Good comedy writing begets laughs but is serious business. Churning out good comedy can be a very exacting and tough job. A lot of hard work goes into writing material that can get good laughs. The core idea of a piece of comedy may be gleaned in a moment of inspiration, but putting it into the right words takes some doing. Phrasing, reviewing, rephrasing and then reviewing again- a few rounds of this process is essential for a good piece of comedy to see the light of day.
Comedy writers need to analyze their strengths and weaknesses and decide which kind of comedy they write best. Types of comedy varies from one liners to a lengthy ramble popularly referred to as a routine. A routine could be made of several “gags” or have just one main theme that is worked upon. Sketches are long pieces of comedy and need to be prepared well with a generous sprinkling of gags. Comedy writers who write good sketches are a much sought after lot.
A natural talent for comedy can be turned into a fruitful occupation like comedy writing with a lot of focused hard work and the use of several tricks of the trade. One can learn these tricks of the trade by observing master comedians at work. Careful analysis of others’ works will educate an aspiring comedy writer about the intricacies of comedy variations.
Excess words are a big deterrent to good comedy. Conversational language is the best choice for conveying jokes of any kind. Comedy writers should assess their writings for maximum usage of conversational language.
Comedy writers need a lot of jokes but it is the ability to place the right jokes in the right place that makes a piece of comedy appealing. A joke might be very good but if does not fit into the scene it is best not used – this is a thumb rule for all comedy writers. Another angle that comedy writers need to work on is timing. The right timing makes all the difference to a good joke.
By adhering to a few basic rules and assessing their work objectively comedy writers can turn out excellent pieces of comedy.
By: Josh Riverside
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Filed under Writing And Speaking by on Jun 16th, 2010. 
When you think about the phrase, “literary devices,” Comedy may not be your next thought. Literary devices are only used in serious, stuffy writing, right?
Wrong!
There are a number of literary devices writers can use to strenghten their comedic writings. Here are a few of them:
Ambiguity
Ambiguity refers to a statement that is unclear or a statement that has more than one meaning.
In Romeo & Juliet, while Mercutio lies dying, he says:
Ask for me tomorrow and you shall find me a grave man,
This statement (particularly the word “grave”) has two meanings. It means “somber,” and it also refers to the fact that tomorrow Mercutio will be dead.
Another form of ambiguity that is often used in comedy is the pun. Walter Redfern defined the pun by stating: “To pun is to treat homonyms as synonyms.” It is a deliberate confusion of similar words. Here are some examples:
Q: What instrument do fish like to play? A: A bass guitar.
Q: How do you make a tissue dance? A: Put a little boogie in it.
Remember, “A pun is the lowest form of humor, unless you thought of it yourself.” – Doug Larson
Alliteration
Alliteration refers to a repeating sound at the start of a word. The most common use of alliteration in comedy is seen in tongue twisters. The most well-known tongue twisters are “Peter Piper Picked a Peck of Pickled Peppers,” “Betty Botter” and “How Much Wood Would a Woodchuck Chuck?”
Shakespeare also parodies alliteration in Peter Quince’s Prologue in A Midsummer Night’s Dream:
Whereat, with blade, with bloody blameful blade,
He bravely breach’d his boiling bloody ******.
Alliteration affects the “sound” of your writing, and when used in exaggeration, it creates a comedic tone to your writing.
Euphemism
A substitution of a mild word of phrase for another which would be undesirable because it is too direct, unpleasant, or offensive.
For example, there are several euphemisms you can use for comedic purposes in your writing if a character has died:
kicked the bucket
bit the big one
bitten the dust
bought the farm
gone south
By using euphemisms when referring to serious matters, you can lend a comedic tone to your writing.
There are many more literary devices that can be used to strengthen your comedy writing. In many cases, the simple use of exaggeration of a style or device will create a comedic effect on your writing. Often comedy writers uses devices without even knowing it. Next time someone tells you literary devices are boring, you can tell them you know different!
By: Tonia Jordan
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Filed under Writing And Speaking by on Jun 16th, 2010.