Quotessence
Home / Authors / Paul F. Tompkins
Paul F. Tompkins

Paul F. Tompkins Quotes

Comedian

Filter quotes by topic

AllPeopleThinkingTryingKindDifferentAudienceComedyEnoughIfsBikeFirst TimeFirstsKnowsLook At MeMy FavoriteNiceSometimesTogetherWantAdventurous

Famous Paul F. Tompkins Quotes

“In the clubs, the entertainment and the restaurant business are at war with each other. You get crowds that are not the greatest, and it becomes like a babysitting job, rather than doing what you want to do. I have a more deliberate pacing in my act, and having a half interested audience is death. They have to hear what I'm saying for it to pay off.”

WantWarJobsPayHalfAudienceCrowdsEntertainmentClubsWhat You WantRestaurantsDeliberatePacingDoing What You WantBabysittingRestaurant Business
Author:Paul F. Tompkins
Create image

“The difference when I'm writing a story versus writing a joke is that writing a joke is so much more about the structure and it's less about the conversation. To me, the thing that I love about stand-up is the intimacy between performer and audience.To get it even more conversational was something that really appealed to me and that I really enjoyed doing. My early experiments with it, with just telling a story from my life on stage, it was so satisfying to do. And seemingly for the audience as well. It's a different thing, and it's a different feeling and a different vibe.”

WritingDifferentFeelingsAudienceJokesIntimacy
Author:Paul F. Tompkins
Create image

“To achieve the intimacy between performer and audience in storytelling, I feel like I have to let the audience in on my emotional state, not just, "Here's a story I'm going to tell by rote, and you're just going to listen to it, because I'm such a wonderfully entertaining fellow." It's the idea of sharing enough of myself that it's not just all about, "Look at me, look at me." There's an element to it of, "You understand what I'm talking about, right? You've been in this place that I've been in," which makes it a richer experience.”

EnoughAudienceAchieveEmotionalStorytellingIntimacyLook At Me
Author:Paul F. Tompkins
Create image