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Broken Assumptions
Joke Guide

Jared Volle

CreativeStandUp.com
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Table of Contents

How Broken Assumption Jokes Work 3

Broken Predictions 8

Writing Tips 10

Exercises 12

Exercise Progression 12

How to Deconstruct a Broken Assumption Joke 12

Your Turn: Exercise Prompts 13

Walkthrough Example: Steve Martin’s Cat Joke 14

Writing Steps 16

Broken Assumptions in a Story 17

Example: An Ambiguous Question 17

Example: Finishing each other's sentences - Walliams and

Friend - BBC One 20

Broken Assumptions in a Joke 24

About The Walkthrough Examples 24

Walkthrough Example 1 25

Walkthrough Example 2 27

Walkthrough Example 3 29

Walkthrough Example 4 31

Exercise Answers (1-3) 32

Exercise Answers (4-6) 33

Exercise Answers (7-9) 34

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How Broken Assumption Jokes Work

Broken Assumption jokes create humor by using misdirection. I
think of these jokes as playful lies. The setup leads the audience to
believe that something is true, but the punchline reveals that it isn’t.
Unlike analogies, the punchline of a Broken Assumption joke breaks
the original meaning. The audience must go back and fix a problem
within the setup to understand the joke.
This type of joke can be fun to use, but it practically guarantees
that your joke will feel inauthentic. Sometimes that’s OK, but a lot of
the time the joke isn’t worth the sacrifice in authenticity. Of all the well-
written jokes below, Amy Schumer’s is the only one that actually feels
natural outside of stand-up comedy. Every other joke would feel really
awkward if it came from a friend.

I went home with this French guy ’cause he said something

adorable, like, “I have an apartment.”
- Amy Schumer

Do you know what I love most about baseball? The pine tar, the
resin, the grass, the dirt. And that’s just in the hot dogs.
- Dave Letterman

I was on a date with this really hot model. Well, it wasn’t really
a date-date. We just ate dinner and saw a movie. Then the
plane landed.
- Dave Attell

I have a lot of growing up to do. I realized that the other day

inside my fort.
- Zach Galifianakis

Eighty percent of married men cheat in America. The rest cheat

in Europe.
- Jackie Mason

Every time you speak, you’re giving the listener information about
the who, what, where, when, why, or how of your story. Some of this
information is explicit, meaning you actually say it. The rest is implicit,
meaning the listener assumes it.
Let's take a normal sentence, like” I went to the grocery store.” The
sentence explicitly tells you WHO (“I”) and WHERE (“grocery store”),
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but not WHAT, WHEN, WHY, or HOW. So 2 pieces of information
are explicit:

Who – What – Where – When – Why – How

Who What Where When Why How

(subject) (verb) (location) (time) (reason) (way)

Who Where
Explicit Grocery
I ? ? ? ?
store

Next, you make assumptions: You know GROCERY STORE, so

it’s IMPLIED that I want to buy food. You assume WHAT I bought
(food) and WHY I bought it (I didn’t have any food at home). You might
have also assumed that I drove a car. Finally, you assume that WHEN
is the recent past. You end up with 2 pieces of explicit info and 4
pieces of implicit info:

Who – What – Where – When – Why – How

Who What Where When Why How

(subject) (verb) (location) (time) (reason) (way)

Who Where
Explicit Grocery
I
store

What When Why How

Implicit Hungry or
Bought food Recent past Drove car
out of food

When writing a broken assumption joke, you will take the implicit
information that the audience assumes and break it inside the
punchline. Take this setup from Steve Martin:
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I gave my cat a bath the other day… he loved it.
He sat there, he enjoyed it, and it was fun for me too.

As an audience member, we EXPLICITLY know the WHO, WHAT,

and WHEN. We can safely assume the WHERE, WHY, and HOW
(Where = “the bathroom” Why = “the cat was dirty” and How = “He put
the cat in the bath”).

Who What Where When Why How

(subject) (verb) (location) (time) (reason) (way)

Who What When

Explicit Gave cat a The other
I
bath day

Where Why How

Implicit In the The cat was
He put the
cat in the
bathroom dirty
bathtub

The purpose of the punchline is to break one of these

assumptions. Martin could shift the WHERE by saying that he washed
the cat in a place outside of the bathroom. He could also shift the
WHY. Instead of washing the cat because it is dirty, perhaps he's
doing it because he’s evil and knows the cat hates it. His last option is
shifting the HOW. Instead of washing the cat using a conventional
method, he could wash it some other way.
I call the break from the assumption to the new interpretation shifts
because the punchline shifts the original understanding of the joke.
The safe/normal interpretation of the joke comes from the first
interpretation. The punchline violates our assumptions by changing
one of the assumptions created. A Broken Assumption joke will always
fall into one or more of these shift categories. This Steve Martin joke
uses a How-Shift because “The How" shifts between the setup and
the punchline.

I gave my cat a bath the other day… he loved it.

He sat there, he enjoyed it, and it was fun for me too. The fur
would stick to my tongue, but other than that…
- Steve Martin

Importantly, it’s not the broken assumption that creates the laugh,
it’s the surprise the audience gets after they fix the broken
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assumption. When the audience laughs at this cat joke, they aren’t
laughing because they made an incorrect prediction or assumption.
They’re laughing at the surprising, silly mental image of Steve Martin
licking his cat clean. It just so happens that we’re using a broken
assumption joke to surprise the audience with that idea… but it’s the
idea that’s doing all the heavy-lifting, not the joke structure itself.
Here’s an example from Bill Engvall. Notice what information you
assume as you read through.

So finally, on about the fifteenth tee, I hit the drive of my life…

And I watch this ball just go and go and . . . kind of hit this guy
in the head. And I felt bad, but he overreacted, I thought. I
mean, it wasn’t like a square hit; it just kind of glanced off his
head. But he goes whippin’ his car off the freeway, like “here
we go! Mr. Attitude!”
- Bill Engvall

Engvall’s joke is a Who-Shift. He hides the true identity of the guy

he hit with the ball until he reveals that it wasn’t actually another
golfer, but a driver. Again, the actual humor doesn’t come from the
broken assumption itself. The broken assumption hides the surprise
that he hit his ball onto the freeway and hit a driver in the head. It’s
this mental image that is getting the laugh… we just happen to be
hiding the surprise with a broken assumption structure.

Who What Where When Why How

(subject) (verb) (location) (time) (reason) (way)

What Where
Explicit On a golf
Playing golf
course

Who When Why How

Normal golf
Implicit Hit another Accidentally rules,
Recent past
golfer hit the man experience,
etc.
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Not all chemicals are bad. Without chemicals such as hydrogen
and oxygen, for example, there would be no way to make
water, a vital ingredient in beer.
- Dave Barry

This is a Why-Shift because the purpose changes between the

setup and punchline. The setup says that the chemicals are important
because they make water. We assume that he will say that water is a
vital ingredient “for life.” However, the punchline reveals that he
doesn’t care about water or life, only beer. The idea that Barry only
cares about beer is the surprise that creates the laugh.
Why-Shifts don’t require a broken assumption. The punchline
simply adds new information that takes the joke in a different direction.
This Dave Barry joke uses a Why-Shift, but it doesn’t break any
assumptions inside the setup. You’ll also notice that because the
audience doesn’t have to fix anything in the setup, the joke flows
better and feels more natural than the others.

Who What Where When Why How

(subject) (verb) (location) (time) (reason) (way)

Who What
Explicit Hydrogen,
Chemicals
combine to
oxygen
create water

Where When Why How

Implicit Water is
x x essential for x
life
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Broken Predictions
Broken Prediction jokes are a special type of Broken Assumption
joke. The two joke types are nearly identical. The only difference is
that a Broken Assumption joke breaks an idea that was already said in
the setup while a Broken Prediction breaks an idea that the listener
thought the speaker would say.

Broken Assumption Joke Broken Prediction Joke

Setup has… False information True information

The broken
assumption is Setup Punchline
in the…
Punchline “Something you assumed “Something you thought was
reveals that… about the setup was wrong” going to happen didn’t happen.”
Audience gets Fixing the problem
Adding new information to

the joke by… inside the setup what they already know

The Amy Schumer and Dave Barry jokes from early were Broken
Prediction jokes.

I went home with this French guy ’cause he said something

adorable, like, “I have an apartment.”
- Amy Schumer

Not all chemicals are bad. Without chemicals such as hydrogen

and oxygen, for example, there would be no way to make
water, a vital ingredient in beer.
- Dave Barry

Notice how both Schumer and Barry created humor without using
false assumptions in the setup. Everything they said was true. The
audience doesn’t have to go back and “fix” the joke to understand it.
This isn’t true for the other examples I listed earlier:

Do you know what I love most about baseball? The pine tar, the
resin, the grass, the dirt. And that’s just in the hot dogs.
- Dave Letterman
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The Letterman joke requires you to think “Wait a second, I thought
he was talking about pine tar and grass on the baseball field… but
he’s actually talking about it being in the hot dog.”
The Rule of Three joke structure (sometimes called a “list joke”) is
the most streamlined version of a Broken Prediction joke. The setup
begins by creating a list of two similar-objects/actions in the setup and
the punchline introduces one that doesn’t belong. The first two items
create a pattern and the third breaks that pattern.

I think vests are all about protection. You know what I mean?
Like… a life vest protects you from drowning and bulletproof
vests protect you from getting shot and the sweater vest
protects you from pretty girls… ‘Leave me alone. Can't you see
I'm cold just right here?’
- Demetri Martin

There’s a very small difference between these two types of jokes,

but you’ll notice that Broken Predictions feel more natural and
believable to the audience. Schumer and Barry’s jokes wouldn’t be out
of place in a real conversation with friends, but if you tried to insert
Letterman’s joke into a real conversation it’d feel awkward and forced.
This is why I highly suggest using Broken Predictions. They feel more
natural, they’re easier to write, and they tend to be funnier.
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Writing Tips
• Broken Assumption jokes are easy to deconstruct because you can
see exactly which assumption is being broken. They’re an excellent
place to start for new comedians.
• The entire point of a Broken Assumption joke is to surprise the
audience with a funny idea. The shift is simply the way we’re
choosing to surprise them. The shift isn’t funny… it’s the surprise
it’s hiding.
• Don’t worry about labels. The audience doesn’t care whether your
joke is closer to a WHO-SHIFT or a WHAT-SHIFT. The labels are
only useful for the comedian during the writing process. The
different types of shifts are only meant to help you see your options
as a writer.
• Your setup must be long enough to make predictions/assumptions.
2-3 sentences are best. The more info you have, the more/better
predictions you can make. The word “banana” doesn’t give you any
assumptions. The phrase “I think bananas are…” gives you a few
predictions for how I might end the sentence: good, bad, long,
yellow, phallic. If I write an entire paragraph about how healthy
bananas are, you’d have a really strong assumption. I could then
break it by saying “Yeah… I don’t eat them.” More words lead to
more predictions, which leads to more opportunities for shifts. Make
sure you have enough written.
• WHO just means “the subject of the sentence.” In English, we
use “what” when the subject is an animal. A who-shift is used to
shift the subject of the sentence, whether or not the subject is a
human, animal, or machine. A WHAT-SHIFT should be used for
verbs or puns (pun = shifting what a word means to make a
punchline).
• There are different types of WHAT info a sentence can have. This
can sometimes make WHAT-SHIFTS a bit confusing. Even if some
what-info is explicit, the definition of “what” you’re talking about will
always be implicit because the audience will always assume you’re
using words the same way they would. When you tell a pun, this
isn’t true because the definition shifts from the setup to the
punchline. Check out the guide on puns to learn more. Below, you’ll
find that I added “What (definition)” to the normal tables. The
EXPLICIT/WHAT category is blacked-out because an audience
always implies you’re using words normally. Treating these 2 types
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of WHAT-SHIFTS differently will help you remember that you
always have the option to write a pun.
Who What What Where When Why How
(subject) (verb) (definition) (location) (time) (reason) (way)

Who What
Chemicals
Explicit
Hydrogen, combine
oxygen to create
water

Definition Where When Why How

Implicit Water is
Normal
x x essential x
use
for life

• Write the original punchline in a plain, matter-of-fact way. You

can go back later to make it sounds better. Don’t try to get fancy.
You might write a punchline and think “I wonder if I can sneak
wordplay inside the punchline to make it even better.” Trying to use
multiple tools at the same time is very difficult and often makes it
hard for the audience to solve the joke. Use one trick at a time, at
least for the first few times you put a joke on stage.
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Exercises
In this exercise, we’re going to take broken assumption jokes and
deconstruct them to see how they were built. As you deconstruct each
joke, you’ll see how each step naturally leads to the next. Your first 2-3
times through this exercise will probably feel slow and difficult, but
after a few more time through it’ll start to feel obvious. Once you’re
comfortable deconstructing this type of joke, move on to writing your
own. You’ll find it much easier because you’ll already understand how
all the pieces of the joke work together to create the surprise.

Exercise Progression
Here’s how you can make this exercise progressively harder. Start
with easier exercises and progress to more difficult ones.

1. BEGINNER: Deconstruct the broken assumption jokes by

following the model below. My answers are at the end of the
lesson so that you can see how closely they match (note: our
answers don’t have to perfectly match. There will be differences.
That’s OK.)
2. INTERMEDIATE: Find a few of your favorite broken assumption
jokes and deconstruct them. (If you’re not sure which comedians
to use, do an internet search for “best one-liners in stand-up
comedy” or “examples of broken assumption jokes.” Trying to
finish someone’s sentence can also create hilarious broken
assumptions, since you’re assuming what the other person is
going to say.
3. ADVANCED: Write your own broken assumption jokes.

How to Deconstruct a Broken Assumption Joke

1. Start off with the original joke
2. Separate the setup from the punchline
3. 3A - Identify the explicit information
1. 3B - Identify the implicit information
4. Figure out what the surprise will be
5. Test different combinations of shifts and punchlines
6. Rewrite the setup and punchline to make the story flow
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Your Turn: Exercise Prompts
Use the steps listed above to deconstruct each of these jokes. The
first one has been done for you. My answers are located at the end.

1. Steve Martin’s Cat Joke: I gave my cat a bath the other day…
they love it. He sat there, he enjoyed it, it was fun for me. The fur
would stick to my tongue, but other than that.
2. Dave Barry: Not all chemicals are bad. Without chemicals such as
hydrogen and oxygen, for example, there would be no way to
make water, a vital ingredient in beer.
3. Jim Gaffigan: When you’re single all you see are couples… but
when you’re a part of a couple, all you see are hookers
4. Steve Martin: I believe you should place a woman on a pedestal –
high enough so you can look up her dress. (Steve Martin)
5. Bill Engvall: [while snow-skiing with his family] I hit two trees and
fell down a ditch. And that was just walking from the lodge. (Bill
Engvall)
6. Stephen Wright: Cross country skiing is great if you live in a small
country.
7. Amy Schumer: I went home with this French guy because he said
something cute, like, “I have an apartment.”
8. Steve Martin (part 1): “This doesn’t happen often, but after a
show, I went home with this girl… and she had the best
pussy.” (after the audience gets shocked) “Oh come on! I’m talking
about her cat.
9. Steve Martin (part 2): “This doesn’t happen often, but after a
show, I went home with this girl… and she had the best
pussy.” (after the audience gets shocked) “Oh come on! I’m talking
about her cat… That makes me sick. You can’t say anything
anymore without people taking it dirty. I’m sorry. That disgusts me!
… That cat was the best f*** I ever had, too.” (Steve Martin)
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Walkthrough Example: Steve Martin’s Cat Joke
Start off with the original joke:
Martin
I gave my cat a bath the other day… they love it. He sat there, he
1 Original Joke enjoyed it, if was fun for me. The fur would stick to my tongue, but
other than that

Separate the setup from the punchline:

Martin
I gave my cat a bath the other day… they love it. He sat there, he
1 Original Joke enjoyed it, if was fun for me. The fur would stick to my tongue, but
other than that

I gave my cat a bath the other day… they love it. He sat there, he
2 Setup enjoyed it, if was fun for me ____

Identify the explicit and implicit information. I’ve separated them into 2
parts (3A & 3B) because identifying the explicit info is optional. We
only care about the implicit info when writing the joke.
Martin
I gave my cat a bath the other day… they love it. He sat there, he
1 Original Joke enjoyed it, if was fun for me. The fur would stick to my tongue,
but other than that

I gave my cat a bath the other day… they love it. He sat there, he
2 Setup enjoyed it, if was fun for me ____

3A Explicit Info Who, What, When

3B Implicit Info Where, Why, How

Figure out what the surprise of the joke will be:

Martin
I gave my cat a bath the other day… they love it. He sat there,
1 Original Joke he enjoyed it, if was fun for me. The fur would stick to my
tongue, but other than that

I gave my cat a bath the other day… they love it. He sat there,
2 Setup he enjoyed it, if was fun for me ____

3A Explicit Info Who, What, When

3B Implicit Info Where, Why, How

What is the surprise?

4 I licked my cat
(implication)
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Test out different ways to shift the implicit info to imply the surprise:
Martin
I gave my cat a bath the other day… they love it. He sat there, he
1 Original Joke enjoyed it, if was fun for me. The fur would stick to my tongue, but
other than that

I gave my cat a bath the other day… they love it. He sat there, he
2 Setup enjoyed it, if was fun for me ____

3A Explicit Info Who, What, When

3B Implicit Info Where, Why, How

What is the
4 surprise? I licked my cat
(implication)
Try different
5 combinations to … The fur would stick to my tongue, but other than that
find PL

Rewrite everything to make the setup and punchline flow together:

Martin
I gave my cat a bath the other day… they love it. He sat there, he
1 Original Joke enjoyed it, if was fun for me. The fur would stick to my tongue, but
other than that

I gave my cat a bath the other day… they love it. He sat there, he
2 Setup enjoyed it, if was fun for me ____

3A Explicit Info Who, What, When

3B Implicit Info Where, Why, How

What is the
4 surprise? He licked his cat
(implication)
Try different
5 combinations to … The fur would stick to my tongue, but other than that
find PL
I gave my cat a bath the other day… they love it. He sat there, he
Rewrite SL/PL to
6 enjoyed it, if was fun for me. The fur would stick to my tongue, but
work together other than that
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Writing Steps
Now let’s use these steps to create our own material. Here’s a
breakdown of the steps:

STEP 1: Begin with a writing prompt or short story. Any sentence

that creates assumptions will work.

STEP 2: Decide what surprise you want to give the audience. This
surprise will create the laughter, so it’s the most important part
of this entire process.

STEP 3: Identify the implicit information that you have written

down. It might be a part of a setup or a simple word prompt. It
isn’t necessary to identify the explicit information.

STEP 4: Test out different punchlines. Your punchline should imply

the surprise that you created in step 2.

STEP 5: Go back and figure out what the setup should be now
that you have a punchline to work with. (This is only necessary
if you’re beginning with a word prompt. If you’re beginning with
a story then your setup will already be complete).

STEP 6: Rewrite the setup and punchline to flow together. This is

where you can play around with different ways of setting up
your joke. Play around with the wording until you find a
combination that feels good.
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Broken Assumptions in a Story

Storytelling simply refers to the natural way people talk to each
other. It doesn’t need to be a formal or long story. Here are two
examples of Broken Assumptions inside a story. The first is a real-life
example where the punchlines were improvised in the moment. The
second example comes from a sketch. Both examples share a lot of
similarities.

Example: An Ambiguous Question

Here’s an example of how these types of jokes work in a natural

setting. When hanging out with comedians, never leave a sentence
too ambiguous or the group will fill in the details for you. Ambiguous
sentences lead to Broken Assumption punchlines. Here’s an example
of how it works in real-life, then we’ll go through the process more
slowly.

My friends and I were sharing a few drinks and trading

funny stories. Suddenly, a friend said…

Person 1: “Mind if I ask a personal question?”

Person 2: “…about 6 inches”
Person 3: “…Uncircumcised.”
Person 1: “No, not about… Ok. I should have been a bit
more specific.”

These punchlines were spoken about a half-second after the first

question was asked. There wasn’t time for formal steps. However, we
can slow down time and go through each step slowly to see how both
comedians came up with similar punchlines at the same time.
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1. Begin with a writing prompt or short story. Any sentence that
creates assumptions will work.

Since this Broken Assumption punchline takes place

inside a story, the setup is the conversation that we were
having. The phrase “personal question” is very
ambiguous, meaning everyone in the group was allowed
to generate their own assumptions quickly and respond
with a punchline.

2. Decide what surprise you want to give the audience. This

surprise will create the laughter, so it’s the most important part of
this entire process.

You can tell from the punchlines spoken that the surprise
was a slightly perverted one. While both people used
different punchlines, both had the same surprise. The
“root” of each joke is the same, even though the words
are different. It’s this surprise that gets the laugh, not the
actual words in the punchline.

3. Identify the implicit information that you have written down. It

might be a part of a setup or a simple word prompt. It isn’t
necessary to identify the explicit information.

Since this setup is so ambiguous, practically everything

is open for interpretation. The only constraint on the
punchline is that it has to feel like the answer to “a
personal question.” Talking about your private parts is
certainly personal, but the punchline could have also
been about dating/relationship problems, work-related
issues, etc.
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4. Test out different punchlines. Your punchline should imply the
surprise that you created in step 2.

Since these were improvised punchlines, there wasn’t

any time to test different combinations. You had about
0.5 seconds to say a punchline. If it took you any longer
you’d miss the opportunity. Since both people knew they
were making a dick joke, all they needed to do was find
a sentence that implied that the first person was about to
ask a question about his private parts. No fancy wording
was necessary. This is what allowed them to be so
quick.

5. Go back and figure out what the setup should be now that you
have a punchline to work with. (This is only necessary if you’re
beginning with a word prompt. If you’re beginning with a story then
your setup will already be complete).

Since this took place in real-life, we can’t go back and

change the setup. However, since I’m writing this down
later, I had the opportunity to make a few small changes
that got to the point quickly. I set up the story by saying
“My friends and I were sharing a few drinks and trading
funny stories. Suddenly, a friend said…” I chose this
because it’s the fastest way to get to the point of the
story. It gives you all the necessary info and leaves out
unnecessary details. Again, there’s nothing fancy going
on in this step. It’s just getting directly to the point.

6. Rewrite the setup and punchline to flow together. This is

where you can play around with different ways of setting up your
joke. Play around with the wording until you find a combination
that feels good.

This is my chance to rewrite everything to flow together.

Again, since the punchlines were improvised, it isn’t
necessary to rewrite anything.
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Example: Finishing each other's sentences - Walliams

and Friend - BBC One

In this sketch, the husband plays the straight character and the
wife plays the comedic role. The husband’s job is to setup the wife for
the punchlines. As is common with straight characters, the husband
completely ignores the punchlines, which allows the wife to keep the
laughs coming. The first few punchlines are relatively harmless. Their
job is to create a pattern. As the sketch continues, the punchlines get
bigger. The wife’s punchlines are benign early on, but she gets way
more specific and harsh toward the end.

1. Begin with a writing prompt or short story. Any sentence that

creates assumptions will work.
The husband’s job is to say a sentence that the wife can finish.
Each sentence will create an assumption that the wife will break.
Notice how it’s rather easy to fill in what the wife “should have” said.

HUSBAND: When you’ve been married for 25 years, you

end up being able to finish each other’s…
WIFE: Wine.
HUSBAND: … I was going to say ‘sentences.”
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*******
HUSBAND: We can read each other's…
WIFE: Text messages.
*******
HUSBAND: When you spend this much time with
someone you get to the point where you’re completely
in-
WIFE: indifferent to each other.
HUSBAND: I was going to say “in sync” with each other.
*******
HUSBAND: We can always tell what each other are
WIFE: Secretly plotting.
*******
HUSBAND: It’s great that we share a sense of…
WIFE: Foreboding.
HUSBAND: …humor.
*******
HUSBAND: I think what keeps are relationship fresh is
that we have this really strong-
WIFE: man next door who exercises in his cycling
shorts.
*******
HUSBAND: We’re husband and wife. But more
importantly, we’re best…
WIFE: … best off without each other.
HUSBAND: No, best…
WIFE: … sleeping in separate rooms?
HUSBAND: No, best…
WIFE: … ending this pointless charade?
HUSBAND: No, best friends.
*******
HUSBAND: We’re like two peas in a…
WIFE: deeply unhappy marriage.
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2. Decide what surprise you want to give the audience. This
surprise will create the laughter, so it’s the most important part of
this entire process.

Each punchline points to the same basic surprise: the

wife secretly hates her husband. Early punchlines are
mostly harmless while later punchlines are more direct.

3. Identify the implicit information that you have written down. It

might be a part of a setup or a simple word prompt. It isn’t
necessary to identify the explicit information.

The implicit info is the way the wife “should have”

finished her sentence. When the husband says “we can
finish each other’s _____” The audience naturally thinks
“sentences.” The punchline breaks that assumption.
When the audience “gets the joke” they are rewarded
with the surprising idea that the wife secretly hates her
husband.

4. Test out different punchlines. Your punchline should imply the

surprise that you created in step 2.

Go back to the script and read the wife’s responses

again. Notice how each punchline implies the same
surprise of hating her husband. Each punchline could
have been written in a different way, but the surprise
would still be the same.
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5. Go back and figure out what the setup should be now that you
have a punchline to work with. (This is only necessary if you’re
beginning with a word prompt. If you’re beginning with a story then
your setup will already be complete).

In storytelling, the setup comes before the punchline, so

this step isn’t necessary. (In future examples, I’ll use the
opposite strategy of writing punchlines before setups.)

6. Rewrite the setup and punchline to flow together. This is

where you can play around with different ways of setting up your
joke. Play around with the wording until you find a combination
that feels good.

This is where the writers edited jokes to flow together.

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Broken Assumptions in a Joke

The early examples use Broken Assumptions inside of a story.
This means that the setup came before the punchline. In these
examples, the punchline will be written before the setup.

About The Walkthrough Examples

In each walkthrough example, I started with a random prompt. For
this exercise, I used common phrases as my writing prompts:

1. “Draw a blank”
2. “Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth”
3. “Play possum”

When we were deconstructing jokes, we had a setup to begin with.

Since we are writing a new joke, we have to reverse the order. We
won’t know what the setup is until the joke is finished. Our first task is
to figure out what kind of surprise we want to give the audience. Once
we know the surprise, we’ll figure out which punchline works best to
reveal the surprise. Once we have a punchline, we’ll figure out what
setup creates the correct assumption for the punchline to break.
Finally, we’ll put everything together to make it flow as a single joke.
I recommend combining the explicit/implicit information steps into a
single step. The only reason we care about identifying the explicit info
is so that we know what implicit info we can shift. Whether your joke is
a “What-Shift” or a “How-Shift” doesn’t matter in the end. It’s not about
which piece of information you shift, it’s about surprising the audience
with a funny idea. What type of shift you use is just a label you can put
on the joke once it’s finished. It’s far more important to figure out what
surprise you want to give the audience and how you can reveal that
surprise.
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Walkthrough Example 1

1. My first writing prompt was the phrase “draw a blank.”

2. My first goal was to figure out what surprise I wanted to give the
audience. I decided that the punchline would reveal that I literally
“drew” a blank… meaning I didn’t draw anything.
3. Since I’m starting with a writing prompt, almost all the information
is implicit. I’ll focus more on finding my favorite punchlines instead
of finding assumptions to break.
4. I settled on the punchline “I failed my art class” because it implies
that I drew nothing.
5. Now I need a setup. A lot of different setups could work. I’ll choose
a very simple one.
6. Now I put all the pieces together to get a full joke.

1 Original Joke Draw a blank

What is the
2 surprise? Imply that you literally DREW a blank.
(implication)

3 Implicit Info Who - What - Where - When - Why - How

Try different
4 combinations to I failed my art class
find PL

5 Setup The last time I ‘drew a blank’ …

Rewrite SL/PL to
6 The last time I ‘drew a blank’ … I failed my art class.
work together

This joke could either be labeled a WHAT-SHIFT (It shifts the

definition of “draw a blank” from the original meaning of “to not think of
anything” to a literal definition of “drawing nothing.”) or it could be
labeled a HOW-SHIFT (because HOW I “draw a blank” breaks your
assumptions).
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Notice how I didn’t put much thought into whether to label this a
WHAT-SHIFT or a HOW-SHIFT until it was done. Almost all my effort
was spent on steps 2 and 4. Once I had my punchline, everything else
came together naturally.
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Walkthrough Example 2
1. My writing prompt was the phrase “don’t look a gift horse in the
mouth.”
2. My first goal was to figure out what surprise I wanted to give the
audience. I thought about a few different ways to imply something
silly, but nothing worked well. I settled on the idea “why would you
ever give someone a horse?!” This felt way more interesting to me
than other ideas I thought about.
3. Again, since I’m starting with a writing prompt, almost all the
information is implicit. I’ll focus more on finding my favorite
punchlines instead of finding assumptions to break.
4. I came up with a few different punchlines. The first punchline felt
funny, but I bit too dirty for my material. I’d say “Why isn’t the
phrase ‘Don’t play with a gift horse’s ****.” My second idea for a
punchline was “ A more useful phrase is ‘Don’t give anyone a
horse.” This isn’t as surprising as the first punchline, but it would fit
my comedy style a lot better.
5. Once I have my punchline, the setup comes naturally. I use the
phrase “they say…” followed by the phrase. This is the fastest way
to get to the point of the joke.
6. Now I make any necessary changes to make it flow better. I
decided that my punchline should be “I say…” instead of “a more
useful phrase is…” It makes the joke flow better. The setup uses
“They say…” and the punchline uses “I say…”
 28 of 35

1 Prompt Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.

What is the
2 surprise? Giving someone a horse is stupid.
(implication)

3 Implicit Info Who - What - Where - When - Why - How

Try different
4 combinations to A more useful phrase is: “Don’t give anyone a horse.”
find PL

5 Setup They say “don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.”

Rewrite SL/PL to They say “don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.”

6
work together I say, “Don’t give anyone a horse.”

This punchline could be labeled a WHAT-SHIFT or a WHY-SHIFT.

Again, the label you put on it doesn’t matter. All that’s important is that
you surprise the audience in a fun, entertaining way.
 29 of 35
Walkthrough Example 3
1. My writing prompt was the phrase “play possum.”
2. There are 2 meanings to the phrase “play possum.” The first
meaning is that you are literally playing dead. The second
meaning is that you are being deceitful or lying. I chose to play
with these different meanings to create the joke. The setup will use
one meaning while the punchline uses the other. I settled on using
the “playing dead” definition for my punchline because that’d let
me act it out on stage, which could be hilarious with the right
setup. The surprise I want to give the audience is that I’ll literally
play dead to avoid an uncomfortable conversation.
3. The joke will be a WHAT-SHIFT because I’ll be playing with the
definition of the phrase “play possum.”
4. I know that my punchline will be curling up on the floor, but I still
need a good reason to do it. I need to know who I’m talking to and
what that person said. Any combination will work as long as the
audience knows I’m trying to avoid an uncomfortable
conversation. I could say that I owe my friend money, my mom
wants to know when I’m visiting, or that my girlfriend wants to talk
about chores. Any of those three options would give me a reason
to curl into a ball as a defense.
5. Now I need to finish the setup. So far, I haven’t given the audience
a reason to know why I’m curling into a ball. They’d be confused.
The setup will introduce the idea of “playing possum” so that the
punchline makes sense. I’ll use the setup “My friend said, “Don’t
play possum” with me…”
6. Finally, I play around with wording until I find something that flows
well and feels like a real story: My friend said, “Don’t play possum”
with me… and as I thought about it… that was all I wanted to do.
So he’s like, “When are you going to pay me back?” (curl into a
ball)
 30 of 35

What is the
2 surprise? Literally playing dead to avoid an uncomfortable conversation
(implication)

3 Implicit Info Who - What - Where - When - Why - How

Try different
He’s like “When you going to pay me back?”

4 combinations to (curl up into ball on floor)

find PL

5 Setup My friend said, “Don’t play possum” with me…

My friend said, “Don’t play possum” with me… and as I thought

Rewrite SL/PL to
6 about it… that was all I wanted to do. So he’s like, “When are you
work together going to pay me back?” (curl into a ball)
 31 of 35
Walkthrough Example 4
Here’s a joke I abandoned halfway through. I’m showing it to you
because you need to know that it isn’t the end of the world. All a failed
joke means is that you didn’t look at the situation from a funny
perspective. This can either be because you missed the opportunity in
front of you, or, more likely, you weren’t using the appropriate tool for
exploring this idea.
Writing a one-liner using this prompt CAN be done, but it’s not the
easiest or best way to do it. This prompt feels like it needs a story.
Telling a story that starts with something bad happening and then
ends with a positive result would be an excellent story and provide lots
of opportunities for humor. The problem isn’t “me” it’s the tool I’ve
chosen to use at this moment.

1 Prompt Every cloud has a silver lining

What is the
Give a super-pessimistic response?

2 surprise? (Silver isn’t even the best metal… so why bother?)

(implication)

3 Implicit Info Who - What - Where - When - Why - How

Try different
4 combinations to n/a
find PL

5 Setup n/a

Rewrite SL/PL to
6 n/a
work together

Exercise Answers (1-3)
Martin
I gave my cat a bath the
other day… they love it.
He sat there, he enjoyed
Original Joke it, if was fun for me. The
fur would stick to my there would be no way to
tongue, but other than
that
32 of 35
Dave Barry Gaffigan
Not all chemicals are
bad. Without chemicals When you’re single all
such as hydrogen and you see are couples…
oxygen, for example, but when you’re a part of
a couple, all you see are
make water, a vital hookers
ingredient in beer.

Not all chemicals are

I gave my cat a bath the
other day… they love it.
Setup He sat there, he enjoyed
it, if was fun for me ____ there would be no way to
When you’re single all
bad. Without chemicals
you see are couples…
such as hydrogen and
oxygen, for example,
but when you’re a part of
a couple, all you see are
_____
make water _______

Explicit Info Who, What, When Who, What What

Who, What, Where,

Implicit Info Where, Why, How Where, When, Why, How
When, Why, How

What is the Water is only good

because we can make
surprise? I licked my cat
beer.

You want to cheat

(implication) (or: beer > water)

Try different … The fur would stick to

… a vital ingredient in
combinations my tongue, but other
beer.
… hookers
to find PL than that

Rewrite SL/
PL to work Rewrite joke Rewrite joke Rewrite joke
together

Which shift? How-Shift Why-shift Who-Shift

 33 of 35
Exercise Answers (4-6)
Martin Engvall Wright
[while snow-skiing with
I believe you should
his family] I hit two trees
place a woman on a Cross country skiing is
and fell down a ditch.
Original Joke pedestal – high enough
And that was just walking
great if you live in a small
so you can look up her country.
from the lodge. (Bill
dress. (Steve Martin)
Engvall)

[while snow-skiing with

I believe you should
his family] I hit two trees Cross country skiing is
Setup place a woman on a
and fell down a ditch great if you _____.
pedestal ______
_______

Explicit Info Who, What, Where What What (definition)

Who, Where, When, Why, Who, What, Where,

Implicit Info When, Why, How
How When, Why, How

What is the Cross country skiing =

I like to look up women’s It’s hard to walk in ski
surprise? skirts boots
going across the country
(implication) on skis

Try different … so you can look up

… And that was just
combinations her dress (small changes
walking from the lodge
… live in a small country
to find PL to PL later)

Rewrite SL/
PL to work Rewrite joke Rewrite joke Rewrite joke
together

Which shift? Why-Shift Where/When-Shift What (definition)-Shift

 34 of 35
Exercise Answers (7-9)
Schumer Martin Martin
“She Had The Best
Pussy” (after audience
gets shocked) “Oh
“This doesn’t happen
come on! I’m talking
often, but after a show I
I went home with this about her cat. That
went home with this
French guy because he makes me sick. You
girl… and she had the
Original Joke said something cute,
best pussy (after
can’t say anything
like, “I have an anymore without
audience gets shocked)
apartment." people taking it dirty.
“Oh come on! I’m
I’m sorry. That disgusts
talking about her cat.
me! … That cat was the
best f*** I ever had,
too.” (Steve Martin)

“She Had The Best

Pussy” (after audience
gets shocked) “Oh
come on! I’m talking
I went home with this
about her cat. That
French guy because he “She Had The Best
Setup said something cute, Pussy”______
makes me sick. You
can’t say anything
like, _______
anymore without
people taking it dirty.
I’m sorry. That makes
me sick!

Explicit Info Who, What, Where What (definition) Who

Who, What, Where, What, Where, When,

Implicit Info When, Why
When, Why, How Why, How

What is the Feign surprise when

I’m the one who’s
audience takes it dirty
surprise? She’s a bit slutty
to imply that you were
being clean —> I’m
(implication) SUPER dirty
always being clean.

Try different (after audience gets

… That cat was the
shocked) “Oh come on!
combinations to … I have an apartment.
I’m talking about her
best f*** I ever had,
find PL too.” (Steve Martin)
cat.

Rewrite SL/PL to
Rewrite joke Rewrite joke Rewrite joke
work together

Which shift? Why-shift What-Shift (definition) What-Shift

 35 of 35

Broken Assumptions
Joke Guide

Jared Volle

CreativeStandUp.com