Hunting Down Comedy Writers? Find the Best Comedy Writers for Hire Right Here at The Urban Writers
Do you want to write comedy and publish or pitch work to late-night shows? Perhaps you want to not only write comedy, but also publish funny stories and build your brand and business around making people laugh? If so, your venture is both noble and wise.
Comedy writing has been part of humanity since the first Neanderthal stepped on a dinosaur bone. The history of comedy writing is as old as the history of the entertainment industry, which dates back to ancient Greece.
Yet, comedy performers didn't simply walk onto the stage (stand up) and begin telling jokes. Though not in its current perfected form, comedy writing is as ancient as comedy itself, since performers have always required to plot, test, and practice their acts before performing. And, yes, they've been using comedy writers to do that.
Great jokes from a comedy writer aren't born spontaneously. They're the fruits of careful, inspired work, experimentation, testing, and adjustment, and they require a great deal of preparation to make audiences chuckle. If you have a knack for comedy, you likely need one or more of the following comedy pieces or comedy publications beyond a great sense of humor:
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Comedy scripts
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TV show comedy writing
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Fiction stories
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Humor writing
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Joke writing
And other comedy writing services, all tailored to your target audience.
You see, very few, if any comedy writer, appeal to everyone's taste. For that reason, it's useful to discover what your target audience is.
Different audience categories have different tastes in comedy and expectations of comedic performers . For that reason, it's important to work with comedy writers who have a similar style and taste as yourself, and who can deliver the kind of joke that your audience expects.
Can One Be Both a Comedian and Writer?
Now, an important question presents itself: Can you establish your comedy writing career and performance simultaneously? Keep in mind that both aspects of good comedy are almost separate jobs. Writing comedy scripts and planning sketches isn't the same as giving an outstanding stand-up comedy performance.
In fact, many of the world's most famous comedy creators don't write comedy on their own. Instead, they hire comedy writers to write superb comedy for them, while the creators themselves direct, rehearse, and perform the comedic writing.
If you've been looking to upgrade your comedy career, then it's wise to consider posting a comedy writing job and working with other comedy writers who can make the most of your ideas.
Remember, simple changes in otherwise good jokes can make them better sounding, funnier, and more memorable. So, why miss out on the many perks of working with freelance comedy writers?
What's a Comedy Writer?
Writing comedy is a distinct profession, unlike any other. A comedy writer is an expert in writing humor for various purposes, like:
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Films
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Radio, podcasts, etc.
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Televisions, late-night TV shows (e.g. Saturday Night Live)
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And many other.
A comedy writers' job consists of doing research, creating funny content, and then pitching stories and scripts for production, whether it’s a TV series or films/movies.
There are two general types of comedy writers:
Publication Comedy Writer
A publication comedy writer makes content for books, articles, magazines (e.g. The New Yorker), as well as newspapers.
This comedy writer works alongside comedy editors, and adheres to their publisher's guidelines in an effort to write a fantastic piece that will both entertain the audience and enhance the publisher's outreach and reputation.
Performance Comedy Writer
This type of comedy writer typically produces scripts for comedic performances. They write for series, movies, and TV shows.
A performance comedy writer is someone who can build a massive name for themselves, work on comedy sitcoms and late-night shows, and get noticed. If they manage to write stories that appeal to millions of audience members, there's no end to this comedy writer's possibilities.
What's Comedy Script Writing?
Comedic performance writing is the process of creating funny performances from concept to a complete script format. As such, comedic writing needs a good understanding of script writing in general. That includes comedy writing, and knowing how to format writing for a specific niche and genre.
Key Elements of Comedy Script Writing
If you're starting to write comedy, you should follow these basic steps:
Story Outline
Outline your comedy piece from exposition to resolution, following all the key recommendations for effective comedy writing. A well-written outline will contribute to more successful comedy writing later on.
Comedic Highlights
You shouldn't cram your entire story just with jokes. Humor should be used in good measure to emphasize the important parts of the plot, or as intended by the producer or publisher.
Settings and Characters
Work out your protagonists and settings in detail. Remember that each character's personality should be unique, but it should also appeal to readers or viewers and make them feel like they can relate.
Balancing between quirky and relatable is a true talent for a comedy writer, which, if used well, can birth some of the most memorable comedy icons out there.
Think about the Fresh Prince or Karen Walker. They are unique and have almost otherworldly personality traits, yet viewers identify with them on a level that's hard to put into words.
With these particular characters, we could say that viewers relate to having unrealized potential or struggling to find their place in the world, something most people feel at one point or another.
Comedic Scenes
Pay close attention to how you want your comedic scenes to play out. Give them undivided attention and ensure that they're well written and consistent with the story.
Story Dialogue
Smooth and impactful character exchanges are prerequisites of great comedy. Write, rewrite, and revise conversations until you're certain they flow spontaneously and naturally.
The Steps for Quality Comedy Script Writing
This kind of writing requires studying good examples and getting ideas from well-known models to find the actions, descriptions, and conversations that make them work.
Step 1: Outlining
All quality writing begins with a concept or an idea. In literature, we call it outlining. In that sense, a comedy creator writes the main idea, concept, and philosophy behind their pieces.
It is also necessary to write the key elements of the plot, as well as to flesh out each character, before you write your first draft. Remember to consider character and story development from start to finish, so that your story goes in a clear, cohesive direction.
Step 2: Scene Writing
Comedy writing is more than just dialogue. It includes envisioning a complete experience in a scene, from the environment and settings to social circumstances, aesthetics, and behavior.
Step 3: Formatting
Since script writing consists of many different elements, it needs to be formatted properly so that each scene and dialogue are clearly visible and distinguishable.
Technical aspects of formatting vary from one publisher or producer to another, but your work still needs to have consistent page and font settings for a clean, uniform look. This concerns font size, page format, indentations, margins, and word formatting.
Step 4: Editing
All writing should be edited to make sure that scenes flow well and are consistent, and that conversations come out the way they were meant to for each character's development arc.
Comedy editing prevents or reduces plot holes and character inconsistencies that ruin even the best writing efforts.
Step 5: Feedback
Trying the finished piece in front of an audience (both lay, and expert) helps collect quality feedback.
Test viewers can provide honest responses to what your writing made them think and feel, while expert feedback from performers and producers gives better insight into how your story will work out from the industry's point of view.
Professional reviewers will tell you if the jokes work for one or many generations and if any of them potentially carry a risk of offending certain viewers or causing negative backlash.
What Does it Cost to Hire Comedy Writers?
With the numerous options given on our platform, you can entirely control the size, extent, and talent used for your project. Our customer service will gladly discuss your comedy writing needs and help adjust the level of services needed to balance between your budget and the desired comedy writing product.
The Urban Writers gives you several options to budget comedy writing jobs:
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Purchasing a book bundle.
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Choosing comedy writers with different levels of expertise.
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Purchasing comedy writing at pre-determined rates based on book size and comedy writer tier.
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Purchasing various fiction and nonfiction packages and services.
Our pricing structure allows you to control your comedy writing budget with the choice of:
1: Comedy writer expertise ranging from novice to professional
2: Content features such as SEO writing packages and comedy writing packages for books (fiction and nonfiction).
3: Additional services such as editing, formatting, and design (illustrations and book covers)—available separately or as part of book bundles.
4: Choose graphic designers from a list of options.
5: Narration.
6: Spanish and German Translation.
Pay rates for comedy writing on other platforms for comedy writing jobs depend on the freelancer's background and writing experience. Pay rates also vary depending on the type of comedy writing you'll need, and of course, on the size of your project.
How to Find the Best Comedy Writers
The steps to acquiring the best comedy writing services begin with looking into your own content needs, characteristics, and expectations. Expect rejection by audiences if you fail to deliver the type of well-measured humor writing that your specific niche expects. Keeping this in mind, the comedy writer you choose should have the following skills and abilities:
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Creating complete comedy scripts out of (radio, TV, or film) concepts.
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The ability to take various everyday situations and find a lighter side to otherwise bleak, begrudging, and even tragic events (when written tastefully).
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Read and review your standup performance script and improve your jokes, language, and timing.
The right personal skills: A good comedy writer should be able to deliver quality humor in your selected format and per your required standards. They should be able to manage one or several current projects, while simultaneously juggling different stages of story writing.
Freelance writer experience: With entertainment being such a high-stake, overwhelming industry, it takes a lot of expertise to create comedy that will be accepted for television shows or major publications like Reader’s Digest.
For a freelance writer to gain experience in comedy, it's necessary that they work up their own, personal career first. This is where nuances like having their past articles published, having an aptitude for writing truly unique character development, and meeting all submission guidelines for new material come into play.
A freelance writer develops humor writing skills like any other (script) writer. Finding a lighter side to even the most tragic story is universally a trait of good writers. In other genres, these are the types of characters and situations introduced to provide so-called "comic relief," which can be done well.
How to Become a Comedy Writer: Humor Writing Tips
If you've ever wondered, "how do I become a comedy writer?" it's time to learn a little bit more about the industry's nuances.
1: Study Comedy Writing Jobs
With the high differentiation of comedy writing jobs, it is necessary to engage in improving your humor skills both institutionally and professionally. As the majority of fine art jobs, comedy writing jobs don't really have the same defined entry protocols and evaluation standards as other professions.
For example, one expects that a quality teacher has earned a college degree in education and that their performance meets pre-defined standards in terms of teaching and student achievement.
If both the teacher and the evaluator use the same evaluation scale, they will most likely reach similar conclusions about the teacher's performance.
It's different for comedy writers. Similar to other artists, i.e., painters, actors, singers, and other performers—comedians must find ways to access industries that operate on implicit standards that change from season to season. Getting an education in fine arts doesn't guarantee a career due to a disconnect between art and real life.
The only way to manage is to study how to get jobs and build a career in the following areas:
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Anecdotal comedy and story writing comedy.
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Character comedy writing.
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Dark and blue comedy writing.
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Improvisational comedy.
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Heritage comedy.
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Inside humor writing.
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And others.
Beyond that, study the industries’ specific job requirements to acquire skills in:
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Comedy writing and production.
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Screenplay comedy writing.
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Film and TV comedy writing.
Do your best to acquire competitive skills. You'd be surprised at how many companies look for a staff writer with a knack for comedy, even if not within the industry. What's the harm in having a paying job in your field while working toward your big break?
2: Master Funny Comedy Writing
Believe it or not, writing funny stories can easily go sideways. If a comedy writer pokes fun at the wrong person or event, it can easily be seen as an improper joke.
To make people laugh, it's necessary to find a good balance between being funny and being mean. Building that sense of humor that won't draw social media backlash is no easy task. It takes a lot of consistent research and practice creative comedy writing.
3: Gain Humor, Satire, and Performance Experience
Some aspects of comedy writing are more competitive and rewarding than others. Mastering great satire can boost your career, whereas attempting to make an edgy joke and failing can quickly end it.
Gain experience by working as an understudy, working with freelance writers, and starting your own comedy show. Nowadays, you don't need an expensive production to become a successful comedian. All you need is an online channel, one available for free on computer and mobile (e.g., through an IOS app); a good brand story; and quality stories, and dialogue and you're good to go!
4: Make People Laugh on Social Media: Create a Funny Portfolio
Sharing a funny story on social media is a good way to start rehearsing your performances and gather feedback for your future late-night engagements. Write up a script and publish your story as a post or a video.
Notice how people react, use that feedback to better your standup humor and satire skills, and build a following along the way. While building a social media presence and improving your skills, consider publishing a personal website that chronicles your projects.
There, you can post all of your published work and past performances. That way, both your audience and future employers will know your joke content history; there will be no confusion regarding your style, and you'll have a presentable way of showcasing your career achievement and sense of humor.
5: Advance Your Career as a Comedy Writer and Performer
If you want to become the world's next Tina Fey or Seth Meyers, create original comedic writing and pitch them to major publishers and shows.
This will help match you with producers who appreciate your kind of funny writing and can potentially help you land a dream job in which you'll be writing the exact type of humorous stories you were hoping for. The Urban Writers can help with this by offering your next favorite comedy writer!
Post Comedy Writing Jobs on The Urban Writers Platform
If you've decided to start posting comedy writing jobs, you're on the right track! Hopefully, you now understand that working with comedy writers can help land that breakthrough job opportunity.
Our writers can help refine your humor by writing the sort of jokes that they know will work well with the audience based on their experience. You have everything you need right here, so why waste time posting comedy writer jobs on job boards?
You can easily sign up to our Platform, post your first comedy writing job, and watch as our talented freelance writers compete for a spot on your project.
Posting comedy writing jobs with The Urban Writers is simple, and it requires the following couple of steps:
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Sign up to our Platform, complete your profile, and purchase a content writing package or one of our bundles.
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Create comedy writing jobs and upload your requirements so that your freelance writer understands what your goals and expectations are.
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Browse interested applicants' profiles, ask additional questions via private messaging, and even invite comedy writers you like best directly to the project!
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Select your favorite comedy writer and let them take over writing scripts, funny stories, and comedic screenplays. Watch as the work-in-progress is being uploaded, and comment on the writing if you wish to make any changes.
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Once your writer completes their work, you can let our editors, designers, and formatters take over the rest while you plan for your future projects.
The entertainment industry isn't easy to access, but with our help, you'll soon find yourself giving an attention-grabbing comedic performance.
Find Your Favorite Freelance Comedy and Joke Writer NOW With The Urban Writers!
Great news! You can find comedy writers on our Platform easily and with all our packages! Depending on what kind of content you need, you can get help writing comedy from:
Our SEO writing packages
We can help with writing, editing, and designing funny articles and social media posts, as well as website content. You could use our help to put SEO-optimized content on your portfolio website so that your viewers and potential employers start chuckling at your puns on the first page of the search results.
Our SEO writing can also help your comedic blog with added optimization elements that ensure your post's appearance in relevant searches. Even better, you get to pick your own writer and editor and select between purchasing individual funny articles or article batches for better savings.
Our fiction packages
If you wish to publish a comedic piece of fictional literature, we have writers with excellent comedy writing skills, editors, illustrators, and narrators lined up to create an amazing product. All you need to do is select a package, form your team, and you'll be good to go!
Our nonfiction packages
Comedy has a place in nonfiction as well. Tell an important tale using puns and anecdotes in a way that makes the topic you chose clear and easy to remember. Choose a nonfiction package or a book bundle and watch as interested nonfiction writers compete for your project!
Start writing incredible comedy NOW!
