Instructor: Dan Zevin
Length: 5 sessions, $450

Do funny things always happen to you, or is it just that you see your world through a comic lens? For humor essayists, it's a little of both. In this workshop, geared toward the writer who “thinks funny,” we focus on those small, funny moments that bridge the gap between personal and universal. Nora Ephron, David Sedaris, and Tina Fey are among the laugh-out loud essayists we’ll discuss, emphasizing comic timing, character arc, word choice, and the line between “person” and “persona.” Since a story is only as amusing as the way it’s told, we’ll try our hands at several forms, including funny diary entries and satirical “how-to” guides. Past students have successfully placed their essays and blog posts for publication. You’re the character. Just add material.

Dan Zevin is a Thurber Prize-winning humorist. His new book is Very Modern Mantras: Daily Affirmations for Daily Aggravations. He is also the author of Dan Gets a Minivan and The Day I Turned Uncool, which were both optioned by Adam Sandler. Dan has been an award-winning humor columnist for the New York Times, a comic commentator for NPR, and a contributor to print or digital editions of The New Yorker, McSweeney’s, Rolling Stone, Salon, the L.A. Times, Real Simple and Parents, among others. He also teaches in the MFA program as Sarah Lawrence College.