Humor in Fanzines, or Who Was That Fandom I Saw You With?

Meta
Title:	Humor in Fanzines, or Who Was That Fandom I Saw You With?
Creator:	Charlie Kirby
Date(s):	December 1992
Medium:	print
Fandom:	multifandom, emphasis on Man from U.N.C.L.E.
Topic:
External Links:
Click here for related articles on Fanlore.

Humor in Fanzines, or Who Was That Fandom I Saw You With? is a 1992 essay by Charlie Kirby.

It was published in A Writers' Exchange #5.

From the Essay

Fans are funny. If anyone has any doubt of that, go park your fanny in a hallway during any con and try to keep a straight face as the fans go by. Fans are wild and imaginative. I keep remembering the woman who was trying to explain to this little old man how she ended up with three sets of breasts. The fact that she was blue didn't seem to have any impact on him, he was interested in those breasts - all six of them.

The TV shows and movies that we build our fandoms around also show a similar spark of imagination and humor. Otherwise, we would probably just ignore them or think we're watching some PBS show. Bet you can't name one show/movie totally devoid of all humor. Now, using the same premise, how many fan stories can you name that don't solicit a single smile from you? One, twelve, forty-three, more?

Now, I'm not talking split-your-gut, thought-I'd-die humor. That's out of place in just about any fandom, unless you're like my friend who writes PERFECT STRANGERS material. Too many fan writers have forgotten the important element of humor. They are so busy attending to other aspects of writing that humor is forgotten, or worse, ignored as something unnecessary or undesired.

If you watch any series carefully, you'll see a subtle bit of humor peeking over a bush or from beneath a car. It's that silly remark that makes the difference between a good story and a great story (plot, character development, etc. not withstanding). Example: Where would ST have been without all those exchanges between McCoy and Spock? I wonder if the fan following would have lasted as long without tribbles, the lotians or Chekov's Russian stories. Gene Roddenberry understood the importance of making the audience laugh, even in a moment of crisis.

I will be the first to confess that I haven't read every zine on the market. I haven't even read every zine available on my preferred fandoms. However, in the zines I have read, there's a disturbing lack of humor in many of the stories. Why? Basically, it can be traced to three reasons:

1.) A lack of knowledge regarding the show/movie

2.) The writer's inability to write humor

3.) The writer's refusal to embrace humor

A lack of knowledge regarding the show/movie To be funny, you need to know your fandom inside and out. Not just on a surface level, but in a biblical sense. You have to be ready to romance it, take it to bed, make love to it and promise to call it in the morning, anything that will give you that special insight to see beyond what the average Joe Blow sees. That's what separates a writer from a viewer.

"How could I possibly write in a fandom if I wasn't already doing that?" I hear you cry. There's quite a few people who do just that. They watch an episode to get the 'feel' of the characters, a general idea of how they react with each other and the gist of the show (if necessary), then they go to work on the story. Quite often this is the cutting point between a writer who loves a show and someone just doing a story (this isn't just in fandom. Ever wonder why some scripts stink and others are works of art? Or why some Pro ST novels are so good and others aren't?). Being articulate and grammatically correct is important, but I think that falls second hand to knowing your fandom, having it 'talk' to you. You can have a wonderfully correct story and it can still be as boring as hell. Unless you entertain, you've lost your audience. In comedy that's called playing the crowd. In writing it's called knowing your fandom.

Once you have learned your fandom and know how the humor is related to each character, then you're ready to incorporate the 'real life' humor element into your story. Match the humor with the character. MacGyver wouldn't go around cracking dirty jokes, he's too much of a class act for that. However, Doyle or Bodie would. Napoleon Solo might be inclined toward a farmer's daughter joke, yet that would be totally out of character for Illya Kuryakin. Control is also important, for without control you have no constraints. Unless you are writing sitcom material, you need to know when to rein in your humor and make it heel. Compare if you will the first season of Man from UNCLE and the third season. There is a classic example of parody gone camp. There was a subtle hint of humor in the first season that made the show as funny as it was exciting (60s sense of exciting). Then along came a little show that had a minor impact on television - BATMAN. Suddenly, there was a scramble to imitate their success and a wonderfully witty MFU became something laughable (and worse, easily ignored). The move nearly cost MFU its run and it did succeed in killing off nearly every bit of humor in the fourth and final season. This is an example of control thrown to the wind and something to be avoided.

So far this article has been aimed at writers, but that's only half the story. All three above-mentioned reasons are moot if you come up against an editor who doesn't have a funny bone in herlhis body. The writer has done her job, incorporating just the right element of humor into the story and along comes the I-Am-Not-Amused Editor. Not being as familiar with the fandom, they might be unaware of the necessity of the humor that you have incorporated. They may also see themselves as being on a mission from God, and that mission doesn't include any pratfalls. Some editors take themselves so seriously that it's difficult to get by the barricade that they've erected against anything that might taint the name of their zine.

Writers, defend yourself when the editor wants to cut something that may seem silly to them. Look it over and make sure it's exactly right, the clever aside, the snide remark. Make sure it fits the character then go back and say, "No way. This is right and important. This is why." Make sure you can defend your humor as you would your pathos. Editors will more likely yank a humorous scene over a teary, heart-rending one, especially if space is an issue.

Fan Comments

The one article that sticks out in my mind is "Humor in Fanzines," by Charlie Kirby. This is my big bugaboo. For that matter, most fiction is devoid of humor. Where do these people live? My family certainly doesn't talk about serious subjects all of the time; and if we didn't make jokes and one-liners at work, we would go absolutely bonkers. Stories should reflect that. And, certainly, media fanzine stories should reflect the atmosphere of the show. I wouldn't have watched Quantum Leap at all if it hadn't been for the (mostly funny) interaction between Sam and AL, but I write some QL zine stories that don't have any humor at all. (But I should talk. I once made the Enterprise a "garbage scow," put Kirk into a dress, and had the Enterprise distribute drinks in dribble glasses at a cocktail party...and there was a very logical reason for doing so, too - the story was not a parody.) If I can't have fun while writing a story, I may as well be writing technical reports.