BooksChatter: ✉ Stand-up Comedy, Law, and Thrillers by J.K. Franko

Today we welcome back returning author J.K. Franko who takes over our blog to tell us about "Stand-up Comedy, Law, and Thrillers".

Franko's latest novel is Life for Life (7 August 2020, Talion Publishing, 321 pages), a Crime Thriller, book three in the Talion series, which begins with the Eye for Eye Trilogy.

If you've read the first two books then buckle up, you're in for one heck of a great conclusion! And if you're trying to decide whether to dive into this series...DO IT. Seriously, you won't regret it, they're fast-paced and intelligent thrillers with great plot, smooth writing, and characters that are brilliant and flawed. - Amazon reviewer

"This third book in the Talion series brings together elements of psychological suspense, murder mystery, and legal thriller in a tightly wound follow-up that I'm positive is going to satisfy readers who loved the first two books. The one caveat: Make sure you read the first two books in the series first." - Amazon Reviewer

|| Synopsis || Teaser: KCR Preview || The Series || Author Guest Post || About the Author || Giveaway & Tour Stops ||

Stand-up Comedy, Law, and Thrillers

by J.K. Franko

You wouldn’t think that these three things are related, but they do share a great deal in common.

About ten years ago I attended a series of workshops on stand-up comedy. The program involved learning how to write stand-up, and then rehearsing and performing our own material at open-mic nights.

JK Franko performing to an audience

First off, it was a blast! Nothing like spending five minutes with five-hundred people staring at you and expecting you to make them laugh!

But, in addition to being a lot of fun, doing stand-up comedy taught me something important about writing thrillers. You see, the key to writing good stand-up is misdirection. You’ve got to tell the audience a story that is going in one direction, and then hit them with a punchline that is consistent with that story, but takes an unexpected turn or twist.

For example:
We have a new addition to the family—a Golden Retriever—the kids named her Charlie. Cute little puppy—but she came with hookworms. But, hey, I like to think positive. Two pets for the price of one.
Writing thrillers with great twists requires the same skill set. You have to lay out a series of events that are consistent with more than one resolution. And you have to misdirect the reader into believing that one version—the false resolution—is the more likely. But you have to leave breadcrumbs that make your real outcome believable and not coincidental.

J.K. Franko

That’s where the legal training comes in. As a trial lawyer—which I was for a number of years—it is your job to take a set of facts and present them in such a way that they tell a version of events that is most favorable to your client’s case. The ability to argue both sides of a case, something all trial lawyers must master, is about being able to convincingly argue for two diametrically opposed outcomes using the exact same facts. But, crazy coincidences won’t convince a jury—just like they won’t satisfy a smart reader.

Being able to get to different outcomes with the same set of facts, and then hitting the reader with an unexpected twist, is what makes reading—and writing—thrillers fun.

Stand-up comedy, law, and thrillers. Who’d have thought?

Don't miss J.K. Franko's latest release...

What goes around comes around...