Did you see that hilarious video that everyone went bonkers about with the Scottish grandma reading her bemused grandchild the book ‘Wonky Donkey’? She finds it much funnier than the baby does and her uncontrolled giggling is contagious. Don’t watch with a full bladder or a mouthful of soup.
The baby in this video, on the other hand, doesn’t need any encouragement to find something funny. As the dad tears up bits of paper, the baby’s laughter is a joy. I can’t help chortling along. Baby giggles are irresistible.
That’s why people join Laughter Clubs, isn’t it? We know laughter is catching, and, unlike chlamydia or verrucas, laughter is something we want to catch.
Laughter is as contagious as yawning, although strangely you don’t see Yawn Clubs advertised so much.
Apparently, we’re 30 times more likely to LOL at a stand-up comedian if we’re at the live gig with a crowd. If we’re at home on our own-some, we might raise a smile or at best a titter.
It’s one thing to find something we read or watch funny, though. It’s another to understand how that funny got made. How do stand-ups craft a joke for maximum effect? How has Richard Osman made his novel ‘The Thursday Murder Club’ so funny? How did Victoria Wood write those lyrics so that the laughs came just in the right places (apart from being a genius, obvs).
There’s an art to writing humour but you’ll be happy to know that it’s possible to learn techniques that will tickle.
If you want to find out how the funny is done, register for ‘Write Funny’, an online, work-at-your-own-pace course penned by moi for Writing West Midlands. The first course has now started, but send them an email to register for the next one!
You will laugh – it’s a guarantee – and that may even be at your own words – hurrah! When you finish the course, there’s an option to submit up to 1000 words of funny writing for my (gentle and kind and lovely) feedback.
In the meantime, check these out…
