Dookie

You may disagree with me placing this question in the writing tips section and not the lounge yet I must know this in order to write a story which is intended to be funny and which others generally - find funny.

So I put forward my query, what do you all find funny in writing? What makes you smile and what makes you smirk?

Stewart

Dialogue mostly. Then internal monologues, usually with hyperbole. And, to finish up, a bit of clever punnery.

But go read Roddy Doyle's Barrytown Trilogy and Edward St. Aubyn's Some Hope trilogy for some comic writing that works because of underlying darkness. Also, have a look at Howard Jacobson; a recent extract of an older novel had me laughing out loud. He joins, an an honorary member until I read his work properly, the 'get-Stewart-laughing-because-of-fiction' club of which St. Aubyn and Doyle are already members.

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Dookie

Ah good tips! I will try to get a hold of those books thank you. Puns is good indeed. I've been watching a lot of Blackadder recently and it is the god of all puns and hyperbole. Good help, thank you!

suzakugaiden

What I generally find NOT funny is writing that tries to be funny.

Dookie

It's true I agree with that too. I read a book which tried to be funny and I put it down straight away. Therefor I shant try, but merely throw slightly funny things into the dialogue.

Fantasy of You

Lol, it's a pretty vague question. Anything can be funny written properly, but it helps if a character is developed.. And subtly is always appreciated. One thing I did find funny once..

"I'm not sulking," he said sulkily.

It wont sound funny now, but it was at the time . Oh Wilbur, you old dog, you.

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Anne Lacey

I always find good irony funny. I'm old fashioned I guess. And the dialogue in Jane Austin novels. She was one witty chica!

BTW, Dookie, I smile every time I see your user name because one of my three year olds call cookies "dookies."

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mammamaia

it's way too broad a question... i find anything funny that's written well enough and meant to be funny... and i find a lot of stuff hilarious that's written poorly and not meant to be funny!

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Hodge

Wit.

Hyperbole, if I may be hyperbolic, is what every single TV comedy and movie made in the past fifteen years relies on. It's overdone. Far overdone.


I like wit. Wit is wonderful. Catch-22 is the epitome of wit.

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BillyLiar

i like the stuff you laugh at, then feel sort of bad for laughing at it. mainly the rediculousness of human nature

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Buddhapants

For a good example of someone who is trying too hard to be funny read Dave Barry's columns. IMO.

pumpkin

What I don't find at all funny is authors who just write a series of one-liners and call it a novel eg Kathy Lette.

Dookie

Thank you for your responses.

I have tried to encorporate wit. Also, about smiling at things you know you shouldn't smile at. I think I've got that in there too with a horrible character who says some nasty, but smily things.