Humor columnist David Leonhardt share his favorite humor
techniques
By David Leonhardt (Humor Columnist)
Ever want to write a funny book or a humor column? Or add spice
to your newsletter editor or web page so that people read beyond
the typical drivel that sends otherwise eager-to-spend customers
into a boredom-induced coma?
Here are my top ten favorite humor tools for you, along with real
live examples from my own humor column.
Threading a theme through the text.
Are you into practical jokes? Try sewing a single thread of
bright red wool across Uncle Henry's new green golf shirt. Or sew
a thread through your text.
My Parenting Pumpkin Cheesecake Recipe is actually a delicious
recipe. But I assumed there is a little helper around, and I
threaded her through the text, making for sort of a running gag.
OK, time to up-tempo the laughs. Mid-way through, I run a second
thread, renaming the cake with each mistake. The thread within a
thread multiplies the humor.
See http://thehappyguy.com/pumpkin-cheesecake-recipe.html
Contrast what should be with the obviously deficient reality
I use this technique in Home Of The Year. Most people will agree
that a home is more than just a house.
I contrast the reality of my I-survived-the-hurricane home with
the Martha Stewart image of how a home should look -- the old
little-miss-perfect Martha Stewart image, not the new-and-not-
improved, scandal-defying, corporate shark image.
Notice I also use the threading tool in this piece - the drawings
on the wall -- and bring it together at the end to reinforce the
main point.
See http://www.thehappyguy.com/home-of-the-year.html .
Build on a ridiculous notion
Consultants call this thinking outside the box and charge you for
it. I call it humor and give it to you for free.
I had a bad hairdresser day. I held my hairdresser accountable
for my thinning hair, a ludicrous idea that works.
Let's up-tempo the laughs. Mid-way through, I compound the humor
with another ludicrous notion: growth formula making my scalp
taller rather than my hair thinner.
See http://www.thehappyguy.com/hairdresser.html .
Mock a public figure
This is possibly the easiest humor tool to use. Public figures
are just so mockable. They naturally rise to their own level of
mockability. I wrote a column mocking Michael Jackson - and the
media's over-fascination with his arrest. That was one of my
worst columns, so I won't show it to you. Hey, I said it was
easy, not funny.
Don't see.
Act like a clown
I start off my Vulture column, based on a true news story, by
playing the fool, saying silly things and displaying a general
ignorance. This gives my uncle the opportunity to set me
straight. In classic Laurel and Hardy style, the straight man
makes the comedian funny.
See http://www.thehappyguy.com/humor-vulture-value.html .
By the way, this also allows a humorist to be funny on touchy
subjects, without offending.
The heckler
I love to inject a heckler into an already silly situation. I
applied a news story about a law suit over cow hormones to my
"New York Times best seller". It was actually a bit like mocking
a public figure, but what made this column exceptional is how
Ruby Red kept interjecting her own slightly out-of-context
comments into what was already a silly situation.
See http://www.thehappyguy.com/best-seller.html .
Give human characteristics to non-humans
This is a great tool for laughing at human foibles. It is at the
very heart of Gary Larson's Far Side cartoons. I offered
leadership lessons from six penguins who were helping the other
penguins live up to their full "penguinhood". This is also based
on a news story, although some of the penguin dialogue had to be
contrived.
See http://www.thehappyguy.com/penguin-leadership.html .
Build laughs upon laugh
My favorite column is where I try so hard to be a giver, but
everybody makes me out to be a taker. I start with the simple
premise that givers sleep better at night.
The whole column is a play on words, but what makes it one of my
best is how I react to people calling me a taker. You can feel
the desperation, and almost picture me running away in horror.
This is the same tool every stand-up comedian uses; as your
laughter subsides, a new punch line builds on the previous one.
See http://www.thehappyguy.com/give-sleep.html .
Give funny names to things
I itemized a whole series of customer service styles. One of
them was "do-it-yourself extortion". Need I say more?
See http://www.thehappyguy.com/customer-service.html .
Funny faces and weird sounds.
"Oh no, waa-aah ... boom ... ouch! ... bump ... yikes! ...
crash." "Bhrhrthrpt." Those are just two of the sound effects I
use to describe extreme fatigue. Words or not-quite-in-the-
dictionary sounds can paint a pretty funny picture.
See http://www.thehappyguy.com/extreme-fatigue.html .
There are many other well-known humor tools available, such as
exaggeration, playing deaf, reversing roles and throwing cream
pies. If you figure out how to do that last classic in a humor
column, please let me know how.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
David Leonhardt writes the Happy Guy humor column:
http://www.thehappyguy.com/positive-thinking-free-ezine.html
and A Daily Dose of Happiness:
http://www.thehappyguy.com/daily-happiness -free-ezine.html .
He also wrote Climb Your Stairway to Heaven: the 9 habits of
maximum happiness:
http://www.thehappyguy.com/happiness-self-help-book.html
and The Get Happy Workbook:
http://www.thehappyguy.com/happiness-workbook.html
ABOUT THE AUTHOR (in HTML)
David Leonhardt writes about humor, personal growth and happiness
(and anything else anybody will pay him to write). He publishes
the http://www.thehappyguy.com/positive-thinking-free-
ezine.html>Happy Guy humor column and
A Daily Dose of Happiness. He also wrote
Climb Your Stairway to Heaven: the 9 habits of maximum
happiness
and http://www.thehappyguy.com/happiness-workbook.html>
The Get Happy Workbook.
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David Leonhardt
The Happy Guy
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