How to write gag cartoons

[Leah-Admin]

see below

[Simon Lake]

I would also like to just stress that this is an exercise in triggering the imagination, which is basically a tool used by Cart nists to expand their minds and come up with ideas. It's all about association and how one thing can lead to another (in the case of strip cartooning). It's also all just for fun (I repeat, fun!) and if you can't enjoy yourself while pursuing such matters then don't bother because it won't work. One- off single panel gags are a different kettle of eggs, erps....I mean fish. If you are serious about cartooning and you really have a desire to know why didn't I think of that? then stay tuned... PLUS IF YOU DON'T LIKE IT THEN WELL, YOU KNOW EXACTLY WHAT TO DO. (feel free to bump this up to a new thread, Leah) Nobody is blessed with the gift of coming up with jokes or cartoon ideas at will. Like a lot of things, it has to be worked at, struggled with, and sweated over and basically practised a lot.
Other tools used are:
1. Memory Maps
2. Puns/ Thesaurus (A play on words)
3. Observation of real life. (Misery turned into humour)
4. Eggsageration (no, really)
5. Milking (Observation of other cartoonist's gags and coming up with a better alternative)
6. dah de dah...........
Personally, I keep any scrap of paper and blunt pencil wherever I go for prosperity. I could be sitting in the Pub and an idea will just come to me that is going to make me an absolute fortune (This happens a lot). It's important though, the memory is only so good and you if you are anything like me, you'll be kicking yourself for ages for not writing it down. It may not appear to look so good the next day, but then neither will you. (Lol)
I try to set myself a goal everyday of jotting down at least 10 "potential gags", be it for Private Eye, erm... Private Eye, or YES!....The markets are dwindling, but that's still no excuse. Think Greetings cards! And tee shirts and other memorabilia. Let's be positive now, and don't forget about that web site you are gonna put out there!
A single panel gag is basically a one- off mainly drawn to fit a single column width in a newspaper or magazine. (Wow!....that will be £45? .....hardly a career) The opportunities in this regard have gone very dismal with the advent of the internet. Why? Well for a start, no one really bothers so much with newspapers anymore when they can catch up online. The same goes for risque humor in Adult mags. Porn is so so widely accessible online that no dirty old man can be bothered to buy Hustler anymore. But having said all this, there has never before been wider opportunities. It's all just a matter of putting yourself out there without the need for sucking up to some Editor.
To get back to the subject, and what we are all about on this Forum, just as it is possible to improve our own drawing ability, so is it with thinking - there are techniques which can be learned, and which will raise the level of your cartooning to a professional standard, worthy of publication.
LET'S START WITH SOME OF THE BASIC TOOLS INVOLVED IN THE THINKING PROCESS...
1. Your ears.
Listen to jokes and (urgh!) the comedy shows on telly and think how you may be able to adjust them in a way that you think would look good in print. Start a joke collection, they can be very cheesy but you'll be surprised what could be accepted by an unsuspecting Editor! Your greatest source of inspiration is PEOPLE. Everyday jokes or basic banter can be a very rich source of inspiration. Watch Eastenders for 5 minutes and draw from the misery of life.......they love it! We are as Cartoonists (or potentially so), are basically in the Entertainment Industry and these things can collide. I struggle to watch telly these days, it's just all so weak and contrived. *Adapt* jokes to portray them in a visual form.
2. Use your eyes.
So often we walk, and even drive around, oblivious to our surroundings. They become so familiar to us that we switch off to what's happening. As a cartoonist, you are a hunter - on the lookout for the unusual, the interesting, the zany, and the plain ridiculous. ITS A JUNGLE OF IDEAS OUT THERE, so be prepared and be alert!
Learn how to look at your surroundings with new eyes and jot things down. Not everything you try to capture will lead on to finished work, but some of it certainly will, surely?
3. Reading.
This is a good habit anyway, and for cartoon inspiration, it is an excellent way to pick up ideas......from newspapers, books, mags, the internet etc. It doesn't take a lot to spark an idea. What you read in "Farmer's Weekly" may well be adjusted to "Hustler Australia". Give us a break here?
Tell all your friends you are now in the cartooning business, and ask them to save any good jokes for you. They'll love it when you show them your finished version, and they will be chuffed to see it in print, or indeed, on the web!
4. Joke situations.
You may think your life is boring, but humor can be derived from boredom to a very big extent. A large proportion of cartoons are actually derived from the very ordinary things in life. The list of potential joke situations is endless, although sometimes you may have to strain your brain to think of them. Let's take "Driving" as a very random example. Here are a few:
Braking too slowly/ too fast/ brakes don't work/ brakes working too well.
Bumpy roads/ sticky roads (melting tarmac)
Hand signals
Reversing
Parking problems/ fitting in a space that's too small for a car
Juggernauts in narrow streets
Hand- brake problems
Car radio too loud/ powerful speakers
Road rage/ being cut off.
New car/ showing off.
Two- car families.
Car wash problems
"Name strips" on windscreens or "Racing strips".
Gear changing
Car mechanics/ estimates/ repairs. (What's the damage?)
Learner drivers
Emergency stop.
Traffic Wardens (a potential goldmine, this one!)
The idiot who has to be first away from traffic lights.
Driving gloves/ driving socks?
Failing the MOT. A sluggish nodding dog?
Pelican crossings/ Zebra crossings
Customized cars.
Driving abroad on the wrong side of the road.
Flash cars.
Back seat drivers/ passengers.
Flat or bald tyres/ traffic Cop,
Oil change/ dip stick
One way streets
Road works.
Traffic jams/ rush hour.
Squashed hedgehogs.
Accessories. (I pad, hands free mobile phone, Satnav etc)
Flat battery/ road signs/ Highway code.
Taxi drivers
Hard shoulder.
Roundabouts
Police cars.
The fanatic who washes his car everyday, regardless of the weather.
Car salesman.
Air bags.
Window stickers/ Is my driving ok?
Towing/ stalling at traffic lights/ speeding/ crawling.
I could go on and on. But you get the idea?
Narrow them down to "Car Salesman" and I'll give you:
Part exchange
Guarantees
Previous owners
turning back the clock
Hire purchase
"Or nearest offer"
"Needs slight attention"
No reasonable offer refused
So you never need to be stuck for potential joke situations....YOU CAN USE THIS SAME METHOD FOR ANY SUBJECT WHATSOEVER.
When you've got the situation eg: Car salesman, and then a sub- heading, eg: "Previous owners", think how the situation might be depicted if the previous owner was a Vicar, or a builder or a Google millionaire for that matter.
COMMUNAL BRAINSTORMING
This is an excellent way to come up with ideas- by sharing it with your friends at a dinner party. Once they get wind of the fact that you are soon to become famous and make a fortune as a cartoonist, they are all going to want a piece. It beats Twister or Charades in my opinion and you may even come away with a few ideas for potential gags. Use the letters of the alphabet:
Abseiling
Bingo
Cars
Dogs
Engines
Fish
Golf
Igloos
Jammy tarts
Kangaroos
Light bulbs/ blonds
Magician
You get the picture?
Let's go back to the encyclopedia salesman and explore the possibilities there......what possible obstacles could he meet? What tricks could he employ to get his foot in the door? What sort of person could open the door to him? What reason could the occupant have for not wanting the encyclopedias? What sort of thing would a child say to him? How would he react to a Rottweiler?
A few reminders
Don't worry if all you can think of is "corny" jokes. Sometimes they can be the best one's
If you are struggling with ideas, don't stress, it's life.
Use your eyes
....and ears
Read
Collect jokes from TV/ radio/ friends etc
Brainstorm
Drink wine.
Please note that all of the above was inspired by The Cartoon Academy where I obtained a distinction. It has been re-worded to avoid any possible copyright infringement. It's the $64 000 000 question from aspiring cartoonists so I felt it was well worth the reproduction. I hope it may shed some light on the subject and "trigger" some ideas for future stars!

[Leah-Admin]

Hi Simon this is an awesome post, can you copy it over to the 'how to' section re 'how to write gag cartoons etc.' I can't move the post without it looking like I wrote it. I will then make it a sticky as it is very useful advice.

Thanks for writing it!!

Leah