Writing successful comedy
 Marks & Gran Marks & Gran are the team behind Goodnight Sweetheart, Birds Of A Feather, Shine On Harvey Moon and The New Statesman among many others.
During the Northern Ireland comedy masterclass the duo illustrated the process of writing a funny story and provided an insight into the nature of comedy.
1. It's all about the characters
Plot is nothing but the way the character expresses itself, and indeed vice versa... What we remember, what we cherish, are characters.
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2. Make it difficult for yourself
The difficulties that we set ourselves... will ultimately lead to better comedy. Nothing should ever be easy in a comedy.
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3. Comedy - the hardest branch of drama
When you are thinking about what you are going to write, you really should think about who is your main character, what does he or she want and what is stopping them getting it.
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4. Women characters
Women characters play an important part in comedy. We've never differentiated between men and women.
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5. Be intriguing...
If you can't be a genius, then at least be intriguing enough that I can't wait to turn the page.
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