Twitter — and let’s be honest, the world — can be kind of a miserable place these days. We are almost one year into the pandemic officially shutting down our country and changing our lives. Not much has been funny; there has been a lot of loss, loneliness and uncertainty.
There are a few lights, however, who can be found boosting the spirits of those in their realm. Those who we turn to when we need a laugh, some real talk, or just to get away from our present reality for a few short seconds.
I have named five women who do all this for me, just by me following them on Twitter. They are writers, comedians and authors who spread light and laughter, and most certainly not misplaced positivity. They are real, they are talented, and they are straight-up hilarious.
- Nicole Byer @nicolebyer
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I first discovered Nicole Byer while watching the parody baking competition Nailed It on Netflix. Byer acts as the host of the show: a wildly animated and eccentric comedian who knows nothing herself about the craft of baking. Cut to: her Twitter account where she is even more unfiltered, blunt and just plain funny. Her takes are quick to the point and honest, something we can all appreciate.
- Jill Gutowitz @jillboard
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There is no one on Twitter who can stand up to Jill Gutowitz’s stature. Gutowitz always has the perfect storm for her followers: funny, socially relevant, incredibly timely and almost shockingly prolific. She is a freelance culture writer, author of her own forthcoming book and runs a branch of Netflix’s social media. Sometimes I will literally have to stop what I am doing to tell my girlfriend: “Jill just tweeted four times and they’re all hilarious, accurate and incredibly intelligent. God, she’s an icon.”
I talk about Gutowitz like she is my own personal friend; I’d like to think that we could be, if you know, I lived in LA, was 7-10 years older and had an ounce of clout. She is one of the few accounts, few people, who make me belly laugh — constantly.
I had the pleasure of interviewing Gutowitz for a culture story I was writing a few months back and it was the highlight of my week (dare I say, month?) Anyway, go follow Jill ASAP.
- Bess Kalb @bessbell
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Bess Kalb is an Emmy-nominated comedy writer and author. Kalb has some of the most astute and satirical political takes on Twitter and wastes no time letting her followers inside her thoughts. She effectively live-tweeted Trump’s second impeachment and dropped the funniest one-liners on Ted Cruz’s Cancun catastrophe. Kalb meets the moment with what she’s tweeting and isn’t afraid to piss off Republicans along the way.
- Scaachi Koul @Scaachi
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Scaachi Koul is a senior culture writer at Buzzfeed and an all-around humourist. Koul tweets on subjects ranging from her writing, politics, her takes on memes and even her parents. Perhaps most notably, Koul often tweets, “Would anyone like an update on my dad?” before making some hilarious thread on him discovering something new in pop culture or just, well, being a Boomer.
Koul is also Canadian and went to school at Ryerson, but we won’t hold that against her.
- Roxane Gay @rgay
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Roxane Gay is frankly a master of her craft; she literally just signed a deal with MasterClass to teach writing for social change. She has written New York Times Bestselling books, is a contributing columnist at The New York Times and is a professor of English and creative writing, most recently at Yale University.
Gay is funny, honest and profoundly authentic. She embodies the “no-fucks-given” attitude many of us aspire to. Her Twitter bio says quite plainly: “you clap, I clap back.” Oh, and she has quite possibly the most deliciously adorable puppy, aptly named Maximus Toretto Blueberry. I mean, come on.
I hope some of these women bring a little bit of spunky humour into your life. If not, at least you saw Maximus Toretto Blueberry playing with bubbles!