how am I supposed to write humor?

Status
Not open for further replies.

thisisobservantme

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Oct 20, 2013
Messages
65
Reaction score
3
Location
Massachusetts
Seriously, I don't know! I'm not usually witty on my feet anyway, so how am I supposed to make my MC funny, sarcastic and likeable?
Any ideas?
 

Kerosene

Your Pixie Queen
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Apr 29, 2012
Messages
5,762
Reaction score
1,045
Location
Las Vegas, Nevada
Have them tell jokes...

What should I tell you? :Shrug:

You don't have to make your characters funny if you don't want to. I think it takes a particular person to tell a joke properly, and some people just are not that person. Then again, doesn't mean you can't try.


And making them funny and sarcastic don't make them automatically likable.
 

Wilde_at_heart

υπείκωphobe
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Sep 12, 2012
Messages
3,243
Reaction score
514
Location
Southern Ontario
I was a 'smart' and 'cheeky' since I was a little kid and if anything it was something my mum tried valiantly to crush. Too bad for her :D

If it doesn't come naturally, maybe practice wit and sarcasm? :Shrug: Or steal from other people and keep a list ;)

Troll internet forums at places where that's allowed and test other people's reactions or see how people respond to other people's comments to see what works and what doesn't. http://www.fark.com/
 

Bush_moon

Banned
Joined
Dec 9, 2013
Messages
53
Reaction score
1
I've wrote two pieces on things i experienced and just started like that. I find the best way for me to write is by recalling something in real life and retelling it. I "think" that in the future i might be able to take a fictional setting and people but blend new ideas with real personalities i have observed and thier quirks. It just might provide the medium for totally new fictional humor in my case! I hope!

BM
 

Ken

Banned
Kind Benefactor
Joined
Dec 28, 2007
Messages
11,478
Reaction score
6,198
Location
AW. A very nice place!
... read Chase's post, on AW.
He's a wiz at humor, though he'd probably deny it ;-)
(Funny stuff)
 
Last edited:

Koulentis

Troublemaker
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Dec 27, 2013
Messages
243
Reaction score
40
Joke funny vs situation funny.

Writing humor depends on the kind of humor you're going for.

Original joke funny: Monty Python "Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition!" That line is funny on it's own. This is pretty hard to do. I've read that some stand-up comedians can take months to come up with a single joke. Bob Hope treasured his jokes so much he kept them in a vault.

Situation funny: Princess Leia trying to push past Chewbacca "Will somebody please get this walking carpet out of my way." This is much more common. So common that most humor in situation-comedies wouldn't be funny without the context of the situation. Here it isn't about the action, it's about the reaction - usually nested in conflict. If you can write a story, then you can definitely write this type of humor.

Hope that helps.
 
Last edited:

chompers

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Oct 19, 2013
Messages
2,506
Reaction score
384
Practice? Watch shows that has it in abundance?:Shrug:

I learned it by coming from a big family.

And just fyi, sarcasm tends to make you UNlikeable. Only sarcastic people like you for being sarcastic. I've had to tone down my sarcasm for most people or else they either get offended or hurt.

It's usually a play on words. Maybe start by trying dirty jokes. That's usually a bit easier to do a play on words (at least I think so).
 
Last edited:

Meditate

Registered
Joined
Dec 29, 2013
Messages
15
Reaction score
1
Location
Buenos Aires, Argentina
Everybody has a different zone where they "feel" funny. Professionals like stand up comedians can turn it on and off. I personally need to be relaxed and the words need to already be flowing before I can write a joke.

Some people need conflict, pressure, feel insulted or hurt or sad to react with humor.

Think about it. Find your space. But for the love of god don't copy jokes from the internet and paste them in your novel.
 

RightHoJeeves

Banned
Flounced
Joined
Nov 28, 2013
Messages
1,326
Reaction score
155
Location
Perth
Most people can only do one sort of comedy. It's a matter of finding out what that is. Larry David is amazingly funny, but he would look quite out of place in a Coen brothers movie.

Actually that would be amazing.
 

Nymtoc

Benefactor Member
Kind Benefactor
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Sep 3, 2007
Messages
43,833
Reaction score
3,366
Location
Between the lines
I suppose reading humorous writers and watching funny movies and TV helps. Practicing should help, too, but a sense of humor tends to be something that you either have or don't have. As others have indicated, there are different kinds of humor--loud, bawdy, gentle, ironic, subtle, sophisticated, etc.

Why not try to analyze the kind of thing you find funny yourself and go in that direction? It can't hurt, and you might get a few laughs out of it.
 

Cathy C

Ooo! Shiny new cover!
Kind Benefactor
Absolute Sage
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jun 5, 2005
Messages
9,907
Reaction score
1,834
Location
Hiding in my writing cave
Website
www.cathyclamp.com
Written humor is different from spoken or visual humor because you have to use the readers' own imagination as part of the process. Playing it straight works, or matters left unsaid, or even twists of words/puns. Here's one of my favorite written jokes.It really doesn't work as well via audio and while it might be an interesting YouTube vid, it's much funnier in written form.
 

Gegalix

Registered
Joined
Dec 7, 2013
Messages
1
Reaction score
0
Personally, most of my inspiration for funny writing comes from watching people interact. Try going to Starbucks, grabbing a coffee, and then observing the way people act. They can be quite quirky
 

Kes Cross

Registered
Joined
Feb 10, 2013
Messages
6
Reaction score
1
Location
UK
Play with language. Read the classics (PG Wodehouse is a great starting point for the sheer complexity of comedic language).

And if you're still struggling, throw in a fart joke. That always slays 'em.
 

jerrimander

No one takes me seriously. Really.
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Apr 7, 2014
Messages
601
Reaction score
138
Location
The Shallow South
Find the funniest person you know in your life and stalk them for about 2 weeks. Like Jane goodall and the gorillas. Learn through observation.

Always remember to end on a high note. Do not beat the laughter into submission. If it's funny, the audience will laugh. Do not repeat the joke, or drag it out expecting more laughter. It will fall flat. Right on its figurative nose. So get the laugh, and say good night Gracie. Punchline, then move on. Right on to the next joke.
 

Kameea

I have a dream to become a Gaijin.
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jul 13, 2014
Messages
66
Reaction score
2
Location
Agartha
I happen to have the same problem.
In my "real life" I am a fun and outgoing person with familiar people and in those situations humor flows naturally.
When I find myself in front of the black screen that practically screams "Make me laugh" I almost completely shut down.
 

Jamesaritchie

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Feb 13, 2005
Messages
27,863
Reaction score
2,311
That's really a great question. Can you write funny if you aren't funny? I have no idea. I write a lot of humor, but it's all natural humor, almost exactly as I am in real life. I have a son who does standup comedy, and he's the same way onstage as off.
 

Ride the Pen

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jul 19, 2014
Messages
72
Reaction score
1
Location
Vienna, Austria
Homor many times comes out of how two totally different personalities clash into each other. Humor is about what to expect: Set an expectation - break it in a witty way!

So if there is one character with some quirk, and it plays directly against what another character expects, that's tension that will, if it's broken the right way, be relieved in laughter. Look at, for example, the two main characters in "Two and a half men".
 

Lady Esther

I can say the alphabet backwards!
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Feb 2, 2007
Messages
452
Reaction score
94
Location
Maryland
Thisisobservantme, I'm sure you're funny. You're just the kind of funny that makes no one laugh.

I'm only kidding. I wrote that as an example of sarcastic humor. If taken wrongly, you look like a jerk.

I think the only way to know if you're funny is to have someone read your work and see if they laugh. That's what I have to do once I'm finished my WIP.
 

gdossetto

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Dec 14, 2013
Messages
56
Reaction score
2
Write comedy for yourself, don't try to be funny to others. Put down what would make you laugh and you'll find an audience.
 

caracy

Expert on Absolutely Nothing
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Nov 28, 2014
Messages
139
Reaction score
17
Location
Kansas
Website
www.francinezane.com
Funny is subjective. How are you supposed to be funny? If you force funny, you will likely find yourself miserable writing humor.

I used to write dark fantasy and sci fi quite a bit. When I decided to make a change, I kind of had to give up alot of the books I loved and find new ones (as well as new movies, TV, in some cases friend) that feed a different part of me.
 

caracy

Expert on Absolutely Nothing
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Nov 28, 2014
Messages
139
Reaction score
17
Location
Kansas
Website
www.francinezane.com
And don't expect everyone to laugh all the time. Doesn't mean you've lost your touch. It just means you've picked the wrong audience this time.
 

Ken

Banned
Kind Benefactor
Joined
Dec 28, 2007
Messages
11,478
Reaction score
6,198
Location
AW. A very nice place!
It's funny though. The characters in books I've read who are sarcastic are not usually likeable. Actually, I don't believe any are. In general, they were rather nasty. That's books though and only those I've read. "Funny" is another matter. Lots of funny, likeable characters.
 

hearosvoice

Sockpuppet
Banned
Joined
Nov 10, 2010
Messages
96
Reaction score
1
I would keep a list of witty comments or jokes you come across while watching funny tv shows, comedy movies, and writing. Then I would recycle these to apply to situations relevant to your story and probably bring them out in dialogue.

Sarcasm and likability are not mutually exclusive, though some kinds of sarcasm can make someone mean, annoying, and unlikeable. But off the top of my head I think if the sarcasm is aimed at oneself (self-deprecation) or expressing something most would tend to agree with then I think there's a better chance of the character being likable.

Also, I think endearing quirks about a character's description can make them seem funny and likable.
 

caracy

Expert on Absolutely Nothing
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Nov 28, 2014
Messages
139
Reaction score
17
Location
Kansas
Website
www.francinezane.com
Self-deprecation only works to a degree before you characters become unlikable. The character must balance the jokes on him with a sense of self worth or the reader is likely to wonder why they should waste their time or care.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.