Description

The Comic Toolbox: How to Be Funny Even If You’re Not amazon review   5.0 out of 5 stars A helpful – and ENJOYABLE – book of fiction writing advice, June 14, 2000By TAMI Cowden (Henderson, NV USA) – See all my reviews(REAL NAME)   No other book on writing I’ve read – and I’ve read a lot! – kept me chuckling throughout. I’d recommend this book for the laughs alone, but I can also recommend it as the fount of writing wisdom it entails.Vorhaus not only explains the basic types of humor and the elements of a comic plot, but also lays out an excellent plotting structure useful for any type of fiction writing. Whether you merely want to add a few touches of humor to an angsty story, or you want to write the next comic blockbuster, this book will help you on your way.P.S. Chapter 9 alone is worth the price of the book!Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? YesNo (Report this)   4.0 out of 5 stars A good book for comedy writers., June 25, 2005By Chris Sellick (South Australia,Australia) – See all my reviews(REAL NAME)   I like this book because it offers advice on creating written comedy.It teaches you how to write,where to get ideas from and put those ideas together.There are plenty of exercises to follow so keep a note book handy if you buy this book.The author writes in an easy to understand way.Doesnt get boring like other books.No matter what,you will gain something from this book.And,there’s a few laughs too.If you want to do stand -up comedy this book should be considered for your collection of books .It will help.I would recommend these books specifically for stand -up comedy:1)”Zen and the art of stand-up comedy” By Jay Sankey.2)”The comedy bible”.By Judy Carter.Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? YesNo (Report this)  5.0 out of 5 stars The Character and Plot Toolbox: Some Assembly Required, October 26, 2004By Shevi “FantasyWeaver” (NJ, USA) – See all my reviewsI love The Comic Toolbox and would recommend it to anyone interested in writing good fiction, whether it be comic or otherwise. If you are trying to write a stand up act, however, you’ll probably do better with Judy Carter’s books, The Comedy Bible and Stand Up Comedy: The Book.Vorhaus has a very simple and useful method for creating satisfying plots and characters readers will love. Everything Tami D. Cowden said in her review is true:”No other book on writing I’ve read – and I’ve read a lot! – kept me chuckling throughout. I’d recommend this book for the laughs alone, but I can also recommend it as the fount of writing wisdom it entails.Vorhaus not only explains the basic types of humor and the elements of a comic plot, but also lays out an excellent plotting structure useful for any type of fiction writing. Whether you merely want to add a few touches of humor to an angsty story, or you want to write the next comic blockbuster, this book will help you on your way.”Although Tami D recommends chapter 9 (this entire chapter consists of the one line “Of course, no book on comedy would be complete without a comprehensive discussion on practical jokes”), I would recommend skimming chapter one. It includes Vorhaus’s basic formula of comedy, truth+pain=comedy, which I don’t agree with. A terrorist attack is truth+pain but tragic and not comic, while “what did the mayonnaise say to the refrigerator?” is comic without being true or painful. So don’t take the first chapter too seriously, and know the good stuff is just around the page.This book could help simplify writing a good story for a lot of writers. I hope it does.