What is this?!
Edit: After a year and 6 months, I feel like I'm much further along with my stand up comedy than I was when I made this OT. With that said, I've updated all of the tips, pointers, ideas, writing exercises, and so forth. Hopefully this can help some people do some funny work! I'll be uploading more videos around the 25th so I can compare between my first show and my more recent shows, and hopefully show some marked improvement. I hate to be the only person posting in this OT, so hopefully someone else chimes in or has some footage for us to watch!
So are any of you fellow GAF members into stand up comedy beyond casually watching?
Edit 2: TIPS!
Here are some things that I've found to help my "process" over the last few weeks.
1) Always carry around a notebook and pen. WRITE EVERYTHING DOWN. The amount of "joke" material I've spawned just seeing things is incredible. I didn't really realize how much my brain was working at all times thinking of things that make me laugh until I started doing this. Very helpful, and keeps me on my toes and observant. One thing that's really important to remember though, that you're going to write a lot of stuff that simply isn't funny to anyone but you. I've tried to write a "bit" out of things that I thought were amusing, and they bombed. Be cautious of this! The way to separate the fat is to really find ways to be incongruent. Usually something can be funny to you, but MUCH funnier if you apply it to a situation that is completely incongruent to the set up.
2) Write a joke or a bit. Then re-write it. When you're done, write it again, and then again. Going through this has helped me to find better words, cleaner jokes, and weed out the nonsense. I'm still far, far, far from perfect, but looking at the first iteration of a joke and then where I end up, it's clear that this helps. Also remember to pay close attention to your word usage, and how you intend to deliver your punch lines. Will a few extra words help? Or more importantly, can I cut the fat and make the joke clearer? You don't want to get so caught up in telling your story or joke that you end up with excess material that may lose the audience. You may gloss over a punch line, and its funny, but everything in between will pull them out of the joke. Focus more on your "punch words". These are words that generate the laughs.
3) Make a list of your personality, characteristics, and traits. Fears, things that make you angry, etc. I don't quite like to make jokes about myself, but this stuff can help you flesh out a bit and make it much more personal, thus more funny. Just a little sentence here or there helps tremendously. It will also help you spawn material. Are you afraid of heights? Do you hate bad drivers? These are bits you can write and think of why you feel this way, and how you can make it funny and meaningful to your audience.
4) PRACTICE. Rehearse your set, but don't memorize it. Know the motions, know how you are going to work the crowd, and know how to move onto another joke or subject if you see the crowd stop reacting to a certain kind of humor. It is also important to practice your set DIFFERENTLY. Don't run through it the same way each time, think about the pacing and delivery and be conscious of that. Too often I've known exactly where I'm going with a joke, and ultimately ended up blasting through my set because I haven't worked on the pacing and delivery enough. Also know your audience. It is important to give them time to laugh, but remember your venue. If you're only performing for two dozen people, you don't need to pause as long as you would with 1,000 people. Too many odd long pauses and it'll look like you're struggling, thus losing the audience.
5) Before you go up, say these words out loud. "I don't give a fuck how this goes" (or I don't care, whatever). That was an extreme confidence booster to me, especially since my second set was not only my first rehearsed set, but also about 4 times the audience size of my first. You want to be confident in what you're about to do. That doesn't mean "be confident". Your entire act may be centered around being awkward, shy, or uncomfortable, but you should be CONFIDENT that you can pull that off, and that you know exactly what you're doing. It is very easy to see through a person who uncomfortable in their jokes, material, or performance.
6) OPEN MICS. Go to open mics. Try your material. Record your material. Watch it. It's just like studying film for athletes. When you're watching, pay CLOSE attention to where the audience laughs when you tell your jokes. You may think one part is the "punch line" when the audience is laughing much earlier. If you see that, you can either shuffle your words around to make it stronger, or try it a few more times and see how different crowds respond. No crowd will be the same as your last. What does well at one show may not land at another. Also pay attention to your physical movements. I have a problem when I have drinks on stage, I keep going back to drink them. I keep them away just for that reason (though they are good to separate bits if you've run through them all).
7) Don't get discouraged. You might bomb, you might do well. You might think you've written an excellent bit that's going to land, and then it gets mediocre laughs. That happens, don't sweat it. Keep trying it, and keep working. If you want to do it as a hobby, give it a few tries before you decide it is or isn't for you. I've done about 50-60 open mics in the last 18 months (including some in Chicago, Pittsburgh, and NYC) and I've learned a LOT about myself, and my humor. You won't get there in two performances.
Edit: After a year and 6 months, I feel like I'm much further along with my stand up comedy than I was when I made this OT. With that said, I've updated all of the tips, pointers, ideas, writing exercises, and so forth. Hopefully this can help some people do some funny work! I'll be uploading more videos around the 25th so I can compare between my first show and my more recent shows, and hopefully show some marked improvement. I hate to be the only person posting in this OT, so hopefully someone else chimes in or has some footage for us to watch!
So are any of you fellow GAF members into stand up comedy beyond casually watching?
Edit 2: TIPS!
Here are some things that I've found to help my "process" over the last few weeks.
1) Always carry around a notebook and pen. WRITE EVERYTHING DOWN. The amount of "joke" material I've spawned just seeing things is incredible. I didn't really realize how much my brain was working at all times thinking of things that make me laugh until I started doing this. Very helpful, and keeps me on my toes and observant. One thing that's really important to remember though, that you're going to write a lot of stuff that simply isn't funny to anyone but you. I've tried to write a "bit" out of things that I thought were amusing, and they bombed. Be cautious of this! The way to separate the fat is to really find ways to be incongruent. Usually something can be funny to you, but MUCH funnier if you apply it to a situation that is completely incongruent to the set up.
2) Write a joke or a bit. Then re-write it. When you're done, write it again, and then again. Going through this has helped me to find better words, cleaner jokes, and weed out the nonsense. I'm still far, far, far from perfect, but looking at the first iteration of a joke and then where I end up, it's clear that this helps. Also remember to pay close attention to your word usage, and how you intend to deliver your punch lines. Will a few extra words help? Or more importantly, can I cut the fat and make the joke clearer? You don't want to get so caught up in telling your story or joke that you end up with excess material that may lose the audience. You may gloss over a punch line, and its funny, but everything in between will pull them out of the joke. Focus more on your "punch words". These are words that generate the laughs.
3) Make a list of your personality, characteristics, and traits. Fears, things that make you angry, etc. I don't quite like to make jokes about myself, but this stuff can help you flesh out a bit and make it much more personal, thus more funny. Just a little sentence here or there helps tremendously. It will also help you spawn material. Are you afraid of heights? Do you hate bad drivers? These are bits you can write and think of why you feel this way, and how you can make it funny and meaningful to your audience.
4) PRACTICE. Rehearse your set, but don't memorize it. Know the motions, know how you are going to work the crowd, and know how to move onto another joke or subject if you see the crowd stop reacting to a certain kind of humor. It is also important to practice your set DIFFERENTLY. Don't run through it the same way each time, think about the pacing and delivery and be conscious of that. Too often I've known exactly where I'm going with a joke, and ultimately ended up blasting through my set because I haven't worked on the pacing and delivery enough. Also know your audience. It is important to give them time to laugh, but remember your venue. If you're only performing for two dozen people, you don't need to pause as long as you would with 1,000 people. Too many odd long pauses and it'll look like you're struggling, thus losing the audience.
5) Before you go up, say these words out loud. "I don't give a fuck how this goes" (or I don't care, whatever). That was an extreme confidence booster to me, especially since my second set was not only my first rehearsed set, but also about 4 times the audience size of my first. You want to be confident in what you're about to do. That doesn't mean "be confident". Your entire act may be centered around being awkward, shy, or uncomfortable, but you should be CONFIDENT that you can pull that off, and that you know exactly what you're doing. It is very easy to see through a person who uncomfortable in their jokes, material, or performance.
6) OPEN MICS. Go to open mics. Try your material. Record your material. Watch it. It's just like studying film for athletes. When you're watching, pay CLOSE attention to where the audience laughs when you tell your jokes. You may think one part is the "punch line" when the audience is laughing much earlier. If you see that, you can either shuffle your words around to make it stronger, or try it a few more times and see how different crowds respond. No crowd will be the same as your last. What does well at one show may not land at another. Also pay attention to your physical movements. I have a problem when I have drinks on stage, I keep going back to drink them. I keep them away just for that reason (though they are good to separate bits if you've run through them all).
7) Don't get discouraged. You might bomb, you might do well. You might think you've written an excellent bit that's going to land, and then it gets mediocre laughs. That happens, don't sweat it. Keep trying it, and keep working. If you want to do it as a hobby, give it a few tries before you decide it is or isn't for you. I've done about 50-60 open mics in the last 18 months (including some in Chicago, Pittsburgh, and NYC) and I've learned a LOT about myself, and my humor. You won't get there in two performances.
