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Comedy Subgenres

Let's start our exploration of genres with Comedy. From parody to dark satire, the intent can be to poke gentle fun or outright skewer the tropes of a genre, emphasize the points made through comedy, or refute an existing "truth."

Don't underestimate the power of comedy. Using humor can lower resistance enough for a pertinent point to sink in when people would otherwise refuse to hear it.

Most of the examples I could think of were movies, but the same definitions apply to fiction.

1. Black or Dark Comedy: Sarcastic or
 mocking and cynical stories that examine serious subjects such as war, death, relationships, or illness.

Example: Men Who Stare At Goats.

2. Parody or Spoof: Mock serious topics with unconventional riffs on psychology, religion, government, technology, etc. The point is to illuminate flaws in our thinking, behavior, or systems using humor as a glaring spotlight. 


Example: Blazing Saddles.

3. Romantic Comedy: Has a little fun with the Romance genre, either making fun of it, or making the romantic complications comedic. 

Example: The Proposal.

4. Mystery Comedy: Pokes fun at the mystery genre. 

Example: The Pink Panther.

5. Con/Heist Comedy: Fills the Con/Heist with humorous complications and/or goals. 

Example: The Tower Heist.

6. Light Horror Comedy: Imbues the Horror genre with comedic complications. 

Example: Snakes On A Plane.

7. Science Fiction Comedy: Makes light of the Science Fiction genre. 

Example: Spaceballs.

8. Fantasy Comedy: Adds humorous twists to the Fantasy genre. 

Example: Princess Bride.

9. Western Comedy: Exaggerates the tropes of the Western genre for comedic effect.

Example: True Grit.

10. Historical Comedy: Highlights the mores and manners of yore with comedic effect.

Example: Men in Tights.

11: Road trip Comedy: Takes the serious lesson-infused journey on a fun-filled ride. 

 Example: Planes, Trains & Automobiles.

Next week, we will examine Comedy building blocks.

Check out the newly released Comedy Build-A-Plot Workbook available on Amazon. Also available for Kindle.


For more about how to craft plots using conflict check out, Story Building Blocks: The Four Layers of Conflict available in print and e-book and check out the free tools and information about the series on my website.

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