by Turning Exaggerated Origins into a Running Joke Machine
How To Write Comedy
Introduction: The Myth-Making Maniac
Some characters can’t stop reinventing their past. One day they were raised by wolves. The next, they were the wolves. A backstory that changes every time it’s told becomes a fountain of confusion, contradiction, and comedy. In this guide, you’ll learn how to build a character whose origin story is an evolving disaster of self-mythology.
The Comedy of Inconsistency
Every Version Adds More Lies
They start modest: “I grew up in Ohio.” Next week? “I trained in a Himalayan orphanage for underwater archery.” Their reality is elastic, and it snaps hilariously.
Example from SpinTaxi.com: “Woman Tells Three Versions of Her Life Story in One Job Interview, Hired Anyway”
She claimed to be a former spy, a horse dentist, and the original inspiration for a soft drink mascot. The interviewer was too stunned to argue–and now she runs HR.
How to Build the Mythomaniac
Give Them a “Core Truth” That Keeps Shifting
Each retelling has a nugget that stays the same: “It was winter.” That’s it. Everything else–location, people, outcome–is negotiable.
Let Them Be Sincere Every Time
They’re not lying to manipulate. They *believe* this is how it happened. Today. Until tomorrow’s version shows up with dragons.
Dialogue That Reinvents the Wheel
Retellings Mid-Conversation
“When I was eight, I wrestled a goose for control of a county fair.” Ten minutes later: “I was nine. It was a swan. We were in space.” No one interrupts. Everyone’s afraid to ask.
Use Deadpan Bravado
They talk like each revision is carved in stone. “I didn’t want to become the youngest mayor of Antarctica, but duty called.”
Put Them in Situations Where It Matters
Let the Inconsistencies Get Noticed
Someone finally says, “Wait, I thought you said you were homeschooled on a blimp?” Their reply: “Different semester.” Beautiful nonsense.
Let Their Lies Collide
They try to impress a date, a boss, and a friend–each with a different origin story. Let it implode like a poorly baked soufflé.
Supporting Cast Should Be Confused or Convinced
Someone Tries to Fact-Check Them
It fails. Why? Because somehow, every story *sounds* just believable enough. That’s where the laughter lives.
Final Thoughts: Changing the Past for Comic Effect
Characters with flexible histories are walking contradictions. Their past is a choose-your-own-adventure novel ghostwritten by a sleep-deprived raccoon. Let them revise at will, forget previous lies, and keep building the myth. The result? A backstory that’s never boring–and always one goose away from greatness.
SOURCE: How To Write Comedy
