Bob has this explosive laugh that, when he's the only one who is laughing at something, makes everyone else realize it's really funny and then they laugh too. He creates laughter. It's utterly strange.

You know, they pay people professionally to sit and audiences and do this.

At the moment I'm managing to write five nights a week (I'm usually busy Friday night and then either Saturday or Sunday so I don't have a chance to sit down and write those days) and putting out a little over 4,000 words, which I realize is a bit on the slow side. But at the moment it feels right, and more importantly, the hour a day is turning it into more of a habit rather than something I do when the mood strikes me. I can't even imagine churning out 20 pages in a day, at least not right now.

I wouldn't call 4,000 on the slow side at all. I wrote 6,500 words last week, 26 manuscript pages, and I thought it was pretty good. If I'm ever in a position to be a reallyo trulyo full-time writer, I'd like to increase my output, but in the meantime I'm happy with where I am. I mean, I started my WIP in its current form around Feb. 1. I'm over 100,000 words now, and unless something seriously derails me, I expect to have finished the rough draft by 10/31 and have it edited into respectable form by 12/31 or 1/31. That's a longish novel (I'm shooting for 125,000 words) in a year, which I think is pretty darn respectable for anyone who's not in a position to write fiction full-time.

You know, they pay people professionally to sit and audiences and do this.

Yeah, he should definitely have that job.

Congratulations, Rio and Fiona!

OMG I want to be a professional audience laugher.

I want to be a professional audience laugher.

Now I want to know about the demographics of a successful laugher. I mean, I get the head turns and strange looks (TMNT -- that was so much funnier than everyone else realised!), and I don't think I inspire camaraderie. Is it the timbre of my laugh? What? Why can't I be cool like Bob?

because you can't. you are different people. I remember just reading about that somewhere else....

Are you implying that no one can be cool like Bob in this way? That Bob is the only person that can make the rest of the audience laugh? That Bob's accomplishment is not to be aspired for?

Bob's ABD in philosophy makes him perfect as a professional laugher. You, OTOH, have marketable skills.

ETA: in re-reading the post, it looked like I rocked a million weddings. I meant that I was the only person who laughed at it. I've rocked very few weddings.

Har.

ita, I'm pretty sure your whitefont would have me giving the guy a second look, honestly. Also on WC, I now realize I am helpless in the face of Vince Vaughn doing schtick, and I should really seek out all of the bad movies he's ever been in.