Matthew Hart Comedy: author questions

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Saturday, 12 January 2019

TRY: Split-Reforms

By Matthew L. Hart

Humor Writer/Comedian

Author of:

Uncle Matty's Halloween: Jokes, Bits & Anecdotes

Are you a picky eater or do you like to try new foods?

No. I don't think I've ever met a dish I didn't want to taste.

Actually, I'm very adventurous at mealtimes.

Eating is one of those things you have to do, everyday. Especially if you're lucky.

But, I'm adverse to ordinary.

Don't get me wrong, I thrive on routine, I just don't want eating to be...a wasted opportunity to live.

Different spurs my creativity, and food is my muse, I guess. I find food so amusing because it hits all our senses. Smell, Taste, Texture, sometimes it sizzles, and these professional chefs really plate their food nicely.

I feel a sense of wonder and gratitude for life when I can eat a piece of fine art that was made just for me. It's like a Buddhist sand painting that nourishes your mind and soul, as well as your body.

In that way, I get to take that creative energy with me and use it to generate laughter.

And, nothing generates more laughter than a FOOD FIGHT!

If you've never experienced an actual food fight, add it to your bucket list, and plan to have one at your next birthday party. Life and food should be celebrated!

Fill the menu with rolls, mashed potatoes, cherry tomatoes and olives in your salad, loose corn, finger foods are good but, something sloppy like spaghetti is even better.

And, when it's all over, tell your guests, "The only thing I wanted for my birthday was good food, great company and someone to clean the house for me today."

In addition to going out to eat, I also discovered the Joy of Cooking. Cooking for yourself is an amazingly empowering hobby.

But, one of my favorite things are those crazy cereals coming out. They're making cereal out of candies and cookies now!

So, I feed my inner child. "Sourpatch Kids cereal! I can eat candy for breakfast?...Well, it is breakfast cereal...It would be irresponsible not to."

Also, I live outside a large city. So, I just flip to the 'Restaurant' section of the yellow book...Yes, I said, 'book', because I'm going to cross off each one as I try it.

I judge the quality of a city by how long I can go without visiting the same restaurant twice...and once I've run out of dining options, it's time to move.

Cookin' with Coolio:

5 Star Meals at a 1 Star Price

"'I'm bored' is a useless thing to say. I mean, you live in a great, big, vast world that you've seen none percent of. Even the inside of your own mind is endless; it goes on forever, inwardly, do you understand? The fact that you're alive is amazing, so you don't get to say 'I'm bored.'"

- Louis C. K.

TRY: Split-Reforms

When the pressure is on to find something funny and to do that quickly, it's helpful to have a box of tools and techniques that you can reach for to get the job done. But, just obtaining the tool isn't enough. It will be up to you to practice using it until you become a Master Craftsman.

Build your comedy library

DISCOVER THIS BOOK FOR MORE INFORMATION ON SPLIT-REFORMS:

Comedy Writing Secrets: The Best-Selling Guide to Writing Funny and Getting Paid for It

Split-reforms are created when you fracture a single word into two or more separate words, which will typically be homonyms, that will create a surprising, and funny, new meaning.

Homonyms are words that are pronounced and spelled alike, but have different meanings.

Using Split-reforms is a great comedy writing tool because of their ability to misdirect the audience.

Humor theory suggests that one of the main reasons people will laugh is because they are delightfully surprised.

Humor theory deserves its own blog, so I will only touch on this one Comedy Formula.

MISDIRECTION + SURPRISE = COMEDY

So, is this what people are referring to when they say, "Joke Formulas"?

No. Let me be clear, a Joke Formula is more akin to Mad Libs where you have a preconstructed joke that you can fill in with different associated words from a new topic.

Think of Jeff Foxworthy's 'You might be a redneck if...' This was a very successful Joke Formula Jeff created for himself, because he could finish that sentence with whichever new Topic he wanted to poke fun at.

"You might be a redneck if...your lifetime goal is to own a fireworks stand."

- Jeff Foxworthy

Or, the reverse of this formula:

"If your dad walks you to school because you're in the same grade, you might be a redneck."

- Jeff Foxworthy

But, what we're talking about here is Humor Theory, which simply describes why Jeff's formula got laughs.

By using Humor Theory and the Comedy Formula: Misdirection + Surprise = Comedy, we will be able to identify which Split-reforms have the most likelihood of getting a laugh before throwing them out to an audience.

The Comedy Formula gives us a quality control measure to pick out the best jokes we come up with after using the Split-reform technique.

So, the great news is that using Split-reforms can create a lot of material, quickly.

LET'S GET STARTED!

You will need some material to work with.

First, build a list of words which are associated with your Topic.

It's important to come up with as many as you can.

Think of People, Places, Things, Quotes, and Cliches.

Second, cherry-pick out the words you can split.

Look for any compound words.

Compound Words are single words made up of multiple words.

For example:

sunflower, classroom, moonlight

You can split a compound word and reform it into the separate words.

For example:

sunflower = sun + flower, classroom = class + room, moonlight = moon + light

Look for a-words.

Pick out any words that start with the letter a.

For example:

alone, apiece, abreast

You will split the a from the rest of the word to reform it.

For example:

alone = a + lone, apiece = a + piece, abreast = a + breast

Look for words with a prefix.

Pick out any words that have an-, pre-, un-, or in-.

For example:

anarchy, predetermine, unhappy, independent

Reform words by splitting off the prefix and adding, deleting or separating the it to reform other words.

For example:

Add a prefix to words that don't use them:

an + tire = antire

pre + sleep = presleep

un + pleasure = unpleasure

in + work = inwork

Subtract prefix:

anarchy - an = archy

predetermine - pre = determine
unhappy - un = happy

independent - in = dependent

Separate the prefix:

anarchy = an & archy

predetermine = pre & determine

unhappy = un & happy

independent = in & dependent

Look for words with a suffix.

Pick out any words that have an -ize, -ment, -log.

For example:

modernize, movement, monolog

Follow the same Split-reform method used for Prefixes.

For example:

Add a suffix to words that don't use them:

can + ize = canize

dog + ment = dogment

grip + log = griplog

Subtract the suffix:

modernize - ize = modern

movement - ment = move

monolog - log = mono

Separate the suffix:

modernize = modern & ize

movement = move & ment

monolog = mono & log

Look for words with -er and er sounds.

The -er and er sounds can be reformed into the homonym: her.

For example:

batter, catcher, manager

Split -er and reform to her:

batter = bat her

catcher = catch her

manager = manage her

Try to identify as many compound words, a-words, prefixes, suffixes, and words with -er as you can for your topic.

Third, use homonyms to reform your words into phrases and try to incorporate those phrases into statements and cliches.

Homonyms are your friends when using the Split-reform method.

Don't be afraid to say your words out loud, and it also helps to try different tones and pacing.

You can even sneeze, cough or mumble through a word to see if you can get it to sound like something else.

Fourth, and finally, use your phrases and statements as setups and punchlines for your jokes.

The type of material generated by the Split-reform method lends itself best to written media T-shirts, Mugs, Greeting Cards, and signs. However, with careful crafting, Split-reform material can also be spoken.

Here are the four steps to working the Split-reform method.

First, build a list of words which are associated with your Topic.

Second, cherry-pick out the words you can split.

Third, use homonyms to reform your words into phrases and try to incorporate those phrases into statements and cliches.

Fourth, and finally, use your phrases and statements as setups and punchlines for your jokes.

Practice Split-reforms:

Pull a word from your list and write down as many soundalike words and phrases you can think of. Try hard to generate as many as you can per word or phrase.

Use Split-reforms to create funny greeting cards.

How was your experience using Split-reforms?

Share your experience using Split-reforms in the Comments!

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Continue your journey:

KNOW: The Author!

WORK: The Crowd!

My Audio-biography Playlist

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Matthew The Great Coin Roll Hunter

Mystery Videos Playlist!

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Saturday, 1 December 2018

KNOW: The Author

By Matthew L. Hart

Humor Writer/Comedian

Just a few questions to get to know me better.

"Speak softly and
carry a big fish."
Matthew L. Hart

This has been a fun journey!

Thank you to all who have supported me.

I hope you enjoy my book.

This is my first book

Uncle Matty's Halloween: Jokes, Bits & Anecdotes

By Matthew L. Hart

Now...

On with the interview!

How did publishing your first book change your writing process?

Once the decision was made to write and publish the book in a month, there was a hard deadline and daily writing quotas.

The idea actually started with my friend, his name is also, Matt.

He encouraged me to write a book in a month. And, my Wife, Andrea, encouraged me to take the time off to focus on it.

That's what it took for me. Direction, time and dicipline.

At first, I found writing a book in a month overwhelming. But, Matt helped me reframe my mind for what a book actually was.

In my head I had always pictured a book as being this huge, 300 page work that should take years to write.

The reality is, a book is anything 20 pages or more that gets bound and published.

We looked at other books in the humor genre and 40-60 pages was just about average. Originally, I was only shooting for 40 pages, but a funny thing happens when you start writing.

You keep going!

After producing this first book, I've learned, for myself anyway, that you must hit your daily quota when you're powering towards a deadline.

It's way too easy to get behind.

My daily quota was only 2 pages but I would always run out of steam at a page and a half. I put more energy into that last half page than the first whole one.

I was easy on myself the first two weeks and found the third week very stressful.

There were a couple days at the end where I was required to produce 6 and even 8 pages. Those were long days, but having the book out now...

It was so worth it!

Having gone through that book in a month experience, it's now a lot easier reaching that 2 page daily writing quota.

It's easy to start a project, but it only counts when it's finished.

I dedicated the book to my wife because she allowed me to take the time off work, which I really needed.

That was huge!

There's a real monetary investment with something like that. Not everyone is that lucky.

I could probably do it again around a full-time job, now.

But, to get the first one done...

Having the time off to focus on it was so important and appreciated.

But, I owe my friend, Matt, a HUGE THANK YOU, for the support.

Together, we tore down the goal, talked over the project daily, and he even scouted out Amazon's KDP program before I went to publish.

Matt gets the next dedication for sure!

Did you put yourself into your book?

There was a lot of confusion about this when the book came out.

I think because the character's name was Matty. Obviously, my own name.

But, the answer, of course, is no.

When I first began comedy writing and standup, I used to base my work on my own life.

I quickly ran out of stuff to explore.

There's only so much that happens to a person, you know.

Honestly, as your work progresses, it's a lot more fun and exciting to create characters with unique points of view and explore the world through their eyes.

This is what I did with Uncle Matty.

The comic character, Uncle Matty, is a cynical Millennial.

If anything, he could be the photo negative of myself.

Even that's a bit of a stretch.

The joke about Uncle Matty, is that he is the embodiment of all these characteristics people try to put on that generation.

Uncle Matty is what people say the Millennial generation is like.

I suppose it was a social study experiment I did through comedy.

We'll see what people think about that when the reviews come in!

If you were to change genres, which one would you choose?

I really like sci-fi/action/adventure.

Most everything from Michael Crichton, Clive Cussler, and Tom Clancy.

Sphere by Michael Crichton was the first adult novel I read, and the movie, Jurassic Park, was a large influence that inspired me into studying film.

There's a tug-of-war inside me that can't seem to settle on drama or comedy.

My first screenplay was a comedy.

Unfortunately, there was a lot of pressure in the University environment to pursue "serious" filmmaking.

So, I spent the daytime studying drama in class, and the night time studying comedy.

I stayed up all night transcribing TV sitcoms, I practiced with the local improve groups, and did stand up comedy at open mic nights around Las Vegas and on campus.

But, for sure, there's a few dramatic sci-fi/adventure stories in me.

Is it true that anyone can become a humor writer?

Absolutely true!

We're all born into this world cold, naked and needy. Most of us will grow out of that to become idiots.

But, over time, we bump into things and learn what hurts.

Comedy is just that moment between bumping our head and deciding to cry.

Comedy writing is just putting down on paper, what's going on through your head right after the moment of impact.

Anyone can do that!

And, most of the time it's followed by tears. You just hope they're from the laughter.

The only real difference between a good comedy writer and a great one is how frequently they bang their head against the desk.

You can tell a great comedy writer by counting the bumps on their forehead.
I have one bump, but it's like, really big.

What is your favorite book that has been turned into a movie?

Simple: The book by Mark Obmascik, The Big Year: A Tale of Man, Nature, and Fowl Obsession

The book is a great read. It's one of my favorite travel companions.

Read it on a plane, train, or parade float.

The book came out in 2011 and the plot follows three birders during a competitive birding event called, The Big Year.

The Big Year starts on January 1st and the objective is to see as many birds as possible in North America in 365 days.

Birding is one of my favorite activities because I enjoy nature, birds especially, and the event really pulls you to some amazing places.

Birding is Pokemon Go with binoculars.

I thought the movie, The Big Year, (2011) was perfectly cast.

The screenplay was adapted by Howard Franklin.
Known for The Man Who Knew Too Little (1997) and AntiTRUST (2001).

The movie was directed by David Frankel.
Known for Band of Brothers (2001) and The Devil Wears Prada (2006).

And leading stars include:
John Cleese as the Narrator
Jack Black as Brad Harris
Owen Wilson as Kenny Bostick
Steve Martin as Stu Preissler

I could watch this movie every year. The characters are three-dimensional, the stakes are great and the adventure is a great representation of what birding is all about.

If you could go back, what advice would you give to your younger self?

This one made me laugh!

It's so tempting to want to change the past, but...

Without things going down the way they did, I never would have gotten to where I'm at.

Honestly, I've got no complaints.

I might go back and tell my younger self that great grades in school are not all they're chalked up to be.

Especially in high school.

I think, the most important thing I ever learned in high school was social skills.

I was a percussionist in the marching band.

We had just over 100 members from all types of cliques. That made it really easy for me to get along and understand all types of people.

I mostly had two groups of friends.

The first group was all about enlisting into the Marine Corps and the second group were all in the Honor Society.

I did neither.

What was really fun for me was making these two different groups of people laugh.

Part of that laughter was my willingness to commit to the joke, which means I was sent to the Principal's Office my entire K-12 school experience.

At High School graduation, my strangest moment was when they called all the Honor Students up, and a girl behind me asked, "Aren't you in the Honor Society?" I had to say, "No."

I guess you really are known by the company you keep.

So, when I reflect, I guess I would tell my younger self, "Don't worry so much. You're only as smart as people think you are."

"Faking it till you make it" is kind of a motto in this business.

And, the irony is that you might never know when you actually made it.