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Do you not like your job?
Are you afraid of never taking a chance?
Is working in comedy your dream?
Staring down the barrel at decades of suits, ties, and spreadsheets sent me into a panic.
My co-workers were some of the smartest, kindest people around, but they didnt feel the same way.
Thats when I knew I had to leave.
One teeny, tiny existential crisis later, I decided to quit.
There are some wonderfulcolumnsand books offering general entertainment-industry advice and tips.
This guide is here to help, step by step.
A disclaimer: What follows is entirely personal and, in that respect, anecdotal.
I havent done any research on what works and what doesnt, and Im not a career expert.
I also realize that Im writing from a place of extreme privilege.
I had a job that afforded me weekends and nights off.
During that down time, I was able to lay the groundwork for a course change in my career.
Not everyone is afforded that kind of job or that kind of chance.
Nevertheless, many people have reached out over the years, wondering where to find the reset button.
Not all sections will apply to every reader, but hopefully many will apply to most.
I want to think of an original idea.
Youve got to have original ideas, even if you dont want to be a writer.
Okay, cool, but how do you come up with one worth believing in?
Life experience is probably the best and clearest place to start.
Write what you know it really does work.
Think of your most traumatic experiences.
Think about whats been bothering you most about your surroundings this week or this month.
So negative, right?
Well, were talking comedy here, and much of it is built from the bleakest shit imaginable.
What if you cant think of anything?
What if your whole life has been a sheet of uncorrupted loose-leaf paper?
Well, then comedy is going to be rough for you, but youre still in luck.
Oh, and one last thing: Keep a list of ideas and categorize them.
How are you supposed to know?
Youve never even had a single fucking life experience, loose-leaf person!
I know, I know.
Itll all become clear in time.
Comedy Career Skills Developed: Creating the backbone of probably every single industry skill.
Except putting a piece of gaff tape over a logo you havent cleared through legal.
Little production designer joke, sorry.
I want to do stand-up.
First, prepare five minutes of material and rehearse it in the mirror no fewer than ten times.
Then, record yourself doing the set.
Listen to the audio, then repeat this whole record/listen process until you like whats on that recording.
Now, find your first audience of non-friends who will listen … sort of.
How do you do that?
Theyre called open mics.
You may hate them.
You will find them on Google by typing in open mic and the name of your city.
Open mics see a bunch of comedians gathering to test their burgeoning sets in a low-stakes room.
Its dog-eat-dog out there!
Do no fewer than five open mics in five different venues.
If you do, its time to think about trying your hand at a bringer show.
Some people think bringers are a scam, and they kind of are.
Theyre a cash grab for club owners, but what do you care?
Do five of these shows, if possible, and tape every single performance.
(Often the club will do this for you, but its always good to ensure.)
Watch the tapes when you go home.
Between bringer shows, work on your set by going to more open mics.
Comedy Career Skills Developed: Joke writing, performing, pitching.
I want to take an improv class.
Youve seenWhos Line Is It Anyway?, and you think Im funnier than Drew Carey.
But you could be.
You probably wont be, but it doesnt matter.
Its like stretching for your brain.
All have classes at night and on weekends.
After an introductory class, youll either love improv and want to keep going or you wont.
The lessons youve soaked up will be forever valuable, and so will the people you meet.
Okay, but what if you dont live in New York, Los Angeles, or Chicago?
It does mean youll need to fire up Google to find the comedy club nearest you.
Major metropolitan areas will have the greatest concentration of spots, likethe ColdTowne Theatrein Austin orthe Comedy Spotin Sacramento.
Take an acting class, and let the teacher know you want to focus on comedy.
Then, take a sketch-writing class …online!
Or, take one of those online MasterClasses youve probably seen on Instagram or Facebook.
Judd Apatow teaches one.
So does Steve Martin.
Theyre actuallynot a bad wayto dip your toes in.
But what if you dont have the resources to take expensive classes?
Hell, youve barely got bus fare.
Dont worry, I got you.
Comedy Career Skills Developed: Performing, original idea generation, story development.
I want to take a sketch-writing class.
Want to be a comedy writer?
Your career starts here.
But I have no interest in writing sketch!
It teaches you the difference between a character piece and a parody, a peas-in-a-pod structure and a blackout.
Oh, and buy Final Draft if you might.
Sure, there are otheroptions, but Final Draft is what the pros use.
Comedy Career Skills Developed: Original idea generation, joke writing, story development.
I want to write a treatment.
A treatment for what?
Ah, thats the question.
Also, what the hell is a treatment?
If its a self-funded art project, it can take whatever shape youd like.
Oh, you didnt really categorize anything properly?
Heres how I do it:
JOKE: A setup and a punch line.
Use it at cocktail parties, funerals (to lighten the mood, okay?
), and your stand-up set.
Ditch it for anything else.
ESSAY/ARTICLE: A collection of jokes and funny observations best structured in text.
Maybe theyre not totally visual.
Maybe theyre funniest in list form.
SHORT FILM: Amini-narrative.
These dont have to heighten like sketches.
Also distinct from the sketch form, short films owe their audience true character development.
TV SHOW:Whats episode 100 of this show?
If you’re free to answer that question, maybe youve got aTV pitch.
If not, keep working.
FEATURE: How does our hero change over the course of the story, and why?
Unlike TV shows, features provide a glimpse into a moment in time.
Why are you exploring that moment, and how will you make it count for the audience?
Why will they care?
Once youve categorized your idea, youll know if a treatment is in order.
If its a short film, TV show, or feature, then it is.
Anything else, and you dont need a treatment.
SYNOPSIS: Explain it in four or five compelling sentences.
INSPIRATION: Why are you uniquely qualified to tell this story?
LOOK AND TONE: How does this project feel to the viewer once produced?
Is it like anything weve seen before?
Give a brief overview of three acts.
SEASON ONE ARC: What happens over the course of the first season?
Characters may not change, but their circumstances do.
EPISODE IDEAS: What are some examples of episodes?
Think about A, B, and C story lines.
ACT STRUCTURE: What happens in Act I, II, and III?
Comedy Career Skills Developed: Idea generation, story development, pitching.
I want to write a pilot.
Now youve got an idea for a great TV show, and you feel ready for the next step.
So,how do you write a pilot?
The internet is your friend.
Go on a hunt, andread read read.
Second, write a spec for a show you watch all the time.
Then, write your episode idea just like that.
Its paint-by-numbers pilot writing, but its a crucial first step to cracking an original pilot.
Now, go back to that original idea you had.
Write a treatment for that idea.
Lay out the nuts and bolts of your world, its characters, and where both are headed.
Write a pilot draft.
Walk away from it for a full week.
Rewrite the parts you cant believe you ever deigned to put on a page.
With one rewrite done, its time to go hunting for the rest.
Trust me, theyre versed in pilot writing.
Comedy Career Skills Developed: Idea generation, story development, writing.
I want to write a feature.
This is like writing three pilots, except each script is an act.
Think about the way that writing sketches helped you write a pilot.
That hero must undergo a change over the course of the movie.
What is that change, and how will you use a three-act structure to shape it?
Answer that in treatment form, plotting out the crucial moments in each of your three acts.
Then,get to writing.
More on that later.
I want to pitch my idea.
The only way to learn how to pitch is to do it alot.
After that, pitching just comes down to practice.
No pitch should ever take longer than 15 minutes for a TV show, and 30 for a feature.
Go longer and whatever youre saying no matter how goddamn brilliant it is will fall on deaf ears.
In terms of pitching articles, essays, and sketches, its very idea dependent.
The best short-form ideas are funny, or at least intriguing, after a single sentence.
Pitch using that sentence.
But,wheredo I pitch?
you may be wondering.
None of these require you to be represented by an agent or manager.
You need reps at this stage, because most production companies wont accept unsolicited pitches.
Basically, they need someone they trust to vouch for you.
Can you still approach production companies without representatives?
The rest will come.
I want an agent.
You just couldnt wait, could you?
You got hung up on it!
Getting a manager and a lawyer will, too.
My fellow columnist Priyanka Mattoos got some great adviceon the strange and winding path of securing representation.
Comedy Career Skills Developed:Patience.
I want to produce and direct.
Sketch class has been fun, right?
Youve maybe even got one or two youd like to make, Ill bet.
Lets say you decide you want to produce your own project.
First, thats a great idea.
At bare minimum, youll need a director, a cinematographer (a.k.a.
director of photography, a.k.a.
DP), a sound person, a gaffer/grip swing, and a production assistant or two.
Hire your small crew.
Let them know youre prepared to do whatever it takes.
Okay, moment over.
Theres a long and exciting road ahead.
I recommend leading production on a project ten more times, whether its your own or someone elses.
Hell, you may decide youve got an appetite for a job you didnt know existed.
Well, what am I saying?
You certainlycan,but the whole enterprise will likely just be a shitshow.
Bootstrapping production is a great way to learn.
You must havetalent releasesfor anyone whos appearing on camera.
You must never show logos on clothing or any other item without permission from the brand.
You probably wont get that permission, so use gaff tape togreekthem out.
Any music thats not your own needs to belicensed.
So much more goes into production, but these are crucial.
Comedy Career Skills Developed: Producing, directing, learning a set.
I want to be a freelance writer.
Youre not ready, sorry.
Wait, no, I didnt realize youd taken improv and sketch classes.
Wow, you guys wrote and shot five sketches already?
And all those were written by you, and not you and a co-writer?
Woah, okay, I apologize.
It seems like youve got a decent body of work shaping up.
Have you ever written an article before?
Then its going to be tough to make any money freelance writing.
All that said, you might set yourself up for getting paid to write in a few ways.
Having them at the ready very much is.
Third, have a sample of a funny essay or article youve written.
And then have two more, ideally about different topics.
Do you readShouts and Murmurs?
Do you readCollegeHumor,Reductress,ClickHole,the Onion?
These are the types of things you should be writing in your spare time.
Last, be prepared not to write anythingyoufind funny for a while.
It could be a concept for a new commercial campaign or copy for a print ad.
Likely, you wont find the assignment particularly interesting or engaging or hilarious on its face.
You wanted to be a writer, so write.
Thats when you know its time to send a whole batch of new inquiry emails.
What should those written pitches look like?
Lets stick with laxatives as a jumping-off point, as I say multiple times per day.
For instance, is it driving sales or generating awareness?
Lets say its driving awareness.
Well, what if we explored one of the most inspiring stories in … restroom speed?
Oh, and for any pitch prompt, you need at least three, and ideally five unique ideas.
The paragraph above would count as one, so get to work thinking about good laxative-ad scenarios now!
Comedy Career Skills Developed: Idea generation, pitching, writing prose, networking.
I want my familys support.
They wanted you to be a doctor, lawyer, bus driver, or literally anything besides a comedian.
This is all you want to do, and that means you gotta do it.
So, what do you do?
It costs nothing towriteand send inquiry emails.
It will get easier.
You will find support.
Hopefully from your family.
Definitely from your new comedy friends.
You just have to be devoted.
Comedy Career Skills Developed: Perseverance.
I want to quit my non-comedy job, and Im scared.
You will be intensely conflicted, and thats okay.
In fact, its completely normal.
Have I and at least one more experienced person decided that Ive got promise?
Do I have six months of rent and living expenses saved up?
(Make this at least two years of living expenses if youve got healthy dependents.)
Have I developed a portfolio of work across print and video?
Do I have at least two dozen original ideas I want to pursue across various mediums?
Do I have a treatment for at least three of those ideas?
Do I see myself living in or near a major city?
Can I imagine doing anything else with my life?
18 must be yes.
The answer to No.
9 must be no.
Comedy Career Skills Developed: Risk-taking.
The end result can take many forms, from a multi-hyphenate writer-director-performer to an audio engineer.
Money will never be the most important thing in your life, because it cant be.
This is comedy, and sometimes your paychecks will be … comically low.
That doesnt mean you should allow yourself to be taken advantage of.
Never,evercompare yourself to anyone else.
Its useless, and it will make you miserable, resentful, and ultimately, unsuccessful.
This is your ride, not theirs.
Whatever you decide, check that chasing it is what keeps you up at night.
Youll be fine, and then, with a whole lot of work, you might just be great.
