First, write your story. The humor will come later.
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Whether it’s a skit, a joke, an essay, an article, or a book–you need a story. It’s a lot easier to find the humor when you have the foundation of a good story, even if it’s only about three guys walking into a bar.
In Immediate Fiction, author Jerry Clever says, “In its purist form story is just three elements: conflict, action, resolution.” Your character is faced with a problem. Your reader wants to know how your character deals with it. So, your character takes action to solve the problem. This leads to a resolution –good or bad—which may, or may not please your reader, but it satisfies his need to know how the problem was handled and resolved.
Here’s an example: Manny, Moe and Jack walk into a bar. Manny accidentally bumps into a thug and knocks the guy’s drink out of his hand. The thug does not graciously accept Manny’s apology. He wants to stomp his ass. Obviously, Manny has a problem. How will he handle it? He takes action by calling for help from his two buddies. Unfortunately, Moe is already in the men’s room and Jack is out of earshot at the far end of the bar negotiating a pricing issue with a lady seeking temporary employment.
How will Manny overcome his problem with this big guy? Ask him to step outside and settle it like a man? No way. Prayer? Too late to think up a good one. Run? It’s too crowded to make a break. Lie? That’s it. Lie!
“Please don’t hit me,” he tells the thug. “I’m pregnant.” “You can’t be,” says the thug, “You’re a guy.” “I know, I know,” says Manny.” It’s a miracle –an amazing miracle! Guys can’t have babies. But don’t tell that to my buddies, Moe and Jack. They’re so excited about it! I don’t have the heart to tell them. ”
Manny is solving his problem buy lying and stalling. Meanwhile, contact negotiations have broken off with the bimbo and Jack is coming to rejoin Manny. Jack is bigger than the thug. Moe has made room for more beer and is also coming to rejoin Manny. Moe, too, is bigger than the thug.
As his friends approach, Manny tells the thug, “Please don’t say anything to upset them. They just got out of jail for assault and battery and they’re a little tense.” And then Manny hears those words all wimps love to hear when they escape getting stomped, “Look, I don’t want any trouble,” growls the thug. “Just be careful about bumping into people, see? And congratulations. I’m sure you’ll make a good mother.”
So we have a resolution. We also have the nucleus of what could be polished, fleshed out and developed in to a piece of humor that started with a story.
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Filed under: Finding Humor, Writing Technique