"Two writers walk into a bar" sounds like a variation on a cliched joke opening. And really the observation has little to do with the point I wanted to make in this post. First though, if you haven't voted on my current Battle of the Bands you might want to click this link in order to vote and read the story and then skim through the comments My words today are reflective of what was said there.
Also, you might want to check out my most recent post on Wrote By Rote for some more backstory regarding the Battle of the Bands post. In my Battle winner's announcement on Wednesday I'll continue on with my reflections and then hope to hear your thoughts as well. Come to that post with your philosopher's robe and your memory cap.
Concerning present thoughts about the two writers walking into a bar--I'll state right here that in my life I have been no stranger to going to bars, but for the most part I have neither been a frequent bar patron. Not like Stephen T. McCarthy seemed to indicate about himself in his comment on my post. Here's part of what McCarthy said:
It's occurred to me lately that probably there is no place you can go and meet a wider spectrum of people -- good and bad -- than in a bar. And I don't mean any bar. Not some rundown ghetto bar. But your average bar and grill in an average neighborhood.That does pretty much describe people I've found in bars. I have these vague recollections of some pretty interesting people that I've met and spent an hour or two or more with and then I never see them again and can't even remember their names.
However, me being in a bar by myself is unlikely. Most of my visits to bars were because I was with other people who were going there. I'd go, but I usually didn't drink much. For one thing I'm cheap--or should I say frugal?--and don't like spending money drinking. Happy hour can be nice--especially if there are cheap (or even free!) snacks to nosh on while sipping inexpensive drinks. Then I save money on dinner and that ain't bad at all.
My bar days are essentially behind me though so if two writers walk into a bar then one of them would probably not be me. So the question in order to arrive at the punch line is who are these writers? What are their genres? Or for that matter, do they write fiction?
As a joke teller you'd want to establish character motivation and set the scene. Maybe some backstory would be good. Are the writers married? What are their genders? What are their educational backgrounds? And who else is in the bar?
Sorry but I could keep rambling on about this idea. Maybe there is no joke here from my telling. I should write a story about this. I was never very good at telling jokes. Actually maybe I should write a book about it. Be watching for the release of my forthcoming book Two Writers Walk into a Bar. Yeah, right, sure--just as soon as I write it.
Hmmm...I kind of like that title: Two Writers Walk into a Bar.
Are you good at telling jokes? Have you (or do you still) ever hung out in bars? What would be a good way to end the joke that starts "Two writers walk into a bar..."?
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