group, eight of us, were to receive a tasting menu. The food just never stopped coming. Platters of pork, salmon, beef, lamb, and chicken. Weird casserole-type dishes. Heart-attack inducing, cheese-stuffed breads. Two different desserts. Not a vegetable in sight.
It was hard to pace yourself when you didn't know how much more was coming.
When it came time for the check, we told the waitress that we would just split it eight ways. The kitchen staff insisted on doing that for us. Good cooks, they were; mathematicians . . . not so much. It took them well over an hour to figure it out. And, there was quite a bit of sticker shock when we each got our own individual bills.
Expensive, but memorable.
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Sounds a little bit like the Anti-Coloring Book series that used to be popular for kids - http://www.susanstriker.com/anticolor...
They were designed to inspire creativity, rather than just staying within the lines. With the popularity of coloring books for adults, I wouldn't mind seeing these return. People should be drawing their own pictures and cartoons, not coloring someone else's art.
- {So preaches the art major who hasn't drawn a thing since college . . . } -
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Here's a clip that happens to contain:
How to Pronounce 'Library'
Does 'chateau' mean "cat water"?In which case, I suppose that Château Margaux translates as "Marge's cat's piss".
Robert wrote: "On another note there's something I have to share with you all. I was just in the bookstore and spotted a bargin book entitled 50 Things to draw or something like that....it may of been 100. Anyway..."Lazy-ass book? I'm still laughing! Thanks for that needed gem this morning.
Joel wrote: "Ever have a favorite quote that, when you looked it up for accuracy, wasn't as good as the way you remembered it?"Depressing, especially if the quote was mine.
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Nice catch, Melki!
However, if it's NOT the name of a band, there are so many possibilities here:
1. Should we assume that you live in Sodom or Gomorrah?
2. Will they discount for genuine food?
3. How did they get their profession added to the Eligible List of Food Items?
4. Are Halloween Trick or Treaters being encouraged to choose 'Trick'?
5. Does 'whipped cream' now become an entertainment expense?
The list goes on...
Melki wrote: "So, after spending much of yesterday making me yet another book shelf, my husband then spent hours in the kitchen making a roast beef and mashed potatoes. AND THEN he went back to the kitchen and m..."This is exactly like my husband. I never want to complain, since he's doing something lovely. But that the same time..how on earth did he manage to get peanut butter on the CEILING? It makes no sense.
So apparently when you first log into this chat forum, it drops you onto the page of the EARLIEST messages, not the most recent. I realized this after commenting. Anyway...hurray for first impressions.
Joel wrote: "Ever have a favorite quote that, when you looked it up for accuracy, wasn't as good as the way you remembered it?"Apparently we use a lot of old sayings to mean the exact OPPOSITE of their original meaning. For example the full text of "blood is thicker than water" is actually "the blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb" -- meaning that relationships formed by choice are stronger than family.
Also, "Jack of all trades, master of none," actually finishes with "--but better than a master of none."
Full link to a bunch of other sayings here: http://imgur.com/gallery/4Khieua
This has been your daily moment of "wwhhhhhhaaaaaaat?"
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And yes, this particular thread annoyingly always goes to the first page because it can't find the end. In other words (another old saying), it can't find it's arse with both hands?
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Isn't there an app for that?
Speaking of comedy, is anyone going to be watching the US presidential debates? I'm trying to start a round of Bingo on twitter @PattyMurphyBook. Get your bingo cards here: http://www.vox.com/2016/10/19/1330240...
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I can't bring myself to watch (or listen, since I do more radio than TV). The first two were bad enough. This one promises to be dredged from the depths of the cesspool.
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Hard to agree, Rebecca. According to the building codes, cesspools have standards.
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Hard to agree, Rebecca. According to the building codes, cesspools have standards."
I stand corrected. I'm having trouble thinking of a good metaphor here. Probably should be comparing disgusting things to Trump, rather than the other way around.
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I also fell in the fish pond while scooping leaves.
This woman deserves to have things go her way on the 8th, don't you think?
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She deserves a helluva lot, but not that! Sorry to hear you've had such a painful experience lately, and hope you're on the mend if not already there.
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Well, now... As pumpkin mishaps go, a bump on the head and a little Human Torch impersonation are all pretty standard. And I assume falling in the fish pond, while it does have a slightly 'woe is me' quality, was most likely deliberate to put out your flaming hair.
All in all, it sounds like a pretty normal holiday.
However, political vagaries aside, I for one am willing to give you the benefit of the doubt come Tuesday. (If Trump molests another woman on Monday, I'll remove the doubt.)
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Halloween is a dangerous holiday, no question.
Hello, I'm new to the group so I guess I'll introduce myself. I read and write humor and satire. I read a lot of other genres too, including scifi, fantasy, and some mysteries.I'd love to hear about the rest of you and your books.
Rebecca wrote: "Geez, Melki! Wait to immolate yourself until it's really needed, like as a protest against the Orange Menace.Halloween is a dangerous holiday, no question."
I support all that Rebecca wrote. Get better soon, Melki!
We have just had the November 5 Guy Fawkes bonfires and fireworks parties on this side of the pond. They always cause some casualties, but I didn't appreciate that Halloween was quite such a 'health and safety' hazard.
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The Humour Club
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Aside from political satire and possible offensiveness, there are a lot of humorous books which are neither. ..."
Thanks Jay....I appreciate your feedback.
I am retired and writing is not a career choice for me. Fame and fortune are meaningless is my world. I just want readers so I can possibly give them something to laugh about and know they are not alone with their wild perceptions.
Even so, I am fascinated by the intricacies of the publishing world.