Tampons, douche, and any other feminine hygiene related topics

Go to any open mic anywhere in the world and you’ll likely hear a first-time comic talking about tampons.  Watch an hour of your 3 favorite big-time comics.  They won’t go near the subject. Why? The laughs that come from this are typically nervous laughs.  Men don’t understand them; women are taught to hide them. Talking about something that makes people uncomfortable doesn’t necessarily make it funny.

Rape and Child Molestation

Everybody wants to be the next Louis CK and many think that by copying his “shocking” style they’ll jump on some sort of “hot trend” and be able to find work easier. The thing is that audiences know what to expect from Louis CK so they give him a lot of leeway. They’ve never heard of you and if you try to cut your teeth on tough subjects like this, you’ll most likely fail. Learn the craft first & then tackle hard subjects.

Racial Issues

First time comics should tread lightly here.  Even minority comics.  White comics can come across as bigoted without intending to be.  Minority comics can come across as hacks. Unless you have some great new personal twist on the race thing, it’s probably already been done.  I can’t tell you how refreshing it is to see a new black comic do 5 minutes without ever mentioning that he’s black.