R: I have decided that humorous novel must be the absolute hardest to write. How could Sedaris know that what he was saying is funny? It seems like it's just luck wether or not people find him annoying or hilarious. People obviously think he's funny considering how many books he's sold but I can't help thinking about the what ifs. I mean for an author writing a sad story it's pretty easy to agree on what is a tragedy. Or like in the book "In Cold Blood" he already had a tragedy and an interesting crime report that millions of people knew about and were interested in. In the books I read like "The Tao of Pooh" or "The Te of Piglet" those had to do with an ancient religion that he knew there would be a following for considering it's been around and practiced for thousands of years. It just blows my mind that he not only simply talks about his life, which so far hasn't proven to be that exceptional, but he also uses humor that he can't even count on people will think is funny. I just am developing a pretty serious respect for hi as an author as I continue to read because I feel like it's a pretty rare talent to be able to take simple personality traits combined with silly stories about your own life and a knack for good well structured writing and become a very successful author. I know If I talked about my life for more than a page or two I'd probably put someone to sleep.
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ReplyDeleteDo you notice that you never give concrete examples from When You Are...? Sedaris definitely gives you more information than is polite sometimes. How is that affecting you?
HP, by the way, uses classic epic format, including the hero's journey. His calling comes in the form of Hagrid's first visit to fetch him.