Humor

[jans_intentions]

I like to read humor in stories. Like an unexpected crash of percussion, suddenly you are laughing.

So how do you create it?

You know, I think it's a mystery to me. I asked someone not so long ago if she'd do a piece here on how she writes her superlative action scenes. She said that she could not, since she's not sure how she does it. They just

Comments

[pinkfriction]

I'm a huge lover of satirical QaF fics (if they are done well - Jane2005's is a classic as is drtylttlescret's stuff on IJ), but I love it more when a 'straight' (lol, what an inappropriate word) story has funny moments. That's real life - it's not all about sex, or angst. People do and say silly stuff all the time.

[jans_intentions]

Yes, I have to agree that's my favorite also, a story where it's woven in with all the rest, sex, angst. That's what you'll find with the BTVS story I reced. There are moments of humor.

[tdorian]

Slave-o-spike and her cannibal crackfic(http://slave-o-spike.livejournal.com/8286.html) make me laugh like crazy !!! Everything she writes is usually hilarious.Aida

[jans_intentions]

Yes, she seems to like to take some really fantastical premises and write them. Some people have a gift for humor.

[crysothemis]

I think humor is, perhaps even more than other genres, very much a matter of taste. What's funny to one person may not be to another. And that's okay, but it does make writing humor particularly tricky.

My own particular taste, both for reading and writing humor, is for subtlety. I love ridiculous situations that are written completely seriously, where the joke is so deadpan you can't even tell if the writer is on to it. Which is not to say complete crack can't make me giggle, because sometimes it can. But my favorite kind of humor is the kind that sneaks up on me, so that I don't even know it's a joke until I'm laughing out loud.

So my one suggestion for writing humor is this: don't hang a lantern on it. Don't make it obvious that you, the author, thinks it's funny. The movie Good Morning, Vietnam was totally ruined for me by all the shots of characters laughing at the radio broadcast. I felt like I was being told to laugh, so I never got to appreciate the jokes for myself. And I felt cheated

[jans_intentions]

Interesting, you know, I think that's something that some of my English writing friends do well. shapinglight does really well, write things with irony, even really dark things, but there is a kind of humor to some.

[eowyn_315]

I think humor is, perhaps even more than other genres, very much a matter of taste. What's funny to one person may not be to another. And that's okay, but it does make writing humor particularly tricky.

That's true... and I think my advice would be to pattern your humor after the humor of the show. I figure fans of the show probably enjoy its humor, whether it's a comedy with the classic set up and punchline jokes, or a mostly-serious drama with a few zingers or moments of more subtle, ironic humor. So if they like it on the show, they'll probably like it in your fic, as well. If your show doesn't rely on fart jokes or slapstick comedy or whatever, then they're probably not going to go over well in a fic. Of course, there are exceptions, and maybe a slapstick comedy fic is a nice change of pace from the seriousness of the show, but I think it's something that's helpful to keep in mind.

[galedreamer]

lady_jane really gives good satire! I do think it's all in the voices: tone, inflection, vocabulary - characterization being key. Subtlety is also nice.

In the qaf fandom, myrna1_2_3's stories, while dramatic as opposed to satirical, infused such amazing humor I can still laugh out loud reading them. I doubt there's a qaf fanfic reader who hasn't read her work, but if somehow someone stumbles upon this comment and hasn't, her stories are best found here: http://www.queereyes.net/b_j_fanfic.html#m. The link brings you to a bunch of stories written by authors with a last name starting with "M." Just scroll down for Myrna. If You Needed Me is her tour de force (in four parts).

Similarly, I always remember a snippet from mmmorpheusq' Nightmare on Elm Street, Chapter 5 of her 2003 series Fast Forward http://morpheusqaf.com/NightmareOnElmStreet.html. It was written after S2, during "the hiatus from hell"

[jans_intentions]

Thanks, GD. They are both great recs. I think understanding of character and then an ability to see irony or appreciate humor in some writers leads to some superlative writing.

[kribby]

Dude. Seriously. I can't read Ch. 7 of Two Summers. Denied!

I am on a paper procrastination kick. Help.

[kribby]

Nevermind. Apparently no one can access Chapter 7. I just skimmed through Ch. 6 comments.

Weird. Okay, that was a letdown.

[jans_intentions]

Oh, that is very strange! I hadn't seen that. Okay, I read all of it and that chapter was short and it didn't seem to fit the rest of the series but perhaps was the writer's effort to give begging readers more when she'd maybe lost interest. So enjoy the first six. It was just luck, that we will only ever (probably) have the first six. It was unfinished so there was no way you weren't going to be let down.

[kribby]

Yeah, you're right. Thank you for bringing our attention to ch's 1-6! Funny stuff!