Getting Comedy From Non-Comedians

by | Dec 14, 2012 | A. Humor Writing

Whenever I say I’m a comedian, invariably someone jumps in with a “joke I can use.” Which is usually a joke I can’t use because the joke is too dirty or it’s been on the Internet a million times or it’s just not funny. So non-comedians sometimes are not so helpful in...

Wedding Toast Jokes For Laughs

by | Nov 9, 2012 | G. Topical Jokes

In previous blogs I’ve talked about using topical jokes to bring in some current humor, and I’ve got a great example of it. I’ve started writing topical jokes for a wedding toast website for the best man: http://www.thebestmanspeech.com/usabestman/display/builder.cfm...

Using Stock Jokes

by | Nov 2, 2012 | D. Appropriate Humor

Two guys walk into a bar. . And find that this is not funny. Okay, should you use stock jokes, or as we comedians call them HACK jokes? I’ve talked about joke formulas like “he’s so big” or “top reasons why. . .” and I think that’s okay. You get recognition and...

Making A Living At Comedy Writing

by | Oct 16, 2012 | A. Humor Writing

I specialize in comedy shows and humor keynotes for corporations and associations, and that’s where I make the bulk of my living. It’s fun and it not only allows me to do a job I love but I also get to meet lots of people. But in addition to performing comedy, as you...

Getting People in the Mood for Humor

by | Sep 28, 2012 | B. Research Techniques

I’m co-staring in the “Baby Boomer Comedy Show; Clean Comedy For People Born Before Seat Belts, Safety Helmets and Facebook” with my comedian friend Kent Rader. We started out by just combing our comedy acts into a great 90-minute comedy show. The reviews have been...

Comedy Advice

by | Aug 24, 2012 | A. Humor Writing

Advice – that’s one thing I get asked A LOT, at least when it comes to comedy – not so much for cooking or doing handyman work around my house. I don’t do either of those very well, but I do have lots of people asking me for joke advice – out of the blue they’ll send...

Judging Jokes

by | Jul 20, 2012 | C. Humor Delivery

There aren’t many hard and fast rules in comedy, but one comedy rule you can’t get around is that comedy is subjective. . . everyone has a different idea of what’s funny and what’s not. For example, a friend of mine just had a liver transplant. He’s okay, but the told...

Picture Yourself. . .for more funny

by | Jul 17, 2012 | A. Humor Writing

So a couple weeks ago I was hiking in Rocky Mountain National Park with some friends, and we took the traditional pictures. .. the 3 of us standing there smiling at the camera. But one of my friends also said she likes to do something different in the pictures to make...

Writing Your Own Comedy Material

by | Jun 29, 2012 | A. Humor Writing

I’ve wanted to write on this subject for a while, but I wasn’t sure how to get into it. And no, I’m not going to go into a lecture on stealing material (which you shouldn’t do – enough said). I started this humor writing blog for people who want tips on writing humor...