Comedy writing is hard. Or is it?
This panel of professional humor & satire writers and editors will demystify how to be funny in prose, in scripts, online, and at parties.
These panelists do it all: write and edit viral pieces, publish full-length books, write your favorite shows, tell your favorite jokes, and either publish in or subscribe to The New Yorker — and they want to share their insights and secrets on how to draft, submit, resubmit, publish, and promote funny writing.
Whether you want to write parody, satire, essays, short, or long; whether you're new or old to writing--this panel is for you.
Join us to become a comedy writing insider and learn everything you need to know about writing a fart joke and invoicing for it.
Host Elissa Bassist brings together Chris Monks, who has edited McSweeney's Internet Tendency since 2007 and decides what runs there; Alexandra Petri, staff writer at The Atlantic and winner of the 2025 Thurber Prize for American Humor; Milly Tamarez, a stand-up and TV writer whose work has appeared on Reductress, BuzzFeed, and MTV, and who consults with The Onion on developing a pipeline for diverse comedy writers; and Evan Waite, co-executive producer on Family Guy, Writers Guild Award winner, and a contributor to both The Onion and The New Yorker.
For two hours, they'll get specific about the work: where a funny idea comes from and how you know it has legs; how to build an airtight premise; why most humor submissions get rejected in the first paragraph; what separates a piece that's funny from a piece that's publishable; how to write anything funnier; how to weaponize comedy to fight fascism; and how a byline in one venue turns into the next one.
There will be a live Q&A, so bring your questions for these panelists at the top of their game.