I go to the canvas or the computer to find what I didn't know was in me.
Susan diRende communicates big ideas with a unique concoction of irreverence and insight. Her published works, from serious academic to sci-fi space farce, share a common thread of humor. Born in New Jersey of Italian parents, she has always looked to create at the intersection of worlds. An accomplished painter as well as writer, a strong visual imagination keeps her grounded in the "thingness" of the plastic arts alongside the ephemeral "wordness" of the literary.
“Susan diRende presents an alternative off-world reality that will transport you out of whatever everyday funk you happen to be in.”
Unpronounceable
Winner 2017 Philip K. Awards special citation of excellence
An interstellar romp, this utopia with attitude follows Rose Delancy, a disgruntled Jersey waitress picked by lottery to represent the Earth on a planet of peaceful, pink blobs. Rose settles in and starts teaching the natives all about humans with the help of Hollywood movies, junk food, and the occasional bout of PMS. Find out more ...
“Reminiscent of the space fantasies of Douglas Adams and Kurt Vonnegut, this improbable tale spoofs popular star-trooper fiction, as well as the vain politics of both Washington and Hollywood.”
What the funny?!
When the Farce Is with You
I was 28 and heartbroken. I lamented to my friend, Roberta, that what I would miss about my ex was how funny he was. That I loved to laugh and I myself was not funny at all. Roberta’s expression of warm sympathy stuttered. She started laughing one of those high, giddy arpeggios you hear when someone is tickled to the bone. She turned to me and said, "Susan, you are one of the funniest people I know." This surprised me no end. I thought I was intellectual, serious, and a bit on the drippy, sentimental side. Telling Roberta this only made her laugh louder.
Until that day, it hadn't occurred to me that I was funny, even though I had toured as a clown in a small circus. I had been a silent, sad clown after all. And there I was, making those same sad clown eyes at Roberta while she laughed with glee. Since then, I have tried to live up to my nature, to transform my once ponderous writing into frothy farce. I found my voice, and it was cranky, contrarian, and unapologetic. However, the greatest benefit of this revelation has not been in my writing at all, but in my life. I laugh a lot these days. At and with myself.
“Female comedies generally do not follow the Aristotelian model of a single giant climax followed by a cigarette (also known as the “dénouement.”) Instead of criticizing the missing “big one” as a weakness, think of these comedies as a way for men to experience the multiple orgasms women take for granted.”
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