Humor: the opposite of me

“The problem with being funny,” she said, “is that then no one thinks of you sexually. Unless you’re funny about sex. But personally, I’d rather sex be good than funny.”

I’m not sure whether I can work that into a story or not, but it came to me in the shower a few nights ago, so I thought I’d share. I guess it’s part of my attempt to learn how to be funny. I think I still have quite a way to go…

(Why is humor so difficult for me??)

In other news, I finished Amy Tan’s The Opposite of Fate on my business trip last week, and I was blown away.The Opposite of Fate: Memories of a Writing Life It had been sitting on my shelf for the past 4 years (I kid you not) and now I wish I hadn’t wasted so much time before experiencing it. I give it a 5 out of 5 stars (as reflected on both GoodReads and Amazon) and highly recommend it to anyone who

  • likes Amy Tan
  • has an Asian parent (or knows one decently well)
  • has a mother

AND/OR

  • likes good books.

Now I really want to re-read The Joy Luck Club, but my copy of the book (if it hasn’t been lost) is at home in Houston, so I re-watched the movie instead. That was also fabulous, and brought me to tears because so much of it resonated with me. I mean, my mom isn’t as “crazy” as Amy Tan’s was, but I don’t think that matters. It’s the emotion of the stories, the reality of the fiction, the relationships between the characters — all that stuff tugs at your heart, no matter who or what you are. That’s how I want to write. What I felt as I read Amy Tan’s words, that’s how I want each and every one of my readers to feel. I think I still have quite a way to go…


2 responses to “Humor: the opposite of me”

  1. rose Avatar

    yeah, humor’s so difficult to conquer!
    mostly because it’s hard to translate humor perfectly, not only between languages but from person to person. that’s why it’s such an admirable trait to be able to make people laugh. :) i think wit is so attractive.

  2. diane Avatar

    hey, i thought that little anecdote was pretty funny. and i thought it came from a tv show or something, so props for actually making that up.

    and i trust your recommendations, so have put that book on hold. whee, yet another book to add to my “haven’t read… and may return before touching” pile. hopefully the fate of amy tan’s book will not live up to the pile’s name.