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Lessons from TV Land: Writing lessons from a sitcom

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By: espensorvik

Good morning! Okay, stay with me here. I know that when it comes to writing, a lot of television gets a bad name. This is especially true for sitcoms. Still, there are lots of writing lessons we can take away from these shows.

For those who don’t know, Titus was a FOX sitcom starring comic Christopher Titus. The show was based on his standup routines, which usually dealt with growing up with a dysfunctional family. Nothing was off-limits: his mother’s mental illness, his father’s many marriages, the abusive relationship he ended up in. So let’s take a look at what the show Titus taught me about writing.

Bring the funny.

This  #1 rule of the show. No matter what he was dealing with in the episode, he brought the laughs. For example, one of my favorite episodes is called “The Last Noel”. It’s a Christmas-themed episode that focuses on Titus going to the funeral of a former girlfriend–to make sure she’s really dead.

The ex in question was prone to violent outbursts and he was unwilling to physically defend himself against her, even when being threatened with a broken bottle. Many scenes focus on his girlfriend, Erin, finding out about Titus’ visit and wanting to know the truth. He’s too ashamed to admit it, so he lies and claims she was the love of his life. This causes a lot of drama between the couple and eventually Titus does end up confessing the truth. To break the tension, Titus breaks up the action with a spoof of “The Night Before Christmas” that never fails to bring a lot of laughs.

Another episode dealt with his mentally ill mother possibly being released from the institution she’d been in. He and the rest of his circle bumble through their statements until Titus’ father shows up. Papa Titus, in his usual hard way, coaxes Titus to speak. The action was broken up by Titus reading off the criteria for committing a family member interwoven with footage of the mother doing said things. He jokes that unlike normal families, “Dad and I had an evidence locker.”

No matter what the situation, he took a humorous look at it to make the topics easier to talk about.

Don’t be afraid to tackle the hard topics.

One of the biggest writing lessons is the show dared to talk about things most other shows didn’t. It was willing to expose the darker side of life and bring awareness to different issues without being overly preachy and melodramatic. There were episodes that dealt with infidelity, drinking, and loss. Titus apparently fought the network a lot to make sure these topics were presented in the way he felt they should be.

Throw people a curve ball.

One of my favorite episodes dealt with his mother, Juanita. Titus and Erin are waiting for a social worker to come by in order to determine whether or not they will get to adopt Erin’s niece. Just before the interviewer arrives, Titus’ mother shows up with blood-stained hands begging Titus’ forgiveness. What follows is a half-hour of bumbling antics as Titus and company try to hide Juanita’s presence from the interviewer. Once she leaves, they all run to the closet Titus has told them his mother is hiding in. When the door is open, however, she’s not there. Titus is trying to figure out where she could’ve gotten to when his girlfriend answers the phone to discover his mother actually committed suicide earlier that day.

Another episode dealt with his friend Tommy discovering his father is gay. Mixed with the typical comedic relief that marked the series, Tommy is angry and expresses hate for his father. It isn’t until near the end of the episode that we discover Tommy’s more angry about his mother’s pain than anything.

Overall, it was a great series that expanded boundaries and took people to uncomfortable places. I think these are great traits to work into our own writing. What about you? What writing lessons have you learned from TV? I’d love to hear about them.

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Jamie White is a music addict, book lover, pet servant & NaNoWriMo survivor. When she's not busy writing posts for CultureShock, she's taking pictures for her photo blog and spending time with her husband and pets. She released Stains on the Soul and Clutter via Pagan Writers Press in 2013.
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