If laughter is the best medicine, then she who can draw it out is the best doctor! As fun as humor writing might sound, it’s not that easy to do. Making people laugh is not some skill that can be transferred or taught, because a lot of it is based on instinct. Doing it through writing proves even more challenging!
The good news is that, we do have general principles to help you write humorous scenes, both for fiction and nonfiction.
What Is Humor Writing?
Humor writing refers to a piece of nonfiction or fiction work written with the clear intention of being funny. Of course, funny exists on a spectrum: the piece can be a cynical and thought-provoking satire, or on the other end, just some silly laugh-out-loud entertainment.
Humor writing can come in a few different forms. The first could be the humor novel, which includes satirical novels. These types of books use irony along with humor and exaggeration to portray or expose a flaw in society or a belief system. George Orwell’s Animal Farm is an example of a satirical novel.
Humor pieces can also be shorter, such as a short story intended to amuse the readers. Literary journals are fond of publishing these type of pieces.
A humor essay is another type of humor writing, and can be a mix of nonfiction and fictional elements.
Tips for Writing Humor
Here are some of the most important things you need to bear in mind as you start to dabble in humor writing:
1. Be yourself.
As much as you may like to emulate someone else’s humor, the first thing to remember is to draw from your own personal sense of humor.
After all, your humor is a unique part of your personality. Don’t try to be someone else, because it will only cause your writing to be stilted. Instead, focus on what you find funny and why, and write from that place.
Take a look at the kinds of things that you find funny. Are you fond of being amused at everyday routine events? Or do bursts of unexpected happenings grab your attention?
Some people find humor in the darker parts of life, such as suffering or poverty. Others enjoy making fun of themselves—note that this is a great way to win your reader’s affection! Still others focus on faultfinding but expressing it in a way that makes it comedic.
2. Practice the rule of three.
If there’s a golden rule in humor writing, it would probably be the rule of three. It simply means that you use three ideas as a set pattern, with the third being the surprising twist.
If you haven’t noticed it before, check out some of the most popular jokes and anecdotes, and observe where the rule of three works: Three men walk into a bar; three religious leaders fall off the roof; a man falls in the ocean and prays for help, and the following three rescuers come along… you get the picture.
3. Pay attention to anecdotes from your own life.
All of us have funny experiences, and we love telling them over and over to family and friends. These shared experiences help us bond, and these stories can be ones that you can use for humor essays.
Remember, though, that funny experiences are generally humorous to us because of our context. So when you attempt to transfer that event to paper, consider adding in the context, or it likely won’t work!
4. Touché using clichés!
Avoid clichés like the plague—unless you’re writing humor! In humor writing, you can use clichés to your advantage: by turning them around a surprising way, such as changing a letter or a word so that it takes on a whole new meaning.
For example, “The early bird catches the worm” is a familiar proverb. You can change it to “The early bird catches the worm; and so does the early fish.”
How do you get a humorous tone?
Here are some quick ways you can develop your humorous tone:
Focus on surprising your audience.
The key to writing humor is being able to surprise your audience. It’s that surprise—and the realization that they were caught by surprise!—that causes people to laugh. Learn to set up expectations, then provide something totally different instead.
Leave the funny expressions for the very end of your sentence.
Humor works best as a release of tension. Build up the suspense as you tell your anecdote, and save the funny expressions for the end of the story or the end of your sentences. It’s funnier that way!
Compare and contrast.
Sometimes, what makes a situation funny is when something doesn’t seem right. Contrast a terrifying situation with something totally nonsensical, and you can earn a few laughs that way. For example, if the scene you’re painting involves a family running away from monsters, contrasting that with a clueless dad who keeps picking up spare change can be a source of humor.
Use words that sound funny.
Check for synonyms and choose the words that sound funnier than others. For example, when talking about pigs, using the term “porkers” tends to be funnier than calling them “swine.”
For some reason, humor writers agree that words with the k sound (cat, ketchup, Cadillac) and those that use a hard g sound (gorilla, gazillion, guacamole) are considered the funniest words. Perhaps this is linked to American humor’s connections to Yiddish roots, which use a lot of guttural sounds.
Practice pacing and timing.
Writing for humor is not just about being able to tell a tale; it involves knowing how to build up suspense and deliver the punchline at the right time.
Don’t underestimate the little details.
Humor writing doesn’t always have to call for a big laugh. Little details that you add to your writing may be those that trigger a smile or a chuckle, and that’s totally fine.
Be natural.
Don’t force things. Humor doesn’t have to be explicit; sometimes, it can be made up of little funny moments inside a story, even if there isn’t a clear punchline. The best way to do this is to imagine that you’re sharing the story with your best friend. That way, you can write naturally just as you would talk with a trusted friend.
Include yourself as a target.
You don’t have to throw your punches all over the place; sometimes, the best thing you can do is to find humorous things in yourself.
This is perhaps the strength behind Erma Bombeck’s The Grass is Always Greener Over the Septic Tank (other than the title effectively twists a familiar cliché): she always pokes fun at herself and her family, making it a very endearing read.
Have Fun with Humor Writing
Writing for laughs should be a fun experience for you as the writer, too, so loosen up and practice without being too hard on yourself!
When you have some pieces done, practice reading them aloud to friends to see if it works. If not, don’t be afraid to rewrite, rephrase, and refine. The more you practice, the more natural it will become for you!
Did you find this post helpful? Let us know in the comments below!
If you enjoyed this post, then you might also like:
- 12 Funny Books for Women: Riotously Relatable Fiction and Nonfiction
- 10 Hilariously Funny Book Reviews that Don’t Hold Back
- 12 Funny Book Titles That Will Grab Your Attention
- 20 Funny Books for Teens: The Best Books to Entertain Young Adults
Yen Cabag is the Blog Writer of TCK Publishing. She is also a homeschooling mom, family coach, and speaker for the Charlotte Mason method, an educational philosophy that places great emphasis on classic literature and the masterpieces in art and music. She has also written several books, both fiction and nonfiction. Her passion is to see the next generation of children become lovers of reading and learning in the midst of short attention spans.
