Literary Devices: Irony

Irony is a literary device that can add wit and intrigue in one's writing, but it isn't commonly used as much as metaphors or similes. Nonetheless, it can work wonders for writers' stories in both novels and short stories. Below let's go over what it is, how writers can use it for short stories, and a few examples of ironic story scenarios.

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WATCH THE EPISODE

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See episode 15 of season 2 of my Journey of a Christian Writer series, Literary Devices: Irony or continue reading the blog post below.

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IRONY: WHAT IS IT?

Irony is a literary device in which words are used to express something and especially the opposite of its literal meaning. This is usually done in a humorous or emphatic manner. There are also different types of irony, including verbal, situational and dramatic, but I'll go over those and some examples of them later in my next post.

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HOW IRONY IS GOOD FOR SHORT STORY ENDINGS

When writing short stories, irony is a good technique to use for story endings. Ironic endings are also an excellent way to tie up short stories, having the opposite or the unexpected happen in the resolution compared to the story opening or the exposition. Short stories are more concise, and the pacing is quicker than in a full-length novel. It's important to grab readers' attention immediately, create a sense of suspense, and keep them guessing on how the short story fits together like a jigsaw puzzle; and one of the main ways of doing this for short stories is by adding a dash of irony.

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CREATING IRONIC STORY SCENARIOS

Writers can create ironic story scenarios in many different ways. All it takes is critical thinking and clever imagination to come up with a concept, a plot twist, and a conclusion. Whenever they include ironic story scenarios within stories, it's important that they have a purpose for it and somehow make them significant to the rest of the story. Below are two listed examples.

EXAMPLE 1: Someone saying, "I'll never jump off a plane if my life depended on it, and then they go on a plane for vacation (Concept), the tail of the plane catches on fire from an oil leak (Plot Twist), and they have to jump off the plane to save their life (Conclusion).

EXAMPLE 2: A strict grandma condemns her grandson for stealing in a retail story (Concept), the grandma gets arrested for pickpocketing strangers (Plot Twist), her grandson must bail her out of jail (Conclusion)

As you can see, it's easier to create ironic story scenarios after breaking them into the three parts of a concept, a plot twist, and a conclusion. Use your creativity and imagination and try experiencing for yourself to see what different ironic scenarios you can come up with.

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CLOSING REMARKS:

Literary devices are an awesome addition to writers' stories. The next time you add them, consider including irony to tickle their side or spice things up a bit. It may be the ingredient you need in your short story or novel to catch your readers' attention. For more writing videos or tutorials, subscribe to my writing channel Journey of a Christian Writer series. All right, that ends this post. If you found it helpful, please, give it a (heart❤️), take part in the poll 🤔, and share your thoughts or comments 💬 below.)  

Happy Writing! 😊✍🏽💻

🤔Hey, writers, have you ever used irony in your writing before?

• 👍Yes, I have and love using it.
• 👎No, but I'd like to try it in a story someday.