You guys know how much I enjoy humor. Here’s a post from then Florida Writer’s Association that discusses comedy and why it’s so darned funny.
https://floridawriters.net/humor-writers-filthy-liars/
For me, it’s this:
- The laugh comes from being surprised when you think one thing is going to happen, but another does instead.
- The jokes come out of the situations, not the language. Don’t focus on making funny words, focus on finding funny situations. Good humor is subtle and surprising.
- Catch your readers off-guard.
Simple, but maybe the most difficult thing in writing. Look for it to be a Flash Fiction Challenge soon. You’ve been warned!
DAN ALATORRE 
4 replies on “A Few Words About Humor”
Well, yes, but aren’t 1 and 3 the same thing?
However, some writers simply use words to make it funny, even if it isn’t. For example, when Mark Twain writes about ants in a very serious manner (from A Tramp Abroad) or when someone uses black humour to describe a scene that would have been tragic otherwise. It is when the humourist tries too hard that the troubles follow. Satire is a good example of a lost art, these days. Somehow satire has become slapstick, too explicit or over-explanatory or apologetic. (Maybe picking up a thing or two from those stupid soaps/sitcoms that seem to be popular without any dissenting voice protesting the inanities of the jokes or the faux-double-takes and “wait, what”s… If you notice, even our language has evolved to fit that virtual world rather than the other way round. Wait What? – Well Duh! – Yo Dude – ‘Sup Homeys etc etc… ridiculous)..
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Unlikley pairings in unpredictable situations make for great humor. Think Odd Couple or Serge and Coleman. That’s what I did with my characters Richard noggin, P.I. (aka Dick Head), and Brandi (formerly Brandon), and sent them undercover in a nudist resort to fight crime. The humor grows organically and isn’t forced. The banter between them works and the situations provide comic relief in an otherwise serious crime novel.
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Also thanks for posting this. I’ve been meaning to join FWA and you put it right in front of me to help me keep from pushing it down my priority list.
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I like to use humour as a foil when a situation is sad or serious. I wasn’t sure whether my readers would appreciate my own sense of humour but, from the reviews, many do, which is encouraging!
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