World, Writing, Wealth discussion

With a lot of humorous stuff being based on facial expressions, looks, masks, acting and so on can just witty words withstand the competition?
What's your favorite humorous book/story/written ?

Yes it can.

Really enjoyed The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared. Other books like Catch-22 have laugh out-loud moments. I also recently read Bricking It where I was crying with laughter sometimes.

There are lots more but I think the point is visual is pushing literary aside. Goodreads followers are an exception because we are book orientated but compare GR to Youtube in terms of interactions. The writing is on the wall - for us all to video

Just write comedy whenever you can - don't give up the good fight, don't go quietly into the night.

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

What humorous lit would you single out?

I read a lot, mysteries being one of my favorite genres, and there are a few mystery and crime writers that "write funny" - a few I would pick out:
Parnell Hall
Carl Hiassen
Elmore Leonard
Katy Munger
Jane Rubino
Sarah Strohmeyer
Donald Westlake

I guess the main issue is that literary humour takes a bit of setting up, whereas oral/visual humour (bits/memes) can happen much more quickly. They're much quicker to the payoff - especially high quality stand up.

My books are always funny (I hope) though I mainly do crime. I remember writing a book on the train a few years back where I'd reached a scene where a few threads (quite amusingly) came together. In the silent commuter carriage I was howling with laughter while dozens sat stony faced around me. The more I tried not to laugh the worse it got.

It's actually a pretty dark book but with some very funny moments if you're as disturbed as, I suppose, I must be.

I would add to Barbara's list that Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series makes me laugh out loud. The characters are so NJ in my mind, as is the settings. My daughter has to drive by a local funeral place in Milwaukee regularly and she says it reminds her of the novels with a lot of old people and Grandma and she wonders if they have the "good" cookies.

Totally agree. That's a laugh-out-loud series. I also remember my first read of Winston Groom's Forrest Gump and laughing out loud. Some of Twain's stuff was the same. I think it takes a special talent to make a reader laugh out loud -- not just think "Oh, that's funny."