Kidlit Haha Week Day #5: SAYING THE QUIET PART OUT LOUD with Brian Gehrlein

What’s so funny? I’m asking for a friend…seriously, though WHAT IS SO FUNNY!? (because I really want to get that agent and sell this picture book!)

What is it that makes something funny? What makes a funny picture book work? What really is it that’s making the clock tick, the engine run, the cogs turn, and kids come back for second, third, and twentieth reads of certain books? That’s what I want to explore with you today. 

I’ve heard it said that something isn’t funny if you have to explain the joke. What that really means is that part of the pleasure of a humorous exchange is the unspoken conversation happening between the person telling the joke and the person receiving it. It’s a silent reference; when the reference lands and fits within our background knowledge, we feel elated and validated.

Our brain says things like, “Hey! I’ve seen this pattern in life! This is so true! Such and such is exactly like this! This thing matches my experience!” And when we get it, we laugh. We’re delighted. We’re on the inside and feel emotionally part of something magical. We probably feel a little less alone.

So, if you want to write humorous picture books, you need to get good at saying things without saying them at all. Because it’s all about the thing that’s not being said (but that is also TOTALLY being said!). 

But what are those unspoken things? 

A lot of comedy is built on broken expectations and playing on underlying assumptions. If we break expectations, that presupposes we are aware of what those expectations and social norms are to begin with. That means comedic picture book authors have to be really good listeners. They have to be students of human behavior, relationships, archetypes, social norms, and societal expectations. And then they have to push against those things and break expectations. They have to be a little naughty. 

Okay, okay…so what does that mean practically applied? Let’s take an analytical sojourn—a sneak peek into the dark, wolf-infested cavern of my twisted mind. I’m going to break the rules of comedy for the sake of education (shhh! Don’t tell Dennis).

I’m going to explain my jokes. (GASP!)

I’m going to explain the jokes and say the quiet part out loud. I’m going to break down the comedic structure or set of assumptions that the book relies on to work. I’m going to point out what’s making the story move forward and motivate our page turns. 

Before I dive in and lift the hood, the book I’m referring to is This is Not a Sleepy Bear Book, illustrated by the AMAZING Jenn Harney, published by Little, Brown, and landing on shelves in Fall 2025. 

Here’s the book in a nutshell as told by our publishing deal. 

Owl tries to get Bear down for hibernation but every time he opens the den door, shenanigans and tomfoolery are happening via a cohort of ensemble characters—just what are they up to?! Whatever it is, Bear’s den is NOT a sleep-conducive environment (and probably against fire code). 

From the second spread, This is Not a Sleepy Bear Book establishes a seasonally appropriate and sensory-rich lyrical description of our setting. The style gives vibes of what we think a lovely hibernating bear picture book might sound like. Through this, the book establishes a structural pattern that is returned to many times. However, as interruptions accumulate, the style begins breaking down until there’s hardly anything left of the original voice and structure.

This breakdown of language mirrors the internal world of the narrator, Owl. At first, he is in control, and everything is going according to plan. He speaks in long-winded and image-heavy sentences. Yet, as things continually do not work out for him, he becomes increasingly agitated and has to cut corners and deconstruct the original established pattern. The end effect is a hilarious devolution of style that crescendos into an absurd “super abridged edition” (even to the point of debasing himself with the phrase, “blah, blah, blah!”). 

Okay, but that was a structural choice, not the underlying joke. So, what foundation is that structure really built on? What’s the concrete pad of the house? What’s the real joke?

“Once upon a time, yadda, yadda, yadda…look at the time! The end!” A simple truth about life. A simple premise and the bedrock foundation for most of the book. 

The first few spreads of a picture book should tell us everything we need to know about what we’re getting into. It’s a promise to the reader that should be kept. Should be. That’s what we expect. In the name of comedy and at the risk of being eaten by Dennis, I break the rules and smash that expectation to pieces. I deliver the exact opposite of everything the opening lines assert.

That functionally changes the purpose of the opening spreads. They’re a fib. Bait—the old bait and switch. Here’s the opening lines:

The book then proceeds to be the loudest thing ever (a “cozy catastrophe”).

Okay, so the “quiet part” embedded within the opening premise (and its relationship to the contradictory info we eventually see) is that this book is “up to something.” This book will be different than what it says it is. This book will break our expectations and the narrator is therefore unreliable since his assertion did not come to pass—we know he has no control of this car. For kids, this book will say one thing and then contradict itself in a fun way.

Those are just some of the things the opening spread tells the reader without telling them at all. What other things are being said without me saying them? What else am I assuming readers know or will begin to pick up on without me explicitly stating it? Here’s a little list. Notice how some of these are story mechanics to motivate page turns and drive the narrative forward. Some are thematic layers that lend substance to an otherwise silly book about an Owl desperately trying to get a Bear to hibernate. The book says all of these things without ever really saying them. 

To wrap things up and review, most of what delights us about humor is what’s being said without the comedian actually saying it. Hilarious picture books can capitalize on this truth. Part of those unspoken messages and exchanges are predicated on an audience or readers’ underlying assumptions about something—our expectations.

Then there’s the question of what we do with this information to orchestrate a funny situation that will amuse kids and adults. How do we break expectations for humor’s sake all while weaving an engaging, kid-friendly, page-turning story that also has subtle layers of theme or heart that excite the book-buyers? When you think about the task at hand in those terms it’s overwhelming. And we probably shouldn’t be conscious of all that while we’re drafting—who could!? That’s where revision comes in. 

Maybe all a first draft needs to be is just one of those. Then you layer in the other things. But where do you start? For me and this book, my entry point was just a casual observation one afternoon at the library when I kept seeing gentle, wintery bear books involving hibernation. I felt like they were lovely and lyrical. Then I thought…what if there was the same kind of book that was the opposite of all that? The power of “what if” cannot be denied. Follow those “what if” moments wherever they go! But thinking back to the first draft compared to what the published version is…so different! That should be a separate blog post entirely. Perhaps I’ll share it after the book comes out.

Thanks for humoring me and listening to my ideas! Sorry there wasn’t more about wolves or purple monsters who eat rule-breaking kids (or how you can be humorous by just making up words—they actually printed “APPLESAUCIER!?” Still amazes me).

In true high school English teacher fashion, here’s your exit ticket for the day. You’ll need a bunch of funny picture books (or the one you’re writing). 

In your analysis and reflection of your book or a comp/research book: 

• Explain the simple premise that the whole book rests on—what truth about life does it suggest? 
• Explain the jokes and identify why they’re funny.
• Identify underlying assumptions and expectations readers have and then identify how those assumptions were or can be broken/played with.
• Explain what exactly is making the story move forward (internal motivations of characters, stakes, tension, conventions that motivate page turns, external conflict/circumstances, etc.).
• Identify the structures, patterns, significant shifts, and conventions used (repetition, refrains, the rule of three, plot devices, turning points, opening premise, return to premise, arc of characters, etc.).

If you liked some of the things I said and want to work with me, I’d love to critique your picture book. I offer one-hour Zoom critiques as well as written-only critiques. Let me be part of your story! Mention this blog post for a 25% discount off your total price. On the registration form, use promo code KidlitHaHa25off (offer good until May 5th, 2024) 

Visit https://www.pbspotlight.com/critiques for more info!

Brian is generously offering a 30-minute mentor text Q&A/Ask Author anything zoom to one lucky #KidlitHaHa Week participant. To enter, comment below with your favorite published book that subverts readers expectations before Apr 7, 2024 12pm ET.

Brian is the creator of Picture Book Spotlight, #PBCritiqueFest host, and author of THE BOOK OF RULES and THIS IS NOT A SLEEPY BEAR BOOK. Brian teaches high school English and lives in Liberty, Missouri with his wife, Katherine, sons Peter and Albee, and their two corgis!

Wondering how to pronounce “Gehrlein?” It’s like “airline” with a “G.”