IamA Stand Up Comedian. Today is my four year anniversary of doing comedy. My name is Tim Ross. AMA!

I love seeing you on /r/standupshots

In your opinion what is the best joke you've come up with?

Man I honestly have no clue. Some of my favorite jokes I've written are really niche jokes. I love coming up with something accesible that I feel good about and can make a wide range of people laugh but I really love having a connection with the people in the crowd who get a weird joke with a weird reference. I usually don't tell them often though. Or I reserve them for a place like standupshots where a few people can enjoy them and I don't have to endure the silence that comes from telling them.

I think my personal favorite joke to tell is one of my silliest. It's an impression of Lil Wayne: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_SeHz2cr8Y

Should girls be proud of their butts?

YA. PREACH.

What do you do to deal with dead crowds? I remember one of your videos you were killing it but the crowd was just awful and quiet.

Heh yeah that video was quite a while ago and it honestly wasn't as bad as it seemed. It was just a bit of a sparse audience. It really depends honestly. A lot of times I will try to engage the crowd. I'll try to talk people and do a bit of crowd work and try to get them interested and engaged that way.

Or sometimes you'll move a joke around in the set. Try and get to a big punch quickly to try and get them on your side.

But sometimes nothing's working and you just do your act and try to think about ice cream or boobs or something pleasant that isn't what is happening right now in the room.

Ice cream and boobs. You deal with bad crowds like I dealt with church growing up. Good on ya Tim. Thanks for the AMA! Also, I have a friend from Pittsburgh who would love to see your act. Where can she catch you?

This Wed I'm closing out a show at a place called Caliente. It's called Joking Off (my buddy www.twitter.com/johndickwinters runs it and thought of the name BEFORE MTV2 did). It's a free show and I think it starts at 8 pm. It's in Bloomfield! Next month I'm going out of town to Frederick MD and Harrisburg PA

I move to Carolina and you go right through my area. Blah. Thanks man. Keep up the good work.

Boooooo move back

What advice do you wish you had been given when you were just starting out?

Thankfully I got some of the best advice at my second or third open mic. I had just eaten shit terribly on stage and I was lamenting that fact to the MC. He shrugged and asked me "How many times have you been on stage?"

"Uhh..just a couple"

"Look man. If you can still count the times you've been on stage, you don't have to worry about bombing."

And it kind of gave me relief. Knowing that it was a long process and that you had to grow and get better. To know that it was OK to fail a bunch when you're first starting. It was really encouraging. And now I'm past the point where I can count the times I've been on stage and he's write. I still eat shit sometimes but now I just shrug it off and try to figure out where and how it went wrong.

Hi Tim, I think you're funny, but I don't want to drive to the other side of Pittsburgh to see you. Do you have any gigs closer to Butler County any time soon?

Hey that's totally not far from me at all. Why don't we set up a show your way? I'll get some guys and you tell people about it. PM me and we'll figure something out.

What is the funniest joke you have ever heard?

My friend Alex Stypula has a joke that he closes his sets with. He goes "Aside from doing comedy I also play in a really awesome band. We're called "how to build pipe bombs and take down the government.

Please google us."

I laugh every time I hear it. Check him out www.twitter.com/AlexStypula

Hey, Tim, I appreciate you doing this AMA. I've been doing open mics for almost two years, so you're a few steps ahead of me. Here are some questions (I apologize if some are terribly generic, but I'm genuinely interested):

1. What made you start doing stand up? Were you the class clown, a long time comedy lover, a guy who just decided to give it a shot on a whim, a combination of some/all of the above, none of the above, etc?

2. What's your writing process like? Do you work most of your ideas out on stage or do you work it out on paper first?

3. How do you make open mics feel productive to you? The majority of the ones in my city (Denver) are your standard "nothing but comics who aren't paying attention" setup, so it's hard not to feel like I'm wasting my time going to them.

4. I went through a pretty major breakup a couple months ago and it, combined with the aforementioned open mics, has killed all my desire to go out and do comedy at the moment. How do you push yourself to go out and put in the stage time that is needed, even when you just don't "feel" it?

5. What's your "plan" for comedy? Do you plan to try to scratch out a living solely from stand up or do you think you'll combine it with something like writing for a show?

6. What was it like moving up to host/feature? When did you know you were "ready" or did you kind of fall into it?

7. How many sets do you average a week?

Again, I appreciate you doing this. I've enjoyed your tweets and standupshots for a long time, so it's cool to be able to pick your brain. I might have a few more questions later, depending on how much actions this AMA sees.

Hey man, thank you for asking good questions!

1. I had done a few open mics before I actually started but then I just let it kind of fall by the wayside. I really started after taking a public speaking class. I just made all of my speeches funny and it reminded me of a dream I'd let slip away. So I scheduled a date to go out and after that first open mic I was just in it.

2. It honestly depends. I think a lot of the time I'll write three minutes on a subject and I'll go up at an open mic and try to fill the other two minutes with that subject. I think my strength is more in sitting down and writing. (Well actually I generally pace and talk to myself for a long time haha) So instead of relying on that I've been trying to push myself to get better at being improvisational on stage.

3. Just saying the words into a microphone with people present gets you more comfortable on stage and better at being a comic. Those mics are super tough though, man. It's hard not to fall into a habit of trying to make the back of the room laugh when the only people in the room ARE the back of the room.

4. Man, I dunno. You just have to. I've been feeling super depressed lately. Yesterday I had a particularly bad set and on my drive home I thought "man, fuck this. I could totally just drive off the bridge." It was just a fleeting thought but sometimes it really doesn't feel worth it. It feels like an act of futility. But you just gotta keep going because you love it. And you'll never get to where you want to be unless you keep getting up on stage and pushing yourself.

5. I would like to write for a show but I'd honestly love to make my living traveling the country headlining at clubs. It's just a blast to be onstage and I love the instant gratification.

6. It was just sort of a natural transition. At one point I won a contest at the Pittsburgh Improv and started getting work there because of it. But as for other gigs a lot of it is just knowing people and them people thinking you are funny and nice.

7. It honestly depends on the week. Sometimes it's 1 set Sometimes it's 7.

What's your most controversial joke? Whether it's yours or one you've heard, maybe both for a bonus?

I honestly don't have very many controversial jokes because my jokes are mostly silly. I do have an Anne Frank joke though:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oB8RukotXkg

What is your favorite food to eat your feeling away with? Mine is buffalo chicken and mayonnaise

It's funny, you don't even realize how appropriate this question is to me and stand up. Here's a story:

The first time I did stand up, things went well. I got laughs throughout and I got off stage feeling good about myself. I had high hopes and I was ready to get back on stage again. The second time was way way worse. I didn't get a laugh for five entire minutes. It was just stone cold silence and awkward shuffling. I felt miserable.

I had gone to the show with a friend and she was driving. The whole ride back I had my head against the window just wallowing in self pity like a little crybaby. At one point there was a few minutes of silence and I (100% serious without even thinking about it) said "Man, fuck. I could probably eat an entire lasagna right now."

So pasta. Or buffalo chicken with mayo. That sounds good.

Has your opinion changed over the past 4 years? Are Cheetos chips?

CHEETOS ARE SNACKS THEY ARE NOT CHIPS

I still laugh every time I think about your 'I broke up with my girlfriend because she likes to deep throat' joke. It kills. Just told my boss, he's crying.

Keep being awesome.

Besides being funny, what other talents do you have?

I don't have any other talents that's why I try really hard to be funny. :(

What's your creative process like when you write your material?

A lot of times it's just me pacing around and talking to myself. And trying out four dozen different punchlines before finally deciding which one to go with. And then taking that on stage and when it doesn't work picking another punchline.

Can you talk a little about "running" the business of being a comedian (Finances, publicity, etc)?

Or is it just enough to "be funny" and everything falls into place?

There's a lot of stuff you have to do in regards to that sort of thing. I am very very bad at all of it.

What percentage of your stand up shots end up in your set?

Have you started to write jokes that will specifically fit the stand up shot style?

Who is your favorite wrestler and why is it Dean Ambrose?

1. End up in the set? Well I've probably said at least 75% of them on stage at one point or another. Some of them just for a short time. Some for a long time and some only once. It's a really weird dynamic. Some things work super super well on there and just absolutely don't translate to the stage. There are definitely times where I'm like "yeah this one is just for /r/standupshots"

2. Nah the stuff I've been writing lately is actually the opposite. I've written a bunch of new material that just doesn't work in that format, haha.

3. My favorite wrestler is Kevin Owens because he is fat and bearded. Ambrose isn't far behind but my favorite main roster guy is most likely Rollins.

Tim, I am a huge fan of yours ever since I saw a something you posted on /r/standupshots about being ginger... I think

Do you have any tips for any aspiring teenage standup comic?

Hmmm I don't even know what that joke would be, haha. Appreciate that!

Tips:

Get on stage. Whether it's at coffeeshops or school talent shows or wherever you have to go, get on stage. Since you're so young it's gonna be hard to get into clubs and bars so just try to get stage time wherever you can. In the meantime just try to be funny in as many ways as you can. Produce sketches on youtube, post vines, write jokes on twitter. Anything you can do to put yourself in the mindset of being consistently funny.

No redditing?

Sure why not? It can suck you in though. I've definitely lost a few hours commenting on things.

I know that you're somewhat into pro wrestling - what are your thoughts about tonight's WWE Extreme Rules card?

I'm already disgusted at the fact that Ziggler is going to be kissing Sheamus' ass.

Ambrose and Harper are going to beat the shit out of each other.

I'm hoping the main event goes like this:

Rollins sets up for the curb stomp near the ropes. It looks like they're going for a repeat pop up RKO spot from mania but instead Rollins is launch into the air where he grabs the cage. He scrambles up and over before Randy even figures out what the fuck is going on.

Also, NEW DAY SUCKS

What is your favorite joke that totally failed when you used it live?

"Growing up I always thought The Red Sea (C) was the third book in the Scarlet Letter trilogy"

It's so so dumb but it made me laugh out loud when I came up with it.

What's your favorite way to eat pierogis?

Every way

How do you like your scrapple

With Syrup!

How do you like your yuengling

In my belly

When can we expect more Pig Pen raps

Very soon pigpen always writing

What's a body part I should be proud of?

ur butt

Favorite place to perform ? And why?

Arcade Comedy Theater in Pittsburgh. It's a great black box theater venue. The crowds are generally young and vibrant and ready to laugh. The staff is great. I've had a blast every time I've performed there. Check em out if you're ever in Pittsburgh www.twitter.com/ArcadeComedy

Do you still do music at all? Your vox for FTF were pretty solid.

hahahahaha omg who is this

Have you been close to getting booked on Scorch's PFG-TV?

i dunno what that is

Hey, who do you look up to in the world of comedy? And what comedian do you think is killing the game right now?

I look up to lots of people to be honest. Anyone who has managed to make a name and career out of this is generally gonna have some qualities to look up to.

As far as killing the game right now I'm gonna with someone who isn't yet well known. My buddy www.twitter.com/aaronkleiber is an absolute killer who is on the rise at the moment. Dude's getting attention from a lot of different places and he's one of my favorite local acts to watch. He just headlined a bunch of sold out shows at the Pittsburgh Improv a few weeks ago. Definitely a dude to watch out for.

Who is your favorite comedian? Huge fan, by the way.

My all time favorite comedian is Mitch Hedberg. I used to sit in my basement and listen to his albums all the time. Thank you!

Hi Tim! Great to see you doing an AMA. Has reddit helped you as a comedian, either as a writer or professionally?

I think the standupshots have definitely helped with writing and being concise. Also I met you on here and you put me on TV haha

You put you on TV.

Swag

I misunderstood you sending a link to one of your comments on twitter and called you out on it resulting in many downvotes.

On an unrelated note, how much of a difference to your career has reddit and standupshots made?

Man I felt so bad about that! I checked in a few times and the votes just kept coming. I was genuinely confused about what you meant. Standupshots has made me a better writer and I've met some really cool people because of it.

Will you be getting a haircut and beard trim ever? Big fan. Love you. You're favorite guy in the rttc group. Cheers.

I just got a haircut! http://i.imgur.com/bgyZUNQ.jpg