In Stand-up Comedy – It’s All About The “Writing”, Isn’t It?

There is additional important information related to this article located on the new Addendum page.

The Misconception About “Writing” in Stand-Up Comedy

I would bet my house that most people who are looking to jump into stand-up comedy, or even those who are new to it, think that getting the big laughs on stage is all about the “writing.”

I would go so far as to say that “writing” stand-up comedy material that actually works to get big and frequent laughs is probably the #1 challenge that comedians face.

If this describes you, then you might want to consume this little secret…

The Set-Up in Stand-Up Comedy

First, let’s discuss the setup, as comedians call it in stand-up.

I want you to reflect back on a time when you were talking with a group of friends, coworkers, or family members about something and you “got on a roll.”

You know what I’m talking about — once you get started “on a roll” about something, it feels like you could do no wrong.

Virtually everything you say generates big laughs, one right after another.

While it doesn’t usually happen often, when it does, it’s a magical thing.

I can also tell you that when this happened for the 45 seconds to 2+ minutes you were “on a roll,” you were generating 4-6 laughs per minute.

The Nature of Spontaneity

So here’s my question:

Did you write that “getting on a roll” episode in advance? Did you sit down and write what you were going to say from a blank sheet of paper beforehand?

You didn’t? That’s very interesting because…

When you get “on a roll” during a casual conversation with friends, family, or coworkers, you are as close as you will ever be to performing at a professional comedian level without actually being on a stand-up comedy stage.

And you didn’t sit down with a blank piece of paper and craft what you were going to do to “get on a roll” every time that has happened over the years?

Odd, huh? Especially when you consider that the comedy mechanics for getting laughs are exactly the same whether you are generating laughs off stage in casual conversations or on stage as a comedian.

Understanding the Mechanics of Comedy

Here is why I can say that:

When you were “on a roll” during a conversation with a group of friends, family, or coworkers:

• There was some sort of setup information provided.
• There were punchlines and tag lines delivered (tag lines are punchlines that follow an initial punchline).

My goodness! That sounds an awful lot like stand-up comedy! That’s because…

When you got “on a roll,” that WAS stand-up comedy.

Oh but wait!

As a comedian, that is not how it works. It’s all about the “writing,” remember?

That’s why you need to sit down with a blank piece of paper and a pen or use a word processor and try to “write” jokes from thin air.

Just don’t be surprised if it takes you a long time to get a few laughs when you hit the stage as a comedian because “writing” is a completely different form of communication than talking.

Related Article: Are You Dealing With Writer’s Block? You Shouldn’t Be

The Path to Successful Comedy

But if you would rather capture the experience of getting “on a roll” as a comedian quickly…

I have the ONLY stand-up comedy course on the planet that shows you step-by-step how to create, develop, structure, and deliver a stand-up comedy act designed from the very beginning to generate 4-6 laughs per minute.

I have met plenty of new comedians who have experienced “writer’s block.” But I have never met a single person who has experienced “talker’s block.”

And since stand-up comedy is about talking — which is a heck of a lot easier than writing — well, I think you get my point.

Final Thoughts

Folks who focus only on the “writing” leave out a majority of their potential laughter impact when it comes to generating big laughs from a stand-up comedy routine.

When you are “on a roll” in casual conversations, you’re using 100% of your actual comedy talent, whether you choose to recognize that or not.

That comedy talent that you use off the stage with friends, family, and coworkers is the EXACT same comedy talent that you want to use on stage as a comedian, only in a more structured and refined way.

As you will see over and over again on this blog, writing, as we are taught to do it, is produced for a reader to consume and understand.

Since writing only involves words and sentences, many more words and sentences are needed to communicate what it is that you want to say the way you want to express it.

Talking, on the other hand, involves much more than just words and sentences alone, which reduces the number of literal words needed to convey a message, concept, or idea.

Not to mention that most of a comedian’s laughter generation power doesn’t stem from the literal words they use. It comes from how they say what it is they want to say.

When I started my stand-up comedy career, I too thought it was all about the “writing.” And I paid the price for that – it’s called bombing.