INTRODUCING: monthly virtual writing sessions, via Substack subscription, on topics like:
short humor & satire
funny personal essays
memoir
tragicomedy
being funny when nothing is funny
watching TV to write better
the art of rejection
dismantling patriarchy
elissabassist.substack.com/p/a-life-cha...
short humor & satire
funny personal essays
memoir
tragicomedy
being funny when nothing is funny
watching TV to write better
the art of rejection
dismantling patriarchy
elissabassist.substack.com/p/a-life-cha...
A Life-Changing Announcement
It's monthly virtual writing sessions
elissabassist.substack.com
July 2, 2025 at 5:04 PM
INTRODUCING: monthly virtual writing sessions, via Substack subscription, on topics like:
short humor & satire
funny personal essays
memoir
tragicomedy
being funny when nothing is funny
watching TV to write better
the art of rejection
dismantling patriarchy
elissabassist.substack.com/p/a-life-cha...
short humor & satire
funny personal essays
memoir
tragicomedy
being funny when nothing is funny
watching TV to write better
the art of rejection
dismantling patriarchy
elissabassist.substack.com/p/a-life-cha...
I don't know who needs to hear this but elissabassist.substack.com/p/declare-em...
Declare Email Bankruptcy
A writing tip
elissabassist.substack.com
July 1, 2025 at 7:18 PM
I don't know who needs to hear this but elissabassist.substack.com/p/declare-em...
Reposted by Elissa Bassist
Don’t threaten us with a good time
Nick Clegg says asking artists for use permission would ‘kill’ the AI industry
Nick Clegg says asking artists for use permission would ‘kill’ the AI industry
Paul McCartne, Elton John and others signed an open letter.
buff.ly
May 26, 2025 at 7:35 PM
Don’t threaten us with a good time
EVERYTHING IS BAD. Let's write about it. Take my new seminar to use your fears, secrets, lies, truths, and farts to write more and better in order to survive life right now (and win writing awards). writingworkshops.com/collections/...
Writing the Impossible Seminar: Sex, Violence, Illness, and More
Sex, violence, illness, and the body: charged topics are hard to read about and harder to write about. But with the right tools, you can pull it off.
writingworkshops.com
May 12, 2025 at 6:16 PM
EVERYTHING IS BAD. Let's write about it. Take my new seminar to use your fears, secrets, lies, truths, and farts to write more and better in order to survive life right now (and win writing awards). writingworkshops.com/collections/...
Reposted by Elissa Bassist
Learn to write funny stuff about your life in
@elissabassist.bsky.social's @storystudiochicago.bsky.social class, no matter how unfunny your life your life may feel sometimes… One class, Zoom, May 1!
www.storystudiochicago.org/classes/clas...
@elissabassist.bsky.social's @storystudiochicago.bsky.social class, no matter how unfunny your life your life may feel sometimes… One class, Zoom, May 1!
www.storystudiochicago.org/classes/clas...
PJ Seminar: A Master Class on Writing a Comedic Memoir with Elissa Bassist - StoryStudio Chicago
You don’t have to be a celebrity comedian to write a funny memoir. You don’t have to be born with a sense of humor or have had anything funny happen to you. A memoirist must make a meal out of her exp...
www.storystudiochicago.org
April 18, 2025 at 3:29 PM
Learn to write funny stuff about your life in
@elissabassist.bsky.social's @storystudiochicago.bsky.social class, no matter how unfunny your life your life may feel sometimes… One class, Zoom, May 1!
www.storystudiochicago.org/classes/clas...
@elissabassist.bsky.social's @storystudiochicago.bsky.social class, no matter how unfunny your life your life may feel sometimes… One class, Zoom, May 1!
www.storystudiochicago.org/classes/clas...
Reposted by Elissa Bassist
Attended a *fabulous* online seminar last night on writing comedic memoir, run by @elissabassist.bsky.social (take her classes!!). Was reminded that she has a book on comedy writing called INSIDE JOKES forthcoming with @caitlinkunkel.bsky.social—can’t wait!
March 31, 2025 at 10:38 AM
Attended a *fabulous* online seminar last night on writing comedic memoir, run by @elissabassist.bsky.social (take her classes!!). Was reminded that she has a book on comedy writing called INSIDE JOKES forthcoming with @caitlinkunkel.bsky.social—can’t wait!
Reposted by Elissa Bassist
Next class 4/26: one of my favs, Write Like an Athlete! We mix creativity with sports psychology concepts to create a warmup routine, tinker with your environment + explore goal setting, tapering, and lots of other elements. Two hours, recorded if you can't come live, and you get the slides after!
Write Like an Athlete Class with Caitlin Kunkel | WritingWorkshops.com
Former competitive distance swimmer Caitlin Kunkel will weave together concepts from writing and sports psychology to help strengthen your creative practice.
writingworkshops.com
March 31, 2025 at 2:01 PM
Next class 4/26: one of my favs, Write Like an Athlete! We mix creativity with sports psychology concepts to create a warmup routine, tinker with your environment + explore goal setting, tapering, and lots of other elements. Two hours, recorded if you can't come live, and you get the slides after!
Reposted by Elissa Bassist
Send us some shit. Open 4/20 - ???. we pay $150 for prestigious works of literary merit. We got the Paris Review at home and it's called the Taco Bell Quarterly, just as good, cheaper, actually free and completely made up
March 16, 2025 at 10:15 PM
Send us some shit. Open 4/20 - ???. we pay $150 for prestigious works of literary merit. We got the Paris Review at home and it's called the Taco Bell Quarterly, just as good, cheaper, actually free and completely made up
I'm teaching at The Kennedy Center. A staff member and I started planning this class last April. After T**** took over and fired the board and senior staff this month, I could have canceled my class. 1/?
February 24, 2025 at 8:17 PM
I'm teaching at The Kennedy Center. A staff member and I started planning this class last April. After T**** took over and fired the board and senior staff this month, I could have canceled my class. 1/?
My friend fixed her daughter's homework:
February 24, 2025 at 6:40 PM
My friend fixed her daughter's homework:
Reposted by Elissa Bassist
This is the first short humor class I've taught in years—I've refined it down to 2 hours while writing INSIDE JOKES with @elissabassist.bsky.social! On Zoom, you'll get the slides/recording after if you can't make it, learn a repeatable process to brainstorm, draft, and rewrite a short humor piece.
How to Write a Short Humor Piece | WritingWorkshops.com
Writer and creator of The Second City’s online satire writing program, Caitlin Kunkel, will teach a repeatable process for writing a short humor piece.
writingworkshops.com
February 18, 2025 at 2:52 PM
This is the first short humor class I've taught in years—I've refined it down to 2 hours while writing INSIDE JOKES with @elissabassist.bsky.social! On Zoom, you'll get the slides/recording after if you can't make it, learn a repeatable process to brainstorm, draft, and rewrite a short humor piece.
Reposted by Elissa Bassist
I made a list!
February 14, 2025 at 6:17 PM
I made a list!
Reposted by Elissa Bassist
tbh "do whatever you want" would be a helpful statement to tattoo on myself
Not caring what other people think is a writing skill. Please read/share/frame/tattoo/memorize:
Writing About Other People, Pt. 2
And how to write when afraid
open.substack.com
February 10, 2025 at 10:51 PM
tbh "do whatever you want" would be a helpful statement to tattoo on myself
Not caring what other people think is a writing skill. Please read/share/frame/tattoo/memorize:
Writing About Other People, Pt. 2
And how to write when afraid
open.substack.com
February 10, 2025 at 8:52 PM
Not caring what other people think is a writing skill. Please read/share/frame/tattoo/memorize:
Reposted by Elissa Bassist
You know you’ve found the right person when they buy you a spot in @elissabassist.bsky.social’s workshop on writing a/b violence as an early v-day present. How’d I get so lucky with you, @kevinrmaloney.bsky.social ??? (P.S. her workshops are lit. Highly recommend. Join me?)
Writing the Impossible Seminar: Sex, Violence, Illness, and More
Sex, violence, illness, and the body: charged topics are hard to read about and harder to write about. But with the right tools, you can pull it off.
writingworkshops.com
February 3, 2025 at 8:27 PM
You know you’ve found the right person when they buy you a spot in @elissabassist.bsky.social’s workshop on writing a/b violence as an early v-day present. How’d I get so lucky with you, @kevinrmaloney.bsky.social ??? (P.S. her workshops are lit. Highly recommend. Join me?)
Reposted by Elissa Bassist
Stop worrying and entrust @caitlinkunkel.bsky.social to help you WRITE THAT BOOK PROPOSAL Feb 8th: www.writingco-lab.com/classes/stop...
Stop Worrying and Write Your Book Proposal! 1 session with Caitlin Kunkel — Writing Co-Lab
Do you have an idea for a memoir, gift book, or essay collection, but you've been fearing the daunting prospect of putting together a book proposal? In this one-day seminar, writers will throw their w...
www.writingco-lab.com
January 26, 2025 at 3:58 PM
Stop worrying and entrust @caitlinkunkel.bsky.social to help you WRITE THAT BOOK PROPOSAL Feb 8th: www.writingco-lab.com/classes/stop...
Reposted by Elissa Bassist
This is a late addition to my favorite books I’ve read this year. @elissabassist.bsky.social artfully weaves research, literature, and media criticism in with her personal story and it’s phenomenal.
December 11, 2024 at 12:09 AM
This is a late addition to my favorite books I’ve read this year. @elissabassist.bsky.social artfully weaves research, literature, and media criticism in with her personal story and it’s phenomenal.
Reposted by Elissa Bassist
"Preserve Energy: We have a finite amount. And decision fatigue is real (so wear the same writing outfit, which is a robe, every day)." Funny and very practical #writingtips from Elissa Bassist
How to Sit in a Chair
Productivity hacks for the uninspired writer
elissabassist.substack.com
December 10, 2023 at 10:46 PM
"Preserve Energy: We have a finite amount. And decision fatigue is real (so wear the same writing outfit, which is a robe, every day)." Funny and very practical #writingtips from Elissa Bassist
Reposted by Elissa Bassist
I'm taking a comedy writing class w/ the hilarious @elissabassist.bsky.social & it's giving me so much confidence that I (an overly earnest person) can be funny in print.
My plan with this new power? Trick people into reading a funny story only for them to realize (too late) they learned science.
My plan with this new power? Trick people into reading a funny story only for them to realize (too late) they learned science.
December 7, 2024 at 5:03 PM
I'm taking a comedy writing class w/ the hilarious @elissabassist.bsky.social & it's giving me so much confidence that I (an overly earnest person) can be funny in print.
My plan with this new power? Trick people into reading a funny story only for them to realize (too late) they learned science.
My plan with this new power? Trick people into reading a funny story only for them to realize (too late) they learned science.
Reposted by Elissa Bassist
Last class of the year: Comedy Writing for Non-Comedians! Learn to use the tools of comedy to write funnier copy, emails, dating profiles, speeches, and whatever else you need to spice up. Sunday, 12/8 online, but you can also sign up and watch the recording later. Details here:
Comedy Writing for Non-Comedians Caitlin Kunkel | WritingWorkshops.com
n this two-hour interactive seminar, satirist, author, and creator of The Second City’s online satire writing program Caitlin Kunkel will break down the basics of comedic writing for those who aren’t ...
writingworkshops.com
November 27, 2024 at 4:02 PM
Last class of the year: Comedy Writing for Non-Comedians! Learn to use the tools of comedy to write funnier copy, emails, dating profiles, speeches, and whatever else you need to spice up. Sunday, 12/8 online, but you can also sign up and watch the recording later. Details here:
Reposted by Elissa Bassist
I made a starter pack of humor and satire publications as they start to come over to Bluesky—let me know additional ones I should add!
November 19, 2024 at 5:04 PM
I made a starter pack of humor and satire publications as they start to come over to Bluesky—let me know additional ones I should add!
Reposted by Elissa Bassist
When I was on maternity leave I created a referral sheet of people I recommend for fiction, book proposal, humor, and satire feedback and editing—sharing it here in case people are looking for these resources now: docs.google.com/document/d/1...
Caitlin Kunkel: Writing and Editing Referrals 2024
Hi there! I (Caitlin Kunkel) am out on family and book leave until 2025. My next book, “Inside Jokes: A Comedy and Creativity Guide for All Writers,” co-authored with Elissa Bassist, will be out from ...
docs.google.com
November 19, 2024 at 3:46 PM
When I was on maternity leave I created a referral sheet of people I recommend for fiction, book proposal, humor, and satire feedback and editing—sharing it here in case people are looking for these resources now: docs.google.com/document/d/1...
Reposted by Elissa Bassist
Happy publication anniversary to my first (and only!) humor piece about (the chaos of) querying a novel. Pubbing with @therumpus.bsky.social was one of my big-dream goals last year, and I so enjoyed working with @elissabassist.bsky.social 🥰
Funny Women: Query Letter for My Totally Publishable Novel - The Rumpus
(The previous sentence demonstrates both my market awareness and my forward thinking.)
therumpus.net
November 18, 2024 at 3:13 PM
Happy publication anniversary to my first (and only!) humor piece about (the chaos of) querying a novel. Pubbing with @therumpus.bsky.social was one of my big-dream goals last year, and I so enjoyed working with @elissabassist.bsky.social 🥰
Reposted by Elissa Bassist
It’s really pretty cool that one thing you can do to support people you like is ask your local library to get their book because it doesn’t cost you anything, it helps them, and the librarian gets to know someone actually wants to read a book and not just use the computer for Roblox
November 12, 2024 at 4:32 PM
It’s really pretty cool that one thing you can do to support people you like is ask your local library to get their book because it doesn’t cost you anything, it helps them, and the librarian gets to know someone actually wants to read a book and not just use the computer for Roblox
Reposted by Elissa Bassist
Goodreads is owned by Amazon & there is an AMAZING alternative‼️
The StoryGraph is a black women-owned competitor to GoodReads with better UI in my opinion.
When you sign up you can even transfer your data from Goodreads to StoryGraph!
The StoryGraph is a black women-owned competitor to GoodReads with better UI in my opinion.
When you sign up you can even transfer your data from Goodreads to StoryGraph!
November 12, 2024 at 1:59 PM
Goodreads is owned by Amazon & there is an AMAZING alternative‼️
The StoryGraph is a black women-owned competitor to GoodReads with better UI in my opinion.
When you sign up you can even transfer your data from Goodreads to StoryGraph!
The StoryGraph is a black women-owned competitor to GoodReads with better UI in my opinion.
When you sign up you can even transfer your data from Goodreads to StoryGraph!