Comedy Writing: Day 2; Comic Devices/Techniques for Writers; Steve Martin's Essays

Period 3: Writing Time!

Write a humorous speech/essay.

Try using these techniques:

• The rule of three
• Incongruity (surprise the reader by writing something unexpected or illogical--when combined with the rule of three the incongruous example/statement comes as the third in the series! Ex. apples, oranges, and baby anacondas)
• hyperbole (exaggeration--anything can be made ridiculous by exaggerating it)
• understatement (stating something serious or important as a common or non-important subject)
• overstatement (the opposite of understatement: giving importance to subjects that are not important: ex. Death is nothing to be scared of (understatement); what you should be scared of is insurance salesmen! (overstatement). 
• Puns & wit (puns are word plays, usually using a word that SOUNDS like another word with a different meaning, or use the alternate, less used definition of a word to make a joke: ex. Dolphins swim in schools. Quite frankly I hear they don't pass algebra because they see no porpoise in it. (pun); Wit is clever word play: Goldfish periodically swim in schools--I don't know how they manage to sit still in chemistry class though!) (wit: the idea that schools of fish swim combined with the idea that we don't swim in school, we attend it--or that gold fish might take a chemistry class where gold is one of the basic elements on the periodic table.)
• Innuendo (an attached meaning to a phrase or word that is stated innocently, but that has a rude or political or attached meaning that is implied, usually sexual in nature). From City of Bones: “The rat, huddled in the hollow of her palms, squeaked glumly. Delighted, she hugged him to her chest. “Oh poor baby,” she crooned, almost as if he really were a pet. “Poor Simon, it’ll be fine, I promise--”
  “I wouldn’t feel too sorry for him,” Jace said. “That’s probably the closest he’s ever gotten to second base.”
• Irony. Irony comes in 3 types: situational, dramatic, and verbal (which we know better as sarcasm). See today's handout for more details!

Use the techniques and tips from this class and last class and what you learned from reading Degeneres' or Lawson's work. Try to emulate or copy Degeneres' style if you can. Your topic or (set) does not have to be about anything too serious--in fact, the more common or ordinary the topic, often the better you can poke fun at it...although, you may wish to tackle a serious topic. When comedians write about serious topics in a scathing or satirical or truthful way, they often create Black Comedy or Dark Comedy.

IMPORTANT: It's important not to alienate and offend your audience in your comedy--instead, try to discuss the topics and observations that we all can relate to. 

It's funny because it's true.

No ideas? Check here for 414 prompts.

Use the rest of period 3 to write your draft. Honor writing time! Avoid conversations and distractions from your peers and instead--I know, it's a weird idea--write.

Period 4ish: 

Around 10:00 we will stop writing to read the short essays by Steve Martin from the book "Pure Drivel". Steve Martin is another famous comedian, known for his plays, movies, and physical prop comedy.

With time remaining, you can aim to complete your comic essay/speech (and upload to our Google classroom--see homework) or read the 2nd essay and write jokes and humor in your journal or as extra credit (check that list of 414 prompts for ideas!)

Or if you finish early, take a look at this video advice about writing comedy & Kevin Hart's 3 Secrets to Hilarious Storytelling (video)

HOMEWORK: If you did not complete your draft today in class, please complete it and submit your draft by the end of tonight: 11:59 p.m. If you missed any link or video today, please check it out! You'll be amazed at what you can learn!