Comedy Writing Secrets: The Best-Selling Book on How to Think Funny, Write Funny, Act Funny, And Get Paid For It, 2nd Edition [Paperback]

Mel Helitzer (Author), Mark Shatz (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2005 | ISBN-10: 1582973571 | ISBN-13: 978-1582973579 | Edition: 2nd

The Only Handbook for Humor Writers!

"What is comedy? Comedy is the art of making people laugh without making them puke."—Steve Martin

Become the funniest person in the room! With Comedy Writing Secrets, 2nd edition, you can master the fundamentals of humor writing and turn your comedic talent into a well-paying pursuit.

For more than a decade, Comedy Writing Secrets has been giving aspiring comedians a leg up on the competition. In this expanded new edition, Mel Helitzer, named the "funniest professor in the country" by Rolling Stone magazine, and funnyman Mark Shatz pack in even more insight and instruction, including:

• Humor writing exercises to punch up your jokes
• Extra information on writing for sitcoms and stand-up
• Comedic brainstorming techniques using associations and listings
• Exclusive tips for writing humor for specific markets like editorials, columns, speeches, advertising, greeting cards, t-shirts, and more

Tap into your comedic genius with Comedy Writing Secrets, 2nd edition, and you'll always leave 'em laughing!

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Mel Helitzer is an award-winning journalism professor and has written comedy material for such stars as Sammy Davis, Jr., Art Linkletter, and Shari Lewis, Mark A, Shatz is a professor of psychology and teaches humour writing.

Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Writer's Digest Books; 2nd edition (October 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1582973571
• ISBN-13: 978-1582973579
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 1 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (52 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #45,691 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #57 in Books > Humor & Entertainment > Humor > Comedy

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

113 of 121 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Comedy Writing Secrets by Melvin Helitzer a must! June 21, 1998

By [e-mail]

Format:Paperback

Helitzer's Book on comedy writing is the best book out there on the subject. He has a firm grasp on essential techniques needed to refine your raw material into comedy gold. I recommend this book for anyone seiously interested in the old addage, "if it's funny there's money!" If you perform stand-up, or just write, this is the book to read. His various examples from today's comedians are not only hilarious but keep the reader interested and the book moving along. Helitzer has written the first and best book on the subject. I teach a comedy class and I know I couldn't do it without this book.

40 of 43 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A rectangular book ideal for squares May 31, 2005

By Fred

Format:Paperback

Ever wondered why we laugh and why certain jokes are funny?

Well, the answers to those questions set the frame work that Comedy Writing Secrets follows to help you think more like a comedy writer.

Even if you are a naturally funny person (speaking from experience here!) the book is incredibly valuable. If you read a few chapters and then go about your day you might find something magic... all of a sudden you'll start making jokes you never would have thought of.

I didn't buy it with the intention of becoming a stand up or writing hit TV shows but it has helped me create jokes I would previously never thought of.

It's a great read and very funny. There are numerous examples to illustrate the concepts and the book's structure is easy to follow.

It's really a textbook on comedy without being a textbook.

29 of 31 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent source for aspiring comedians November 8, 2000

By Scott Strain

Format:Paperback

I am an amateur comedian and I found "Comedy Writing Secrets" to be extraordinary. It actually helped me write comedy and structure it so it flows and makes sense.I am now performing in Cleveland and this excellent source has been a great help. Thank you.

22 of 24 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars A book to get you started March 14, 2006

By Kevin Gumdrop

Format:Paperback

I have the first edition of this book (figures they'd release a second edition after I buy the first) and learned a lot from it. It reads like a college textbook and the joke examples aren't funny in the least, but the formulas you learn here are used by comedians and sitcom writers all the time. Just turn on your favorite sitcom one night and count the various joke formulas used over the course of a half hour show if you doubt Helitzer's knowledge. You'll find that he describes nearly every one in this book.

Some of the joke techniques you'll learn include the triple and the reverse. There're also many other comedy related tips that I'm sure have been updated in the second edition. This book does a great job of demystifying comedy.

29 of 33 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The Book the Pro Comics Read February 29, 2004

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

I'm a photo journalist and I interview a lot of professional
touring comics when they hit Orange County (California). I'm amazed at the number of times these big time pros have "Comedy Writing Secrets" in their rooms. Last month Drew Carrey was photographed reading the book in a national ad he did for library services. Since I've read and loved the book, I use it as a conversation ice breaker while I'm lightting the set. The
comics then feel more relaxed knowing we enjoy something in common.

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The best comedy writing book on the market. December 20, 2005

By Frederick Talbott

Format:Paperback

I've taught more than 2,000 students from 50 states and 78 nations how to develop and perform stand-up comedy, all thanks to Mel Helitzer's amazing book and guidance. And every one of them hit a home run. I've also yanked laughs in more than 20 states during major convention talks and training sessions. Because I learned how to find, refine, and structure great stories and yuks--with reverses, triples, the rule of threes and so many great tips from Mel. Now the new edition is even better--and zanier, if that's possible. A fun, exciting read essential for every comic--and every professional speaker. Anyone who doesn't love this book must spend the day hitting themselves with a shoe.

152 of 194 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Simple but not necessarily funny methods... May 29, 2005

By Stephen Armstrong

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Usually when one writes a negative review, Amazon readers say the review was not helpful. Also, Amazon tends to make their "spotlight reviews" the good ones.

This book is a decidedly mixed bag. On the positive side: the author clearly identifies the schtick of famous comedians; he has made up exercises to "practice" the steps one needs to take to be "funny;" he makes good comments about how to be a writer or comedian in the public spotlight. So this is a technically competent book.

Yet little of the humor in the book is actually funny, or at least to my taste funny. I never thought Jack E. Leonard was funny, I detested Don Rickles' aggressive and demeaning "humor;" Rodney Dangerfield was significantly depressed so I always felt sick when I heard his jokes; Jackie Gleason was a self-involved fat turkey who did not like women, etc., etc. Yet we can see where Helitzer's favorite comics come from: his theory is that humor "is about superiority."

So much for irony, understatement, significant pauses, or just treating people to something funny.

20 of 23 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars my first joke June 21, 2005

By Max Rottersman

Format:Paperback

The book is full of real-world techniques. Most of the jokes are weak, but to his credit he's not trying to make you laugh but to learn the techniques of comedy. The book teaches you how to sit down and after 30 minutes to produce some jokes. I was a 3rd of the way through the book and tried his techniques on the business section of the Times. They had a story about how Defense companies need generals on their boards to get more business. So I doodled, "If you've invented a good weapon you need one general on your board. If your weapon isn't so good you need two generals. But if you have three generals you don't need a weapon at all. You can sell the pentagon $700 wrenches." I'm not claiming this is a great joke, only that the book worked in helping me work through the process.