Just like with a novel, a good improv show is about telling a compelling story. A date gone wrong. A promotion gone awry. The camping trip with an uninvited bear. The only difference is that the comedians on stage don’t know the story they’re telling until it unfolds. But even to that, taking improv encouraged me to write without an outline in mind. With Keya Das’s Second Act, I just began to write and got to know the characters as I went, much like I would in an improv show. I didn’t know where the book was going, and the story was better off for it.
It’s not just broad concepts either. There are specific maneuvers within the confines of a show that teach you how to be a better writer. A core tenet of improv is being able to execute a well-placed callback: Essentially, a comedian takes a minor detail introduced early in the show and brings it back later and elevates it, surprising the audience. It’s a nice treat for show watchers truly paying attention.
Useful – I once knew a writer with a background in improv, and I can see some of them in this — and ties back to writing as gardening.
MONUMENT 337 : AMOTIK doesn’t want to embed, so go listen to its sweeping ambient landfall here at Monument.
