Comments on: You’re Funny: Turn Your Sense of Humor Into a Lucrative New Career

By: Bubba Jinks

Bubba Jinks — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 23:40:28 +0000

Broad Coverage I bought this book hoping it would go more in depth on inner workings of comedic scenes/sketches/media, breaking them down, finding common traits between funny moments throughout the latter half of the 20th century. Instead it’s just a very broad outline and explanation of the different venues a comedy writer could go to. Which is fine I suppose, but the author really doesn’t cover anything new or insightful. If you already live in LA or have been pursuing writing/comedy for a year or two, you’ve probably already figured out everything he’s going to explain. If you’re looking for a better comedy book that explains the rule of 3, character status, and other ways of actually creating comedy, check out The Comic Toolbox.

By: Romanovsky

Romanovsky — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 23:30:15 +0000

5-star review for this book? You must be kidding! It’s very good that the author of the book has so many friends, colleagues, and students who are willing to give his book so many glowing reviews. But they are very misleading. The book is too basic. Don’t waste your money. There are better books on comedy writing. “The Comic Toolbox” is one of them.

By: Victor Ferreira

Victor Ferreira — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 23:19:00 +0000

Slovenly and superficial, there are numerous better books. I picked up this book on Kindle based on the majority of 5-star reviews.Then I read the first third of the book. This book is for idiots who slept through English class. The author’s definition of farce is imbecilic. Just so you know what it actually is, here is the definition from a master farceur, Joe Keenan: “A comedy in which a misunderstanding or deliberate deception spirals progressively out of control.” Now if you watch some of the great farces on Frasier, or farce masterpieces like Tootsie, or Rumors by Neil Simon, that is what you will see. If you read this author’s concept of a farce, then the Bullwinkle cartoons apply. It’s just terrible how little work was put into this book.Then I noticed the near-complete absence of AMAZON VERIFIED PURCHASE on the 5-star reviews. At the time of this writing, there are 38 5-star reviews, of which only eight are AMAZON VERIFIED PURCHASES. That’s a confirmed purchase rate of 21%. Now look at how many of these same unverified reviews were posted within three weeks of the book’s publication. I rather suspect the author’s colleagues, students and relatives donated the reviews.Honestly, if you want a superb book on comedy writing, get THE COMIC TOOLBOX by John Vorhaus. It is just excellent in every way. It teaches you the internal architecture of comedy, how to construct a comic character, and how the comedic polarities interrelate and play against one another. You’re Funny is such a remedial introduction to comedy, you’d actually get more out of watching five episodes of Frasier (from Seasons 2, 3 or 11). Another excellent book on comedy writing is THE NEW COMEDY WRITING STEP BY STEP by Gene Perret. He wrote for everyone from Phyllis Diller to Carol Burnett to Bob Hope (okay, so Bob Hope was never all that funny). Perret’s book is full of exercises that will sharpen your punchline skills. If you buy You’re Funny, get those other two books to compare. The contrast in helpfulness is stunning.And, all politics aside, it is very annoying to read how many sketches the author wrote to parody the right wing. It’s like every chapter is one more anecdote of his liberal-agenda-in-every-joke career. Okay, dude. You’re a democrat. We get it. Who in Hollywood isn’t?This book is a rough draft of a mediocre idea that never got developed.