And Here's the Kicker: Conversations with 21 Top Humor Writers on their Craft

"Did you hear the one about..."

Every great joke has a punch line, and every great humor writer has an arsenal of experiences, anecdotes, and obsessions that were the inspiration for that humor. In fact, those who make a career out of entertaining strangers with words are a notoriously intelligent and quirky lot. And boy, do they have some stories.

In this entertaining and inspirational book, you'll hear from 21 top humor writers as they discuss the comedy-writing process, their influences, their likes and dislikes, and their experiences in the industry. You'll also learn some less useful but equally amusing things, such as:

• How screenwriter Buck Henry came up with the famous "plastics" line for "The Graduate."
• How many times the cops were called on co-writers Sacha Baron Cohen and Dan Mazer during the shooting of "Borat."
• What David Sedaris thinks of his critics.
• What creator Paul Feig thinks would have happened to the "Freaks and Geeks" crew if the show had had another season.
• What Jack Handey considers his favorite "Deep Thoughts."
• How Todd Hanson and the staff of The Onion managed to face the aftermath of 9/11 with the perfect dose of humor.
• How Stephen Merchant and Ricky Gervais created the original version of "The Office."
• What it's really like in the writers' room at SNL.

Funny and informative, And Here's the Kicker is a must-have resource?whether you're an aspiring humor writer, a fan of the genre, or someone who just likes to laugh.

Mike Sacks has written for such publications as The Believer, Esquire, GQ, Maxim, McSweeney's, The New Yorker, Premiere, Radar, Salon, Time, Time Out New York, Vanity Fair, Vice and Women's Health. He has worked at The Washington Post, and is currently on the editorial staff of Vanity Fair.