A skit is a small show or performance that consists of little comedic scenes. To prepare a captivating skit, you have to think of the funny ideas. Determine the genre and length of your skit. Decide what you are attempting to do with your story. Do you wish to convey a message or just make your audience laugh? What tone would you like to set?
After you’ve decided what your skit should look like, sit down and start writing.
Develop Your Idea
Occasionally an amazing idea may come out of nowhere, but usually, you should search for that idea. Find inspiration for a story by watching YouTube videos or reading famous comedy sketches. Concentrate on the scenarios you find funny. Then take a notebook and write down all interesting thoughts. Each outstanding skit has a strong point of view that can be easily determined. Make certain your story contains a clear idea – it will make your skit original.
Outline the Story
Even if your skit is very small, it should have the beginning, middle and end. That’s why when writing your story, you need to identify these three parts and divide the information accordingly. Since the skits are comedic in nature, your introduction can depict normal, everyday situation. The middle part is when something out of the norm happens. The conclusion is when there are the climax and resolution.
Write the First Draft
There are a few rules and formats for writing skits. No matter which one you choose, make sure it is easy to follow. When creating the first draft, don’t try to make everything perfect. Your aim is just to get a general sketch you will improve later.
- Write the title at the top of your skit.
- Below write the names of the involved characters.
- To include a dialogue, center the name of the character who is speaking. On the next line, write a dialogue.
- To write actions, use parentheses.
Build the Action Up
Your skit should have a rising action before hitting the climax and then ending. Make sure to keep your script short because you can lose the humor if you make it too long. Usually, the first draft takes about five pages, but later you can cut some parts out. So don’t worry, use as many words as you need to disclose your topic and build the action up.
Keep Improving Your Drafts
After you complete the first draft, read it out load. This will help you realize what parts of your skit should be improved.
Show your sketch to someone whose opinion you trust. It is always helpful to get the honest feedback.
Take notes of the things that people thought were funny and not funny at all. Though you may like some jokes, they cannot work in your particular story.
Make sure your skit is clear and up to the point. Consider removing the lines and dialogues that do not play an important role in your story.
Perform Your Skit
Depending on how serious you are about performing your skit, you may want to find talented people to present your skit. Organize rehearsals and provide the actors with the pages of your script. If you work in a group and already know who is going to perform, then plan several rehearsals to practice. As your skit is short, usually one or two rehearsals will be enough. If you are going to film your skit, you need to have a camera and some lighting equipment if possible. Then you can upload your skit to YouTube for others to see it.
Skits are meant to be fun, so have a great time while writing and performing it!
image credit: wikipedia.org
