Did the title of the article bring a smile to your face? Yes, the word satire often evokes a smile on the lips. However, behind this word lies a whole science, with rules and laws that qualify the satirical craft to play a significant and influential role in the world of literature and journalism. Satirical writing is one of the most challenging literary and journalistic arts because it combines contradictions. It must be easy and smooth while being intricately woven and crafted with powerful rhetorical figures. It must create smiles with seriousness in its handling of subjects, and it must present information in a lively manner while ensuring its authenticity and importance, all while including exaggeration yet remaining highly objective.
All the above has made the questions surrounding satirical writing plentiful, with a scarcity of academic specialists in the field. Therefore, in this educational series, I aim to disseminate the basics of satirical writing, starting with this article, “How to Write a Satirical Article,” drawing from my academic and practical experience in satirical journalism.
To begin, if we want to talk about the satirical article, we must refer to its important media role, as it represents a form of objective view of things aimed at refinement, correction, and evaluation. It relies on the art of persuasion and symbolism in writing, avoiding direct styles in addressing events and discussing issues. It carries meaning, depth, and the third dimension beyond events, attempting to shed light on the truth and highlight the contradiction between essence and appearance.
Therefore, it deals with reality in its details and small particles that may escape many, and it puts the dots on the letters, and often puts the letters under its dots.
All of this requires a skilled satirical pen with talent and a satirical sense in the first place. If found, it is necessary to refine it with knowledge and regulate it according to its rules.
For the satirical article, there are foundations and conditions in style and approach, which I summarize in several points, and in future episodes, I will provide explanatory articles about them:
Capture the appropriate idea, and be smart and wise in choosing the idea you want to write about.
Scrutinize and examine the subject you will delve into, and read about its backgrounds so that you can present the correct information and what lies behind it to know where the information comes from.
Write down your ideas on a draft, starting from the main idea and the supporting ideas; the satirical article must contain one clear main idea around which secondary ideas revolve. These ideas must be related to the main idea logically, so the article is a cohesive unit to avoid distracting the reader’s mind while reading the article.
Choose the satirical style that serves your idea and tailor your article accordingly, knowing that there are numerous satirical styles, some of which I have listed along with practical examples for each type:
Exaggeration: An example of this is an article titled “Beware of Approaching… A Violent Woman!”
Irony: An example of this is an article titled “Daily Scenes… And the Hero is My Husband.”
Sarcasm: An example of this is an article titled “Why Remove the Adhesive from Presidential Chairs?!”
Stories: An example of this is an article titled “Satirical Stories from the Heart of Work.”
Proverbial Sayings: An example of this is an article titled “This for That and the One Who Begins is the Darker.”
And many more, which we will delve into in future articles, God willing.
Use simple and understandable language, avoiding ambiguity so that the words are clear in meaning and easy to understand to reach the largest number of readers, as we must remember that readers differ in their cultural levels.
You can use local dialects and put them between quotation marks as long as you do not overdo it.
Criticize, and let your criticism be constructive; the role of the satirical writer is to put their finger on the flaw and expose it, with the aim of drawing attention to its existence to attempt to change it.
Be concise; it is not required to gather a large amount of information but rather to focus on the flaw.
Take care in choosing an attractive and appealing title for the satirical article; a distinctive title grabs the readers’ attention, so you must take enough time in choosing it.
Intrigue is one of the important elements that should be present in the introduction of your article to attract the reader to follow the article to its end.
Pay attention to the structure of the article and balance what you can between exaggeration and objectivity.
The conclusion or closure is the secret to the success of the satirical article, and the more it contains an element of surprise and unexpected endings, the stronger it is and leaves a significant impact on its reader.
Look for an expressive image for the article that serves the purpose for which it was written, and do not forget to choose it with a satirical character like your article.
Take every care to ensure that the level of your article is good by reading it and reviewing it several times and making adjustments if necessary, until you reach its final form, which will land it in the minds and hearts of the readers.
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You've arrived at the Royal Academy for Satirical Writing, where we turn every tragedy into comedy! Ready to take your first step into the world of professional satire
