LET ME TELL YOU ABOUT MY MAMMOGRAM: SITUATIONAL HUMOR WRITING with Ashley Harris
WEBINAR DATE: Friday, July 25, 2025
WEBINAR TIME: 2pm - 4pm ET
DURATION: 2 Hours
LOCATION: Live webinar via Zoom
FEEDBACK: The last 15 minutes of the lecture will be open to Q&A.
SPECIAL OPTION: Receive a personal critique from the instructor of 3 double-spaced pages of your writing within two weeks of the class. This includes an analysis of voice, tone, title, format and at least one submission recommendation will be provided.
COURSE DESCRIPTION: When life gives you lemons, you can either make lemonade or write a humorous essay. We’ll do the latter in this workshop, where we’ll read excerpts from writers such as David Sedaris and Laurie Notaro based on the wacky things that happen to us all. Maybe you had a crazy first job (or crazy first boss, let’s be honest), nearly set the house on fire while making toast or accidentally backed your car into a tree in full sight of the whole church picnic. These readings will be followed by specialized writing prompts to generate the beginning of three of your own essays. We’ll also cover elements, form, and structure of humor writing, along with potential markets. The only prerequisite is a healthy funny bone!
This live Zoom webinar starts and ends on Friday, July 25, 2025.
Time: 11 AM - 1 PM PT | 12-2 PM MT | 1-3 PM CT | 2-4 PM ET
The webinar can be viewed on a tablet, phone, or computer (both Mac and PC).
The instructor will record the class and have it available for anyone who would prefer to view the class at a different time and date.
Format
This course is offered via Zoom webinar. Webinars are workshops given online, where you can view the instructor and websites/materials she shares on her screen, making it an interactive experience. Webinars make learning from your home or office convenient.
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I have taken multiple classes with Ashley and have also worked with her one-on-one. She is a generous teacher, a thoughtful editor, and heck of a lot of fun to be around. As an often-published writer herself, she has a knack for knowing what readers want. And as a "submission queen," she was my first call as I finished my MFA and sought homes for my essays. Thanks Ashley! ~ Cathia Friou
This is a giant candy-coated “Thank You” for your lovely and generous critique of my story “The Wanderer” in the Summer 2024 WOW! Women On Writing contest. My story was selected as a finalist (in a huge field of finalists). Your kind words and comments were a true prize to me! Again, thank you for giving me a real boost and inspiration to keep on scribbling. ~ Anna “A.K.” McCutcheon
Thank you for your thoughtful and insightful critique of my short story, “I Dropped the Turkey.” As you suggested, I gave more of a backstory for Blina and her family and filled in the history of Joe Montero. I always appreciate your spot-on input. ~ Susan Strauss
Ashley is an amazing teacher and editor! I’ve workshopped my creative nonfiction, fiction, and lyric prose with Ashley over the years and her advice is always spot on and chock-full of encouragement. She is one of the most positive and inspiring people I know! Her market recommendations are gold, and I’ve landed quite a few publications from her suggestions. If you’re looking for a true partner who wants the best for your work, I highly recommend working with Ashley Harris. ~ Angela Mackintosh
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CLASS AT A GLANCE:
Live Webinar: Let Me Tell You About My Mammogram: Situational Humor Writing
Duration: 120 minutes
In two rib-splitting hours, an encouraging teacher will share excerpts from humorous essays that will inspire you immediately. She’ll cover elements and forms of humor writing, along with writing prompts to generate your own pieces. She’ll also offer tips on beginnings and endings with an aim toward publication, along with an overview of current markets publishing humorous essays. As a bonus, she’ll expose the X-FACTOR, the secret ingredient of the best published humor. For an extra fee, you can have your work critiqued by the instructor and receive a targeted submission recommendation within two weeks of the class.
Topics include:
- Overview of situational humor: expectations versus reality; wrong place, wrong time; no good deed goes unpunished
- Elements of humor: metaphor, self-deprecation, irony, surprise and incongruity
- Forms of humor: traditional, how-to-articles or manuals, faux forms, lists, graphics
- Excerpts from published humor to inspire you
- Three prompts to generate humorous essays from your own life
- An analysis of structure, including beginnings and endings that resonate
- X-FACTOR EXPOSED: Secret ingredient of the best humor writing
- Overview of outlets publishing humor submissions (hint: the market is wider than most people think!)
- Recommended books to tickle your writing funny bone long after class
- Q & A
Materials Needed: A pen or pencil, a writing pad, and your imagination.
ABOUT YOUR INSTRUCTOR: Ashley Harris, writer and editor, is the self-anointed “Mishap Maven.” She’s written about misadventures such as a madcap mammogram, disastrous dinner party, shoe-buying binge, and the delusion that she owned a Rembrandt for outlets such as WOW, Pine Straw, North Carolina Literary Review, Widget, and more. Twice nominated for the Pushcart Prize, she is a two-time recipient of the Doris Betts Fiction prize and the author of the comic novel, Naked and Hungry, which was a finalist for the James Jones First Novel Fellowship. Since 2021, she’s served as a critique editor and judge for WOW’s quarterly fiction and nonfiction contests, and her favorite hobby, by far, is helping other writers achieve their publication dreams.
BUY NOW: Let Me Tell You About My Mammogram: Situational Humor Writing with Ashley Harris (Friday, July 25, 2025, 2pm - 4pm ET) Limit: 20 students. Early registration is recommended.
COST: $45, which includes one two-hour webinar with a 15-minute Q&A with your instructor.
OPTIONAL CRITIQUE ADD-ON: A personal critique from the instructor of 3
double-spaced pages of your essay for $55 ($100 total). Select from the drop-down menu.
This class is full. Please check out our current list of classes here.
Notes: Upon successful completion of payment, your name and email address will be submitted to your instructor. She will send you a welcome email with everything you need to know prior to class. Before class begins, we will email you a Zoom link. Happy writing!
Questions? Email Marcia & Angela at:
classroom[at]wow-womenonwriting[dot]com
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