Writing comedy

We get a lot of stories into the Global Short Story Competition dealing with some heavy subjects, many of them doing so very well but serious for all that. So it’s enjoyable to read the occasional humorous stories we receive.

Here are some thoughts on humour. In researching this blog, I came across two other blogs, one of which advised: “There’s only one way to make fun of something without offending anyone else, and that’s if you’re making fun of yourself. Your readers will welcome the invitation to laugh with you. This applies to poking fun at your accoutrements as well – parents, spouses, siblings, children, dogs, hamsters and fish.” The other said: “The best humour is always self directed. Direct the humour towards yourself that way you will not annoy anyone. People will laugh if you make fun of yourself, but they may be outraged if you make fun of them.”

I have to disagree. Perhaps I am curmudgeonly so and so but I think it’s a sad fact but folks will laugh at something that happens to other people. Which takes me onto the sad fact that humour is often cruel. Every joke, every comic novel, every sketch takes the mickey out of someone. Sad but true but that is what makes people laugh. And if it’s what makes people laugh…

Now that is out of the way, here are a few of my handy hints.

* Be observant and concentrate on situations. All good comedy comes out of situations and the writer needs to observe them and work out how best they can be re-told. Such humour works best if the reader can say ‘yes, something like that happened to me’.

* Be visual. Yes, good humour is about clever word-play but it can also be about visual gags. It’s no coincidence that the comic heroes of the black and white film era remain funny today. Simple gag told in numerous different ways.

* Be creative. Comedy relies on the re-telling of well-worn ideas and stories in new and vibrant ways.

* Some of the best humour comes from over-egging things. Take a situation and make it ridiculous. Let your mind freewheel, let it take a situation to its logical if absurd conclusion.

* Don’t overwrite. Don’t ram the joke down the reader’s throat. Write your funny line and move on, let them work out if it is funny. By which time you are onto the next gag. Good humour needs to be continually moving.

* Do not forget the rules of storytelling. It may be a comic piece but it still needs a good story, structure, real characters, genuine places etc. You are telling a story which just happens to be funny.

John Dean




John Dean