Hold onto your rubber chickens - it's June Jests here on my blog. Each week I'll be interviewing two authors who incorporate humor into their novels. Be sure to catch them all! Today Joyce Ward is joining us.
Welcome, Joyce! Tell us about the last time you laughed so hard you cried and/or wet your pants.
The most embarrassing incident happened when my friends and I went to see Jerry Seinfeld in a club. I still watch “Seinfeld” reruns faithfully, but seeing his act in person, I laughed so hard, not only did I cry, I couldn’t breathe, and nearly wet my pants. What made it doubly humiliating was all the commotion I caused—doubled over, crying, gasping for air, and all the while, trying not to pee my pants. Embarrassing.
Why do you like to incorporate humor into your stories?
Humor breaks the tension in the story by making them more interesting and fun to read. Infusing humor in the characters makes them more lifelike—giving them more depth. Not everyone is funny, but nobody is one-dimensional.
What is the most challenging aspect of writing humor?
Timing is everything. Ill-timed and misplaced humor falls flat. An author needs to make humor flow naturally and not force it. Readers are sharp. They can tell the difference.
Tell us about one of the funniest scenes from your book & where you drew inspiration for it.
In The Lesson, the funniest scene, in my opinion, happens in the final chapter. I don’t want to give away the ending, but the scene involves the heroine’s mother. Where did I get the inspiration? From the character herself. And she certainly is a character. There was no other way she would have reacted to the “situation.”
THIS or THAT:
Brooklyn Nine-Nine or Big Bang Theory?
I’ve never watched Brooklyn Nine-Nine, but watch Big Bang Theory regularly
Silly animal videos or cute kid videos?
Silly animal videos
Bugs Bunny or Woody Woodpecker?
Bugs Bunny! After all these years, I still love that “wabbit.”
Janet Evanovich or Judy Blume?
Hands down, Janet Evanovich. While in my car, I enjoy listening to her audio books about Stephanie Plum’s adventures.
So nice to have a fellow Bugs Bunny fan on my blog! And now, more about The Lesson:
A rebellious, young woman and her stoned boyfriend learn an important and frightening lesson after behaving badly in a mortuary.
When Pamela Tripp’s favorite uncle dies, she attends the viewing with her stoned-artist boyfriend, Kevin. After an altercation with her disapproving mother, Pamela can’t leave the funeral home soon enough. Before she heads home, however, she needs to use the restroom. En route to the ladies room, she plucks a bloom from an expensive floral display, resulting in a harsh reprimand from one of the morticians.
He sends her to use the restroom in the basement, which is being remodeled, and issues a warning to be careful and not wander around. But a ‘Caution’ sign on a locked door catches Kevin’s eye and captures his attention. In spite of Pamela’s protests, Kevin breaks in the door, grabs her hand, and takes her on a frightening journey she will never forget.
Click here to buy your copy:
 On Amazon For more about Joyce Ward & her books: Website: http://www.joyceward.com/ Twitter: http://bit.ly/1E6TtUQ Facebook: http://on.fb.me/1zp9KbT |  At Champagne Books |
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