Writing What I Know

Every writer has a perspective. A way of seeing the world. I read, a long time ago, that comedy writers have a skewed way of looking at things. I believe this.

Anyway, it's easiest to write about something you know. What do I know? Well, I've worked in offices through all of my career. I know about co-workers, bosses, job interviews, salary negotiations, getting hired, getting fired. These memories are what I write about when I need ideas for business gags.

I've been married for a long time. I know about dating, getting married, having children, balancing career and family, arguments and downright fights. I draw from all of this to write gags about families and relationships.

I'm not the world's best cook. I have accidents in the kitchen. I write a lot of gags about kitchen disasters, meals that have no taste, recipes calling for too many ingredients and so on. My food and cooking-related gags come from my own experience.

What else do I write about? I write about not being computer-literate. I'm sure we were the last family on the block that bought a microwave. My husband and I still use flip phones. We get our TV programs through a roof antenna. I still call people. I still read a newspaper every day. I make fun of myself because I know I'm living in another era.

I guess you could say I write self-deprecating humor. I am my best subject.

Any comments? Email me at: gagsbyhelene@gmail.com.

"How I Taught Myself To Write Gags for Single-Panel Cartoons

My full-time career was in print advertising sales. I worked for several newspapers over the years, mostly in advertising, but also in features, mostly writing calendar of events listings. Anyway, newspapers is where I was and still am the most comfortable.

At the same time, I was always interested in humor. About 25 or so years ago I started writing one-liners for comedians, broadcasters and public speakers in addition to my advertising job. After writing hundreds (or thousands) of these, one day I realized that this particular one-liner that I had just written could be illustrated and make a single-panel cartoon. Knowing that I can't draw, I knew I would have to collaborate with people who could. I started studying cartoons, specifically the ones in the New Yorker. 

I obtained New Yorker cartoon collections from the library, showing cartoons going back to 1925, the year the magazine started publishing. These collections became my textbooks. I found out what situations were common, such as the desert island, heaven's gatekeeper, jail, husband and wife (relationships), gurus on mountaintops, the Grim Reaper, the Desert Crawler. I also studied the tone of the cartoons, how sophisticated they were. I also learned how to write captions: short, sweet and to the point.

I wrote and still write a lot of business gags, so I also studied cartoons in the Wall Street Journal, Barron's, Harvard Business Review and Reader's Digest.

This is how I learned how to come up with ideas and captions for single-panel gag cartoons. Later on, I found out how to write multi-panel cartoons, such as "Dennis the Menace" on Sunday. (Start with a strong punchline, and work back).

I hope this gives you some idea of how my writing career evolved. I'm still learning.

Comments? Write to me at: gagsbyhelene@gmail.com.

Have a good week!

 

In Search of Inspiration

Sometimes I need something to keep me motivated to write. I keep scrapbooks of published cartoons which contain my gags. Periodically I add to this. I find it very motivating to go through these published cartoons occasionally. It reinforces the belief that I can do this, as I have done it in the past. Also, it shows me what worked, what was accepted, and what wound up in print.

I write a lot from personal experience. In some ways, going through these published cartoons is a journey down memory lane, as I remember certain incidents in my life and now see them in these published cartoons. I see this most clearly in my writing for The Lockhorns for the past 27 years and for Dennis the Menace for the past 18. Someday I hope my children will go through these scrapbooks and get a laugh from these cartoons, realizing that I write about myself and my husband. 

I also keep a folder containing copies of positive emails I've received from cartoonists I work with, informing me about sales to The New Yorker or other publications. Reading through these emails is positive reinforcement for me, showing my successes and signaling to me that I can do it again.  

Any comments? Email me at: gagsbyhelene@gmail.com.

Happy Monday!

 

Writing Down Goals for the New Year

 At the end of every year, I write down a list of goals for the new year as it pertains to my writing. A few days ago I did just that.

Here's a list of some of the goals I set for 2024:

I wrote down who I'm sending gags to, how many gags I'm going to send them and how often, plus I set a goal for myself as far as the money I intend to receive from these sales. 

Since I have spoken to the public about my gag writing and thoroughly enjoy doing so, I wrote down which groups I plan to speak to this year, either solo or as part of a panel discussion. I really like being part of a panel discussion and I intend to do that in 2024.

I thoroughly enjoy networking and understand the value of it in this line of work. As I've said before, it's extremely important to make contacts with people who can hire you. I work alone, as most writers and cartoonists do, and I need to let people know what I do. Thus, in my list of goals for 2024, I wrote down specific events I wish to attend this coming year, such as the MOCCA Fest.

I also attend National Cartoonists Society events and included the plan to attend their local events on my list. 

(One of the items in my list of goals is to get back into the routine of writing this blog every week. So far, so good.)

I wrote down publications I plan to read on a regular basis in 2024, such as the New York Times, Newsday and the Wall Street Journal. I also wrote down news sources I read on a regular basis, such as cnn.com and nbcnews.com. 

Because I slant a great deal of my writing for the New Yorker, I wrote down that I plan to read Michael Maslin's blog, Inkspill, every day, which gives news concerning New Yorker cartoonists, such as awards received, new books, book signings, etc. Very helpful information.

Finally, I listed specific goals for myself, such as finding additional cartoonists and strips to write for in the new year.

Putting these goals down on paper is very helpful to me. It focuses me. As a writer, it's easy for me to put this on paper, and yes, I actually write these goals on pieces of paper. I know - I live in another era.