British Comedy Guide

Belated

I've been lurking here and already done a few posts, then remembered I'd forgotten this section. How rude of me.

I'm trying to write TV comedy. Not had anything taken up yet but I'm cracking on with the only bit I have any influence over - scripts and outlines. I'm moving into this field from the book world, where I had three novels published and another due out later this year. I don't know if that affects anything. The books haven't made me a household name or anything so I'm just approaching this TV writing things as a beginner, albeit one with reasonably developed narrative skills.

I grew up reading and watching films and TV, but when I decided to get creative it just seemed easier to do novels. You can do the whole thing on your own, with no prior knowledge required and without having to wait for other people to turn your words into anything else. But now I want to do other stuff, and TV comedy is it. Some of it is probably because I like a challenge. Some is because I've just picked up more knowledge of how TV writing works, so it doesn't seem quite so much like alchemy now.

The only thing of mine to have reached the screen is a short film script. It wasn't funny (or meant to be) and didn't win any awards. I have endless admiration for the director for how he did it, though, and the amount of work involved just to produce a 5 minute film was mind-boggling.

Favourite comedy: Curb, Peep, Boosh, Marenghi, Seinfeld, Partridge, Office, IT, Family Guy, King of the Hill, Young Ones...

Hey Chuck D, Good to have you on board. :)

Ooooooh, tell us about your books. That's way more interesting than smelly old sitcoms. :)

Hello.

Cheers guys. Zooo - the books are kind of scabrous black comedies that were marketed in the crime genre. You probably haven't heard of them. They came close to being made into a C4 series, though, which would have made them more well known. Alas!

They sound intriguing!

Cheers. I don't know if all sitcoms are smelly, BTW. And let's be honest - a lot of books stink.

Mmm, I do love smelling a book though.
I've not yet smelled a sitcom.

There was The Smell Of Reeves And Mortimer if that counts!

Welcome Chuck - I'm new too (although with no previous writing experience of any kind) but it was great to find so many people as obsessed with comedy as I am.

Personally I've found going to a couple of workshops/classes on scriptwriting has been helpful in terms of getting to grips with the 'rules' as it were. Yes I know a lot of people say forget the rules but it's sometimes good to know them first then forget them later if you so choose. ;) Maybe guides would be a better word.

You can't 'learn' to be funny but can you learn useful tips!

Have fun,

Jx

Edited by Aaron - capitalisation.

Cheers Jane. Yeah, you need to know how to paint photo-realistically before you make a million doing conceptual art.

I never took any kind of course in prose writing but I'm going to do one for this. Just a short one, though. Couldn't handle more than a day.

Quote: zooo @ February 16 2009, 5:24 PM GMT

Mmm, I do love smelling a book though.

Snap!

Welcome, Chuck. :D

You big weirds!

Comic books smell the best - in particular the Beano I find.

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