Content

• Steps
• Method 1 of 3: How to come up with a sketch idea
• Method 2 of 3: How to write a sketch
• Method 3 of 3: How to make your sketch complete
• What do you need

Want to learn how to write humorous sketches? Such texts are often used on television and in stand-up shows. To get a really good, funny sketch, every time you need to jot down ideas, come up with a text, and re-read it.

Steps

Method 1 of 3: How to come up with a sketch idea

1. 1 Decide where you will present your sketch to the public. Will it be a script for a movie, a theatrical performance, a character speech in a movie, or even a Youtube video?
   • Depending on which you choose, you will be able to use different sets of scenery, costumes, lighting and CGI.
2. 2 Define your target audience. Different jokes suit different people. Avoid complicated and boring topics.
   • Think about the age of your audience. If you are preparing a show for children, your text should be related to what the children are interested in: teddy bears, ponies, or popular cartoons. If your text is aimed at adults, you can talk about sex, violence, international shenanigans, politics, fatherhood and motherhood, and work.
   • Think about the kind of people who will listen to you. If you like primitive humor and your audience is intelligent, you will need to accommodate people's expectations. Remember, what seems funny to you may seem inappropriate, stupid, or offensive to others. Jokes about wealthy businessmen can be popular with the middle and lower classes, but in the upper strata of society it is better to refrain from them.
   • But there are events where rudeness is encouraged. Sometimes there are special events where people gather to joke on each other. Remember that even at such events, you need to control yourself and your jokes.
3. 3 Review various sketches. Search the Internet for recordings of famous shows with humorous sketches ("StandUp", "Comedy Club").
   • Studying others' sketches is very important for two reasons: first, you will understand what other people like; secondly, you will learn what has already been done before you. You need to strive to be original, because things can only make you laugh if people have not heard them yet.
   • Know which genres of comedy are right for you, as well as the expectations of the audience for that genre. You don't want you and your sketch to fail.
4. 4 Collect ideas. Now you know how you will present the material and who your audience is. Think about what topics people will be interested in. You can't write a sketch without tinkering with the topic. There are many ways to collect ideas. Think about what topics you could talk about.
   • Write down any ideas you come up with. Inspiration often appears suddenly. Perhaps you wander around the store looking for donuts and you have a great joke about food, nutrition, or exercise.
   • Get inspiration from popular movies, TV shows, books and comics. Many sketches are based on parodies of famous works.
   • For example, you can parody the famous Indiana Jones movie. He was a college teacher, but ordinary teachers aren't as adventurous as he is. In your sketch, you could show what would happen if the average teacher faced the same situations as Indiana Jones.
   • The association method helps a lot of people. Write a word (or key idea) on paper, and then make a list of five associations that immediately pop up when you see that word. If any of the associations seem odd to you, this can form the basis for a sketch.
   • For example, write the word "bear". Now think what comes to your mind when you mention a bear: wild animal, dangerous, fight, loves fish, fur. Choose what you find interesting and the audience might like. Perhaps you decide to write a sketch about fighting a bear.
5. 5 Work on your jokes. The funniest jokes are unexpected and absurd.
   • Like illusionists, comedians must be able to divert the attention of the audience in the other direction. Try to start a joke to lead the audience in one direction, and then surprise them with an unexpected denouement.
   • For example: "I once fought with a bear. It weighed less than a kilogram and was stuffed with padding polyester."
   • This joke changes the direction of thought. The first phrase evokes certain associations and expectations. To a person, it seems that this is about how someone fought with a huge brown bear, so it becomes funny when it turns out that they mean a teddy bear. The joke is also funny because it is absurd. How many adults do you know who fought with a teddy bear?
6. 6 Think about the timing and delivery. Many comedians believe that the success or failure of a joke depends on time.
   • Think about how you could tell a joke about a bear. Pause after the first phrase. Let the public reflect on the dangers associated with such an adventure. You can even breathe so that people understand that everything is serious. Then say the second part of the joke. Something unexpected sounded, so the audience will laugh. If you say everything too quickly, people will not have time to comprehend your words, and the joke will fail.
7. 7 Develop a thought. Many popular comedians always start with one key thought. Now it's time to develop it.
   • Pick an idea. Don't be afraid to jot down one idea and then throw it away. For every good thought, there may be a dozen unsuccessful ones.
   • Let's go back to the bear example. Many comedians believe that humor should be built on something realistic. Think about realistic actions. Do not throw a phrase about a bear out of nowhere - the public will not be able to understand what is at stake.
   • Concentrate on the action you have chosen. What movements did you use to fight the bear? Were there any tricky tricks there? Where did all this happen - in your bedroom, in your daughter's bedroom, or in a toy store? What caused the fight? What happened at the end? Ask yourself these questions and develop your thought.

Method 2 of 3: How to write a sketch

1. 1 Draw a plan. Now it's time for paper and pen or computer. You know the main idea of ​​the sketch, and now you need to sketch out the plan: how you start, what you will talk about, what jokes will be the main ones, and how you will end the presentation.
   • Many authors write sketches backwards.If you have a great ending (for example, a phrase about an adult fighting a teddy bear in a toy store), start writing from here and think about what might have led to this. Perhaps the man did not like the way the bear "looked" at him when he passed by to buy a present for his daughter's birthday. Perhaps the person is very tired at work, and he had a need to hit something hard. Perhaps the bear reminded him of someone he hates. Let your imagination finish the story.
2. 2 Know and be able to use the basic principles of scripting. Your script should include a description of the setting, phrases of the actors, directions from the director, and a description of the set.
   • Choose a location. Your hero or heroes will be in at least one place. Describe in detail where the action unfolds. What will be next? In the bear example, describe the other stuffed toys and how they look. Mention the store's vibrant décor to heighten the sense of the weirdness of what is happening.
   • Separate the character's name from his lines. Make the name bold or italicized and use a colon.
   • Write the characters' lines. Many screenwriters use punctuation marks to give hints to the actor. For example, if the hero stumbles, the script will use spaces, line skips, and ellipses.
   • Include instructions for actors in the text. Think about what the actors will do. Most likely, they won't just read the text from the stage. Give directions to the actors where to look, how to stand, how to gesture, and any other information the actors need to know. Often, scriptwriters mark pauses for laughter in the text so that the audience can laugh without missing anything in the scene.
   • Include instructions for placement on stage in the text. Explain to the actors where they should be, whether they should sit or stand, whether to move objects around the stage, and when to enter and leave the stage.
3. 3 Think over the distribution of jokes across the sketch. You don't want all the jokes to be at the beginning or at the end, so stretch them out throughout your presentation.
   • Jokes can be layered on top of each other - this will increase their impact, especially if the same phrase is used several times.
   • Many comedians love to go back to the original joke in their sketches. For example, in a sketch about a bear, a man went to the store to buy a gift for his daughter, and at the end you could say: "My daughter received a torn bear as a gift because I was forced to buy it."
4. 4 Finish your draft. Some authors spend so much time editing that they stop feeling sketchy. Make a sketch, write a draft, and then move on to editing.

Method 3 of 3: How to make your sketch complete

1. 1 Check and correct the text. Read it out loud. Record your talk and watch it. Make sure every sentence is understandable. If the audience misses something, it will be difficult to understand some of the jokes.
2. 2 Rehearse. Practice reading the text in front of a mirror, in front of an impromptu audience, or any other similar method. Go back to the beginning and read the text again. Correct mistakes, correct jokes, re-read the text. Practice is a major success factor.
   • Take a teddy bear and try to fight it. In the process, you may have new thoughts that make your sketch more realistic. You may find that grabbing the bear by the head is more difficult than you thought, because the head escapes from under your fingers. You may want to use this part in your sketch.
   • Read the text to someone, edit, read and edit. Learn from mistakes - that's the whole point of rehearsals.
3. 3 Read the text to the audience. It's time to show people what you wrote!
   • Don't be afraid to improvise while performing. Sometimes the funniest jokes come from randomness. Learn to use it.

What do you need

• Writing materials or a computer with the necessary software and a printer.