You're Funny. DB Gilles
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You should also watch every pop culture TV news show. DVR them. Fastforward through stuff that's remote, but take in the material that's ripe for ridicule.
And definitely check out the following political websites and blogs even if they're not on your side.
And of course The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and The Colbert Report.
Whatever your politics, by exposing yourself to what left- and right-wing columnists are writing about, you'll be more connected to what's going on in the world. But unlike the average person who reads the news for information, you will be looking for material. The more you learn every day, the more you'll have to draw on for material.
You also need to ask yourself how much you really know about comedy. Are you funny by instinct or are you well-schooled in the underlying nature of comedy?
It's a big plus to be funny by instinct, but that can only get you so far. It's like being a natural athlete. Somebody lucks out in the genetic lottery, but without the proper coaching and training, he won't learn how to refine his natural God-given abilities.
Adolescent boys who can't get attention from girls with their looks or intelligence or by excelling at sports resort to goofball antics either physical or verbal. But that only goes so far and lasts so long. The kid whose talent is shoving a slice of pizza up his nose will be trumped by the boy who has figured out that girls get bored quickly with silliness and prefer someone who can amuse them with wit.
If you're going to take the plunge and compete in the world of comedy writing, it's essential that you do as my father liked to say: “Smarten up.”
One way to do this is to get a handle on what laughter is all about.
People laugh for many reasons: when they're nervous, excited, tense, happy, tricked by someone, or simply because someone else is laughing or crying. In the past, laughter was considered an unsocial, sinister behavior. In the 18th century, Lord Chesterfield, writing to his son, said, “…there is nothing so illiberal, and so ill-bred, as audible laughter.”
According to Oliver Goldsmith, laughter was the expression of “the vacant mind” and John Ray likened it to “the hiccup of a fool.”
Fortunately, laughter is way more cool these days. There will always be an audience for laughter. People will pay to bring laughter into their lives.
If You're out of Touch, You Won't Get in the Door
If you want to be the recipient of their money, you have to educate yourself so you can discover the road that's right for you.
The R Word
New writers of any genre hate to rewrite. They don't understand its value. The tendency of most people taking their baby steps as writers is to get it out and assume that it's good.
It usually isn't. And when it comes to comedy, not being good means that it's not funny enough.
It might have a few laughs, but not enough. It might have more than a few laughs, but the story or situation is weak and the jokes don't make sense. It might have lots of laughs and the story is strong, but it can still be better, i.e., funnier.