In 2019 Emma Tattenbaum-Fine wrote a piece for Gold Comedy titled "How To Be Funny On Twitter." In it, she called being funny on Twitter "an art." She also commented on the brevity the platform requires.
"It is tough to squeeze your genius into 280 characters, but it's worth it," she wrote in the article. "No matter what, it's great practice for concise, show-don't-tell writing, and a perfect place to test out your jokes."
In many cases, there is a formula between funny tweets. Back then Emma covered the comedy devices that show up in many of the successful posts on X (Twitter) – the "me, an intellectual," "you had one job," "don't @ me," "TED talk time" tweets and many more.
But of course, a successful tweet is only measured by the number of people it reaches. If the post got popular only among your friends and family, can you really call it a success? So we asked Emma Tannenbaum-Fine whether certain elements can help a funny tweet gain traction.
Emma says that a good, funny tweet should have similar characteristics to a good joke. "A successful, funny tweet, like a good joke, sets up an expectation and then breaks it with a surprise," she tells Bored Panda.
The comedy writer has some advice for people who want their tweets to get a little bit of traction. It needs three main elements: to relate to current events, be relevant to a wide audience, and give an authentic opinion.
"A good tweet, in particular, is probably going to be something topical that is top of mind for everyone, that then finishes with a fresh take, giving the reader something clever they hadn't considered before that is infused with a clear point of view.
Granted, not all jokes on X (Twitter) are winners. Some inevitably end up being real duds. Emma says that oftentimes people forget to infuse their tweets with a fresh take.
"When I go back and read, or randomly encounter, cringey things my friends and I said online ten or maybe twelve years ago, the common pitfall is: they tend to be just observations or complaints or half-baked thoughts," Emma admits.
"There's nothing terrible about that, but it's not funny if it's missing that element of surprise and a clear, original point of view."
How can joke aficionados and word craftsmen avoid that? Tattenbaum-Fine says the writers should dig deeper. She suggests asking yourself: 'What do I really, honestly, think about this topic?'
"If you dig deep and check in with yourself, your honest response to a current event might be totally unique and unusual because YOU are unique and unusual. People say lame and unfunny things because they are afraid to go a little further and find what's true for themselves. It's easier to play it safe," the comedy writer concludes.
