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I'm a good audience in general, but it's hard to make me laugh.

If there is an audience out there for me, I want them to be surprised when the next book comes out.

I'm not a fan of the working class being mocked, including by some of our famous writers - even those who came from it.

Audiences of critical thinkers are my favorite kinds of audiences. There are jokes I tell in the show that don't get laughs unless I am in front of an audience of critical thinkers. Put me in front of a crowd of science teachers or astronauts! The guileless aren't our audience - it's the critical thinkers we love.

What's great about having an audience is they can let you know what they don't think is funny, and you can just cut that out and keep trying.

I try to read the audience, see what they're in the mood for.

I don't care if the audience is 600 Saul Bellows; I'm going to knock them dead with a comedy routine. I'm out there as a missionary for literature because, if people laugh and enjoy themselves, they might actually do something as bizarre as reading the book.

When I'm going to see a comedian, I don't want to see them hold back, and when I'm reading a book, I don't want to hear an abridged version.

The audience today has heard every joke. They know every plot. They know where you're going before you even start. That's a tough audience to surprise, and a tough audience to write for. It's much more competitive now, because the audience is so much more - I want to say 'sophisticated.'

In comedy, though, it's good to get feedback from the audience about what they find funny.