How to Be a Successful Comedian
Comedy is hard. You may not think so when your classmates laugh at your jokes, or your teacher calls you a comedian, but try telling your jokes five nights a week to audiences that want their money's worth. Career comedians work every connection to find work at every opportunity.
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Instructions
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Learn how to write and tell a joke. Every joke has a punchline and a set up with just enough information to make the punchline funny. If the set up doesn't work, the joke dies. Spend time at comedy clubs studying other comedians' timing and delivery and how they work audiences.
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Write your act. It should involve more than a string of jokes. Build your jokes around a topic or series of related topics.
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Polish your act. Take a comedy workshop or find a comedy coach. Work as many as you can find, in town and out of town. Be willing to work as another comedian's opening act, even local comedians with small audiences.
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Ask people in the business who know your work to recommend you as your skills improve. You'd be surprised how many comedians who made it are willing to pass the word about your routines. They may even have a lead on a club with a hole in their bill.
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Look for a manager or agent as you begin to get consistent bookings. You won't get one overnight, but try to get the word out if an agent's in town when you're being showcased.
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Tips & Warnings
For all the hard work, you still have to be able to tell a joke. The best way to learn how to tell jokes is to study good comedians and bad ones on stage. See how they work the audience, study the successful techniques and the ones that bomb.
