According to comedy writer Ariane, consistency is very difficult to pin down when it comes to comedy writing because it's like any other art form. And the muses aren't always there to help you out. So you have to learn to work even when things aren't going your way.
"It’s like any other creative art: comics have days where the jokes flow like turning on a tap, and on other days it’s difficult to get a few drops out of the tap!" Ariane told Bored Panda. In her opinion, the biggest challenge is "pushing through the latter and being creative when you don’t feel inspired." In other words, comics and comedians should do their best to work on their jokes and their material even if they don't feel inspired to do so. Discipline above motivation.
I wanted to understand what helps Ariane personally whenever she hits a creative block. We've all been there when creating art and writing, after all, but not everything works for everyone else when we hit a slump. In Ariane's opinion, rest is vital to help refresh our minds and imaginations.
"Often, giving yourself a few days off or focusing on a different project helps," she said. However, there's also something to be said for perseverance in the face of burnout. "If you have a deadline, you just have to grit your teeth and push through, like with any other job," she said.
The 'Obvious Plant' project is a form of street art, so I was interested to get Ariane's take on how it compares to stand-up comedy, something she's well-versed in. "They’re both about making the general public laugh," she said there are some similarities. "But street humor is less scary and less embarrassing if your joke falls flat!" she added.
It’s clear to see why Obvious Plant is as successful as it is. The fake products are very obviously funny and downright bizarre. I’d go as far as to say that they take you so far out of your comfort zone, you can’t even see it anymore.
What’s more, there’s the element of surprise to consider. Jeff plants his products in real stores, so customers are often taken completely unaware. They have no idea what they’re looking at, their brains are working overtime to catch up, and that’s when the laughter starts. Mission accomplished.
In the nearly 7 years since being established, the Obvious Plant project has developed a firm online presence, all thanks to Jeff’s creativity and dedication. Currently, Obvious Plant has just over half a million followers on Facebook, 610k on Instagram, and a further 107.5k on Twitter. That’s well over a million prank-loving fans who can’t wait for Jeff’s newest bizarre bootlegs.
Know Your Meme shares that the roots of Obvious Plant go all the way back to January 4, 2015, when it started out as a Tumblr blog. Three weeks later, Jeff officially announced the Obvious Plant project on Pleated Jeans, his website. Jeff’s fake products are a common feature online, including on news websites (often with a funky twist), as well as subreddits like r/funny.
Previously, Jeff, the founder of Obvious Plant, shared some insights about the project and why he decided to make some self-help book covers with Bored Panda. “I actually got the idea while doing a different plant, Better Book Store Sections,” he said.
“While scouting and putting up signs for that prank, I thought of the idea to create some funny parody books. They were up for about a day. A few people who saw them online guessed which bookstore they were at (Book Soup). Apparently, one of them pointed the books out to the staff and that’s how they became aware of them. The employees actually thought they were pretty cool books. I’m told they are now on display with an asking price of $7 million per book.”
In an interview with Fast Company, Jeff explained that he felt “somewhat bored” by traditional humor avenues, that’s why he started looking for new ways to amuse people. That’s when his attention turned to street humor and all of its potential. “ I’d done a bit of this in the past, but the more I thought about it, the more ideas I had, so I felt the project warranted its own name and website,” he said.
“I’ll have an idea, like Fake Wine Recommendations, and then I’ll just think about which wine stores are near my house and check it out to see if the signage is conducive for replication. However, sometimes the process will be opposite. I’ll be at a public place for completely legitimate reasons and a plant idea will hit me. All the gym plants I’ve done occurred this way,” Jeff told Fast Company about some of the inspiration behind his plants.
Despite all the potential laughs, Jeff doesn’t stick around to see people’s reactions. He leaves the products and gets out ASAP. “I always flee the scene immediately after. However, the bookstore I left the fake book covers at–Book Soup–emailed me and informed me the books are now on display with a price tag of $7 million for each book. I just love that,” he said.
