Another tool in the comedy writer’s toolbox is juxtaposition. What does juxtaposition mean? Two contrasting things being seen or placed close together. This could be a short person amongst a class of tall kids. It could be a serious character placed in a room with a goofball.
It could also mean placing a character in a place or position that is not suited to them. Think about the expression fish out of water. Fish love water. Fish can’t exist out of water. By placing a fish out of water, you have the set up for great comedy story (or maybe you just have a dead fish).
In Chicken Stu, my main character is a snob who likes cafes and bookshops and hates the outdoors. Most of the book is set on his cousin’s farm with creepy crawlies lurking everywhere. This is an example of a fish out of water scenario. It’s funny seeing a snob who hates germs in this setting.
You could also juxtapose contrasting ideas within one character for comic effect, such as a rough bully who loves to paint butterflies. In The Nerd Herd, Mrs Fox, a cunning ruthless fox, likes to play dinner games. This is not what you’d expect from a fox, or the villain of the story.
Think about the song Olaf sings in Frozen about summer. Placing a snowman in the blazing sun is funny.
The other good thing about juxtaposition is it creates great drama. By relocating a character to a contrasting environment, you get great drama as the character clashes with everything around them.
Try designing a character and then ask yourself, what place could I send this character to that they would HATE. Presto, you now have the great set-up for a story.
0 Comments