Online jokes, Erma Bombeck, big purse, audiences, and Abby and Zach: Author and stand-up comic Angela Verges
Charlie Barshaw coordinates our regular Writer Spotlight feature and interviews writers of SCBWI-MI. In this piece, meet author Angie Verges.
What does it mean to you to be a comedienne?
For me being a comedienne means sharing the joy of laughter
as often as I can. It’s turning life experiences into laughter.
Writing a bit is as much writing as writing a picture book. How do you write comedy? Where did you learn?
As with my picture book writing, I have a notebook for
collecting ideas. I call it my humor journal. I collect ideas and phrases, I
type them into a word document on my computer. Each joke has a heading. When
I’m ready to put together a 5-minute set, I group jokes together based on what
I think the make up of the audience will be. I have a lot of jokes about aging,
parenting and weight gain because those are the things I experience most. I
pretty much write about everyday life situations.
In 2020 a friend I met while hosting an online humor event,
told me about her friend who taught comedy classes by Zoom. Over the two years
that followed, I took the comedy class several times. It’s where I learned
about joke writing – joke set up, punchlines, tagging a joke, a callback. My
classmates and I performed for a zoom audience of 50-100 people each time.
What’s your motto now?
My motto is the same – “a laugh a day keeps stress at bay.”
I believe laughter is good for our health and wellness. Since I’ve been on this
comedy journey, I’ve come across repeated information about the health benefits
of laughter.
.jfif) |
Me at about age 12 or 13, lifting my brothers' weights. lol |
Angie began writing in 5th grade when she received her first diary. What kind of diary was it? How did your definition of diary change to include all your different forms of note-taking? How do you store your accumulated notebooks?
My first diary was a small green diary with a gold lock. I
actually stumbled across it in a tote with a bunch of old, filled journals.
When I was in middle school I had composition books that I used as journals.
You presented at the Erma Bombeck writing workshop in 2024. What was that experience like?
I was nervous. There are so many funny people at
the Erma writing workshop. I was hoping I would sound intelligent, but most of
all offer a nugget of inspiration to someone. I wasn’t a workshop presenter but
was offered the opportunity to share my experiences and insights from attending
the workshop in the past.
I was also selected to perform comedy at the EBWW (Erma Bombeck Writing Workshop) attendee stand-up comedy night.
During one visit the dentist asked me, “Has anything
changed since your last visit?”
“Oh, that can cause changes in your gums, and your teeth
can shift.”
“Give it to me straight Doc, how much time do I have
left…with this set of teeth?”
I didn’t actually say that to my dentist, but I did
chuckle inside my head.
Must be a pocket-sized notebook you carry? Do you also use
your phone, or other apps, to keep track of your ideas?
Actually Charlie, I carry a big purse, lol. People are
always telling me, “use the notes on your phone,” but I don’t. The small
notebook that I carry is a 6 in., along with a variety of colored ink pens.
Once I have a draft or an idea for a picture book taking shape, I type it up
and save in a computer file.
For comedy, when I hear something funny or accidentally say
something funny, I write it down on whatever is near me. One time I made notes
on a paper plate. I’m sure no one has ever experienced this…wink, wink. My son
asked one time, “Ma why do you write notes on everything – envelopes, napkins, paper
plates.” I tuck those random notes in my spiral notebook and type them into a
computer file at the end of the week.
Be consistent, keep showing up for yourself, invest in yourself. Is that more than one tip? Schedule your writing time on a calendar, treat it as if you’re going on a date, stick to the commitment. Determine how much time you will write and make your commitment attainable and realistic. If you know you only have 30 minutes to write, don’t say you’re going to write for two hours. It can leave you feeling disappointed and beating up on yourself. Set yourself up for success, not failure. Set a reachable goal, and if you exceed that, pat yourself on the back. Better yet, throw your fist in the air and shout, “I did it.”
When I say invest in yourself, I’m suggesting that you
attend writer’s workshops, connect with other writers who are doing what you
want to do, and are successful at it. Investing in yourself also means focusing
on your health and well-being. Rest when you need to, treat yourself to a home
spa day – give yourself a facial, a foot bath, listen to soothing music. Do
something that brings you joy.
How much of this advice relates to stand-up comedy?
.jfif)
All of this applies to stand-up too. I have taken comedy classes several times, not because I’ve failed, but because I want to focus on something different. I have taken classes with four different comedy coaches (they’re called coaches rather than instructors) and each one has helped me improve my comedy in a different manner. One coach told me, “I don’t consider myself an instructor, because I can’t teach you to be funny. You write your own material and I help you refine it, give you techniques.”
Stand-up: the first time, the worst time, and the best time?
The first time I performed stand-up comedy was in front of 500 people. I didn’t know anything about comedy technique, nor did I know 500 people would be present.
I was 51 years old and performing my talent for a pageant I’d entered for women 50 and older. I selected comedy as my talent, but I was a ball of nerves when I took the stage. My hands were shaking so badly that I didn’t touch the microphone. I had one and a half minutes, told a few jokes and was rewarded with laughter. I took a bow with my hands still shaking and strutted from the stage.
I discovered later that night that my friend
recorded the bit with her phone. She sent it to me, and I watched it over and
over while sitting in bed, chuckling to myself.
I don’t know if I’ve had one “worst” time in comedy. I have had several “ooo, that wasn’t a good night,” situations. One time a drove an hour and a half for a show, there were maybe 15 people in the audience. I’ve worked with small crowd before and had a great time. Some of them barely had smiles on their face, I heard a few chuckles here and there.
Some of my best
jokes that get strong laughs, got a couple smiles that night. I did notice that
is was about the same reaction for some of the other comedians too. Sometimes
there are just tough crowds
After that show a couple of people came up to me and said,
“you were funny.” I was thinking to myself – could you laugh out loud so I
know.
My best time in comedy was when I performed at the Stand-up comedy night at the Erma Bombeck Writers Workshop two years ago. There were about 10 of us performers, and a hundred people at the event. The audience laughed throughout my 3-minutes set and at the end many people stood, clapped and chanted along with my closing song. It was exhilarating and a fun way to end the night.
Abby and Zach Pray through the Alphabet is your newest title. Tell us about it.
Abby and Zach are twins who learn to pray simple prayers.
They discover that praying is as easy as A-B-C. At the time I wrote this book, I was a Sunday
School teacher to 6-8 year olds. I would ask for volunteers to give our opening
prayer. Some kids were shy, others were bold and said what was on their heart.
And there were those that caused me to smile.
One Sunday at the end of class, I asked a visiting student
what she liked about our church, she said, “I like the donuts, you have good
donuts here.” I didn’t know at the time that I would use this reference in a
book, but I jotted it down in my journal. And guess what…Abby and Zach pray
about the donuts.
My hope with writing Abby and Zach is to show kids simple
lessons in how to pray and give thanks for all things.
You have your own YouTube channel. How hard is it to record
yourself on a regular basis? What does your channel promote?
.jfif) |
| Young fans |
I sometimes find it challenging to decide what I want to record as a video. My channel is about promoting humor as part of our self-care, using laughter for health and wellness. When I come across something I find funny, I create a short video that I call Humor Happy Hour. I try to keep the videos around a minute and a half.
One year I worked with a writing coach and my goal was to post 2 humor videos per month. I actually have a room in my house that I call “the studio”. My “elaborate” set up is a wall where I have taped a red plastic tablecloth as a backdrop. For ambience, I added a tall green leafy, fake plant.
What’s next for Angie Verges?
I seem to set ambitious goals for myself; I want to work on
one of a picture book manuscript I started a couple of years ago. I also have
my sights set on performing corporate comedy – performing for business events,
church luncheons, retreats, etc. Now that I talk it out, I’ll work on both of
those things this year.
Please share your social media:
https://www.instagram.com/writermama223/
https://www.facebook.com/angela.verges
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtO3yqiEutSNi7j2MivanAQ
