It's simple: Write, Practice, Perform

Setup lays a believable track (the lie). Punchline derails it with a surprise (the truth). Misdirection is the motor.

Writer's block is fear. Say whatever's true and dumb first. Use quick voice notes: your brain is terrible at saving punchlines unless you do.

Start with one punch that slaps. Add tags only when they hit as hard. Most newbies add filler that slows the laugh.

Open with your best joke. End with your best closer. Between them, place two to three solid bits. Don’t test radical new material in the first 30 seconds.

Memorize punchlines exactly; let setups breathe. Word-perfect payoffs are what buy you laughs. Use Performance Mode to see where you must be precise.

Don't sulk. Collect data. Write down: when the room checked out and what you changed from script. Bombing is feedback — harvest it.

If you look bored, the crowd is bored. If you're frantic, they're confused. Record sets — pick the energy where the laughs hit hardest.

If your written stuff's landing, don't gamble. Use crowd work when the room's cold or after a bomb to reset energy.

"What do you do for work?"—safe, easy to riff, and often yields gold. Avoid personal trauma or religion.

If laughs don't land, you're too fast. Count "one-Mississippi" after the punchline before moving on. The crowd needs a beat to give permission to laugh.

For open mics, aim for 15–30 seconds. Longer setups need authority. If you lose them in the setup, the payoff dies. Edit mercilessly.

A callback references an earlier joke to amplify the laugh. It makes the set feel like a finished story. Don't force them; plant seeds early.

One or two solid callbacks is enough. Overusing them turns your show into an inside joke. Use them to reward attention.

It's how you occupy silence. Breathing, pauses, eye contact, and confidence. Practice walk-ons until they feel inevitable.

Onstage: smile, reset, move on. Offstage: write down the exact moment and reason. Bombs refine your taste faster than success.

Record every set. Track laugh length, timing, and wording changes. Know which words are oxygen and which are dead weight.

Cultivate relationships. Offer value (promote shows, bring friends). Deliver clean, reliable sets — reputation travels fast.

Your persona is a sharpened version of your truth. If audiences can describe you in one sentence, you have a persona.

Don't argue. Make the audience your ally with a quick, funny line. If aggressive, call the host. Keep the room safe.

Gig fees, writing for others, workshops, brand deals — diversify. Treat comedy like a small business, not a hobby.

Voice memos, notes, spreadsheet. Jokely's tagging features combine capture with analytics.

AI can suggest edits and spot dead words — but taste is human. Use AI for testing, trust live feedback for survival.