Authors: James Mendrinos
ISBN-13: 9781592572311, ISBN-10: 1592572316
Format: Paperback
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA) Incorporated
Date Published: July 2004
Edition: (Non-applicable)
James Mendrinos is a New York-based writer and comedian and long time comedy writing teacher for the Gotham Writer's Workshops. He is a former touring stand-up comic, working with Chris Rock, Colin Quinn, and Sam Kinison, and has appeared on Comedy Central. He was the sole writer for USA Network Presents: The Problem Child, starring Gilbert Gottfried, and has written and contributed to numerous other network projects for MTV, NBC, and more. He is also an active writer for film and stage, including many film options and over 60 stage productions in New York City.
Comedy is serious business-and serious money. In this guide, comedian, writer, and teacher Jim Mendrinos explains the principles of comedy and how to apply them to forms from stand-up to sitcoms- including fiction, film, speeches, articles, essays, and more. He also includes exercises designed to hone the craft, break through writer's block, and tailor a piece to its intended audience.
Part 1 | Finding the Funny | 1 |
1 | What's Funny? | 3 |
The Many Faces of Comedy | 4 | |
Comedy for the Page | 5 | |
Comedy for Ensemble Performers | 8 | |
Comedy for One | 12 | |
Common Threads in All Comedy | 13 | |
2 | You Are Funny | 15 |
Why People Laugh | 15 | |
Growing a Funny Bone | 19 | |
Keeping Track of It All | 21 | |
What Makes You Laugh? | 23 | |
3 | Looking for the Funny | 25 |
Inspiration vs. Perspiration | 25 | |
The Best Places to Find Comedy Ideas | 28 | |
Examine Each Situation for Comedy Potential | 30 | |
4 | Types of Comedy | 33 |
Humor Has Categories | 34 | |
Stand-Alone Jokes | 35 | |
Story Jokes | 37 | |
Physical Jokes | 39 | |
Character Jokes | 40 | |
Part 2 | Basic Comedy Construction | 43 |
5 | Building a Laugh | 45 |
The Universal Joke Formula | 45 | |
Premise: The Subject | 47 | |
Point of View: How You See It | 49 | |
The Twist: Getting to the Humor | 51 | |
Keeping the Comedy Visual | 56 | |
6 | Comedy Writing Rules | 59 |
Clarity Is Everything | 59 | |
End on a Trigger | 62 | |
Go All the Way | 62 | |
Soul-Searching Comedy | 63 | |
It's All About Emotions | 64 | |
Stay on Topic | 64 | |
Make It Matter | 65 | |
7 | Know What You're Talking About | 67 |
The Premise | 68 | |
Research Everything | 71 | |
The Subject Isn't the Subject | 72 | |
Funny Focus | 72 | |
Organizing All This Information | 74 | |
Be Sure You're Sure About the Joke | 75 | |
8 | Exploring Your Point of View | 77 |
POV Defines Comedic Voice | 77 | |
Basic Emotions | 79 | |
Don't Suck, Part Two | 82 | |
Try Something New | 85 | |
9 | Let's Twist Again | 87 |
Choosing the Right Twist | 87 | |
Surprise! | 90 | |
Mix It Up | 92 | |
Clear Twists | 92 | |
Twists on Top of Twists | 93 | |
10 | Congratulations! It's Funny | 95 |
Putting Together the Elements | 95 | |
Matching Your Joke to Your Comedy Style | 97 | |
Fine-Tuning Your Presentation | 98 | |
Keep Going: Write Every Day | 100 | |
Part 3 | The Art of Comedy Writing | 103 |
11 | Long-Form Comedy | 105 |
Turning One-Liners into Bits | 105 | |
Writing with Speed | 109 | |
Stories | 111 | |
Story Revision | 116 | |
Stories for Jokers | 116 | |
Exercise: Make It Longer | 116 | |
12 | Comedy Is Life | 119 |
Finding Common Ground with Your Audience | 119 | |
Changing Attitudes | 122 | |
Nothing Is Too Obscure | 123 | |
Stay Involved | 123 | |
Don't Lie ... Well ... Only Lie a Little | 126 | |
13 | It's All About the Words | 129 |
Keep the Language Simple | 130 | |
Use Language as Art | 130 | |
Use Your Words to Create a Rhythm | 131 | |
Write In Silence and Physical Movement | 132 | |
Keep It Clean | 133 | |
14 | Going All the Way | 137 |
Don't Hold Back Anything | 137 | |
Accentuate the Positive | 139 | |
Eliminate the Negative | 140 | |
Don't Mess with Mr. In-Between | 141 | |
This Sucks | 141 | |
Part 4 | The Craft of Comedy Writing | 143 |
15 | Learning to Let Go | 145 |
Ready to Edit? | 145 | |
Give It a Little Tweak | 146 | |
Addition by Subtraction | 146 | |
Long-Form Editing | 147 | |
Apply for Your Artistic License | 152 | |
16 | Everything Old Is New Again | 155 |
Comedy Is a Work in Progress | 155 | |
This Old Joke | 159 | |
The Changing Order of Things | 160 | |
"This Bit Just Might Work If I Change ..." | 161 | |
Exercise: Long-Lost Laughter | 162 | |
17 | Who's Going to Laugh at This? | 163 |
Relating to Your Audience | 163 | |
Cater, Don't Pander | 164 | |
Edgy Humor | 166 | |
Topical Joke or Cheap Shot? | 168 | |
Staying Unique | 169 | |
18 | Not All Jokes Work Everywhere | 171 |
Does It Have a Pulse? | 172 | |
Styles Define Markets | 172 | |
There's Room for Every Joke | 173 | |
The Square Peg Meets the Round Hole | 174 | |
The A to Z of Saleable Comedy | 174 | |
19 | Preparing to Be Professional | 181 |
Keeping Your Ideas Current | 181 | |
Knowing What Ideas to Develop Next | 182 | |
Money for Funny | 184 | |
Buyers and Bloodsuckers | 187 | |
20 | If It's Funny, It's Money | 193 |
Action! | 193 | |
Selling Your Screenplay | 194 | |
Selling Sitcoms | 199 | |
The Allure of Greasepaint | 199 | |
Chapter One | 201 | |
More Funny Books | 202 | |
The Real Story | 203 | |
Comedy Delivered to Your Door | 205 | |
Psst, Hey Buddy, Wanna Buy a Joke? | 206 | |
Comics and DJs and Hosts--Oh My! | 207 | |
Speakers Say the Funniest Things | 207 | |
Odds and Ends | 208 | |
First Contact | 208 | |
Part 5 | Different Jokes for Different Folks | 211 |
21 | Comedy on the Page | 213 |
Did You Hear the One About | 214 | |
Stop the Presses! | 217 | |
A Fictional Accounting | 219 | |
The Sunday Funnies | 224 | |
The Caption Reads | 227 | |
22 | Sitcoms | 229 |
How Sitcoms Work | 229 | |
Structuring Your Spec-Script | 236 | |
Formatting Your Spec-Script | 238 | |
Spec-Scripts vs. Pilots | 241 | |
Outlines and Treatments | 243 | |
The Show Bible | 244 | |
Using Your Spec-Script | 246 | |
23 | Ensemble Comedy | 249 |
Sketch This | 250 | |
Funny in Film | 254 | |
Curtain Up | 259 | |
Funny for Two | 266 | |
24 | Solo Comedy Professionals | 269 |
"Hey, It's Great to Be Here Tonight ..." | 269 | |
Hey Mr. DJ! | 274 | |
Hereeeeee's Johnny! | 274 | |
Specialty Acts | 275 | |
25 | Adding a Dash of Funny | 277 |
Speech! Speech! | 277 | |
From the Dais | 280 | |
Cheers! | 282 | |
Corporate Comedy Writing | 282 | |
Final Thoughts | 283 | |
Appendixes | ||
A | Glossary | 285 |
B | Something to Do Every Day | 291 |
C | Where to Go for Help | 307 |
D | Annotated Taina Script | 311 |
Index | 319 |