You already have funny stories to tell
The funny story that lands is almost never one you read online. It’s the one that happened to you. Here’s how to find yours and keep it short.
Borrowed stories fall flat
A funny story off a list has two problems. Somebody’s already heard it, and you weren’t there. People can tell.
Your own story has neither problem. Nobody’s heard it, and the details hold up because you were standing in them. It doesn’t have to be big. Small and true beats big and borrowed.
Where your funny stories are hiding
Run down these. Most people get stuck on one of the first few and start laughing.
- Your most embarrassing moment that you can laugh about now
- The worst meal you ever ate
- A time you got completely lost
- The strangest job you ever had
- The worst haircut you ever had
- An animal that made your day chaos
- A car that broke down at the worst moment
- Something you did as a kid that you got away with
What one looks like written down
A few from the app’s sample deck. One line is enough to remember it by. The rest comes back when you tell it.
- Grandpa drove to the wrong wedding and stayed for the cake
- My first night as a waiter I spilled soup on the only food critic in town
- A raccoon learned to open our cooler, and then our tent
- Mom won the office chili cook-off with a can of store-bought chili
- Our seven-year-old negotiated a later bedtime with a slideshow
How to tell it
Most funny stories are one setup and one turn. Everything else is optional.
- 1
Start in the middle
Skip the setup. “My first night as a waiter I spilled soup on the only food critic in town” tells people everything they need in one line.
- 2
Keep it under a minute
If you’re past a minute, cut the part where you explain who everyone is. Nobody needs it.
- 3
End on the turn
Say the funny part last and stop. Don’t explain it. The soup story ends when the owner frames the review and hangs it by the register.
- 4
Know why you’re telling it
Some stories have a point past the laugh, like “your worst day at work can become the story everyone asks for.” The app lets you write that down with the story. You don’t have to say it out loud. It just helps you pick the right one for the room.
Questions
- What makes a story funny?
- Usually a gap between what should have happened and what did. You followed the GPS and it put you on a ferry. You went to a wedding and it was the wrong one. Find the gap and start as close to it as you can.
- How long should a funny story be?
- Under a minute for most tables. One setup, one turn, done. If people want more, they’ll ask, and that’s the best part.
- What if I can’t think of any funny stories?
- Almost everyone has more than they think. They just aren’t written down anywhere. Read down a list of prompts, stop at the first one that makes you smile, and write one line so it’s there next time.
Write the first line down
That One Time keeps your stories on your phone, one line each, and deals you one when the table goes quiet. $0.99 once, no account, no ads. It’s in review with the stores now.
Tell me when it’s out