28 Days Later... Day 9: Andrew Jones
Monday 10th February 2014
The best piece of advice I ever heard for writing sitcom: write the first draft as drama. That way you'll have to make sure that all your characters' motivations are genuine and honest, and events are unfolding in a believable manner, rather than having them act out-of-character or having implausible things happen to them 'because it's funny' - because it won't be. You'll also have to make sure you're telling an interesting story, which is the single most important job you have. 'Tell jokes' is way down the list of priorities.
Another suggestion I like: sitcom uses the classic three act structure, BUT the first act has already happened. That's the 'sit'. If you find yourself writing something introducing your 'sit', finish it if it helps you work it out for yourself, but then start a new document and write the actual story, which will start with 'Act Two'. ("But if I don't introduce my characters / my world every episode, nobody will understand what's going on!"... Then you need to find better characters or a clearer world).
And thirdly - I have a feeling Dawn French said this - watch your favourite sitcom with the sound turned down. The best ones will still be funny (unless it's on Radio 4. Although some of those are still improved by this technique...). Your friends probably think that writers write dialogue. ANYONE can write dialogue. Writers write the spaces between them. Make things happen. Not just sight gags, nice as they are, but how the characters react to each other, the pauses, the rhythms, the little moves and looks, and on the larger scale orchestrating a scene for clarity and rhythm. If someone can watch your scene with the sound turned off and still tell you what's happening, your story is not only working, but alive.
Oh, and finally: if people aren't laughing - it's because your script's not funny. Don't blame the people, just make your script funnier.
Andrew Jones is a comedy writer. His credits include 4 O'Clock Club, Dennis The Menace And Gnasher and Mr Bean - the animated series. He and Ciaran Murtagh work under the name The Black Sheep, collaborating with Cal McCrystal to create stage shows that have enjoyed sell out runs in the West End, in Edinburgh and on tour across the UK.