Humorous Writing: How Is It Done?

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

Humor requires creativity,
originality. Repeating old
material is boring, and not
humorous.

A suggestion is to turn old
material upside down, sideways,
to expose new material.

Develop new material by
over-stating it.

Select activities, events,
from life to exaggerate
about.

Aries, a pet rabbit, for
example.

Have you noticed how
rabbits like to bang.

The other day, a guest
visited my humble abode.
I offered celery and dip.

Aries banged on the wall.

We talked. Aries banged.

We moved to the dining room.
She followed, leaned against
the wall, and banged.

Finally, it dawned. Aries
wanted some celery.

Often, people make fun of
the negative aspects of life
too.

The key is to create a funny
image in the minds of readers.
Laughter happens when they
relate to it, or see how
funny it is.

As with other types of
writing, become the sponge.

Take notes of situations,
incidents, you see, hear.

You're at a friend's house,
for instance.

The friend heads toward the
kitchen, but stumbles, slides
forward.

You know he/she is going to
be hurt. You close one
eye.

Instead, the friend spins,
side slaps the wall, but
he/she is all right.

You opened the closed eye,
blinked twice, and wondered
how he/she escaped being
mangled.

How would you tell the
story? Put a new twist
on it. Make it your own.

Allow a trusted friend,
family member, to hear,
see, the finished product.

A critique can be helpful.

Haiku: What Is It?

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Haiku, hi-coo, is poetry from
the Japanese culture.

Let's look at the classic form.
The poem is three lines. Five
syllables sit in line one, seven
syllables in line two, and five
syllables situate themselves in
the last line.

Traditionally, the theme is
centered on nature.

Originally, haiku poems did not
rhyme.

However, today's poet rhyme them,
use any theme, less syllables per
line, and reverse the form.

The focus of this post is on
the classic, traditional, form.

Write a haiku by narrowing
down one thought, mood,
or feeling. Pour-in words that
show clear mental pictures.

What are your thoughts on snow,
for example? Write down anything,
everything, you want to say in
your poems. Select the words
with vivid imagery.

Keep in mind the poem should
be three lines, and seventeen
syllables.

Count the syllables as you
arrange your thoughts for
poems.

I suggest that you make a word
list by syllables.

Let's look closer at haiku poems.

Poem One

Line 1--5 syllables:
snow blankets the ground

Line 2--7 syllables:
layers it in white softness

Line 3--5 syllables:
black, silver, and gray

===================================
Poem Two
Line 1--5 syllables:
a storm manifests

Line 2--7 syllables:
trees bow to the howling wind

Line 3--5 syllables:
it calls to the rain

Stir-up your imagination with
haiku poems. Select descriptive
words.

Writing Ideas Stab At The Imagination: What To Do?

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There is one action to take when
writing ideas stab at the imagination,
and that is to write about them.

Decide on the best angle to write
the article, poem, essay, or chapter
from. Use the point-of-view that
excites your imagination, and will
appeal to the biggest audience.

It's very important to work with
a writing idea that you like.

If a writing idea for an article
puts you asleep after paragraph
two, how can you write with passion
about it? It must ignite your
imagination, sense of wonder.

An interesting writing idea
starts you to look for the
right angle to present it
from. You probe, look, for
other information relating to
your writing idea.

What to consider as you
work on the next writing
idea.

Settle on a view-point by asking
questions.

What angle will give my article
the most appeal? Perhaps, it
should be begin with a question.
An amusing anecdote is better?

Try different questions before
picking one.

I wrote a poem centering around
a rainy day.

Still, I had to ask questions.

What is there to say about
the rain? It drowns out the sun?
Washes away germs? A time to
play in puddles? You prefer to
write about where rain comes
from?

I plucked information from the
above questions to write a haiku
poem.

Rain taps at window
cleaning the earth of its germs
balancing nature

Your choice is to write an essay.
Still, ask yourself questions.

How will the introduction be
presented? Your research
will give questions, and
solutions.

What is your position, and
what evidence do you have?

What words will best
show-case a chapter?

An excellent place to begin
a chapter is in the middle of
a problem, situation. Will the
idea stabbing at your imagination
help?

Stir-up the idea stabbing at
your imagination with research,
notes, experts, and begin
writing.

There's no limit to the paths
the writing idea stabbing at
your imagination can take,
but the boundaries you set.

Setting

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The setting is established in
paragraph one. A setting shows
the mood of your story, tells
where it takes place, and locks
in a time period.

Don't just state where your
story takes place, but bring the
setting to life with characters,
dialogue. Use it as a factor of
the story.

If the setting, for example, is a
haunted house, story people will
talk, gossip, about weird happenings
surrounding it. They venture into
the house, noises ring-out during
the nights. The house is not
just the setting, but a component.

Allow characters to expose the setting.
The setting helps move your plot along.

A character makes a date to meet
another person at the house. The
deciding if the meeting should take
place there, changing a mind surfaces,
getting to the haunted house, and
what happens in the house moves
the plot forward.

It's important to develop a setting
that makes your story memorable, and
inspire people to read more of your
work.

Don't be afraid to change your setting
if it isn't working well with your story
people.

In my novel, Grave Street House, scenes,
incidents, happen in and around the
House. Characters talk about the
House at home, on the streets.

Take a look at how I began Grave
Street House.

My goal was to expose my setting,
give enough information of what's
happening, and hook the reader.

When I walked onto my street heads bobbed
and turned, some people cried. They knew
the horror awaiting him. A few drifted to
their places of security. The homeless
intruder wobbled then stumbled on his
way into the House. They reacted with
clear warnings to stay out. Only, he ignored
them. He slowed down, whirled his head toward
me with fear in his eyes.

I motioned with my hand for him to come
back. I rushed closer to the House, forced my
way through the mob of people.

Perspiration beads formed on my forehead. I
strained to take in enough oxygen. I stopped
moving; fear had me in its grip. He continued
to sway up the worn-out steps, made a mockery
of the condemned, haunted, Grave Street House.

What do you think of my opening?

The setting is a very important part of your
story. Re-think, re-write, the setting until
it is an exact fit.