"Hack" is a very powerful word in stand-up comedy. "Hack" jokes are jokes about topics that have been covered ad nauseum. One example is, "If the black box doesn't break, why don't they make the whole plane out of the black box?" (For a complete list of hack jokes and hack topics, you can see a great list at http://www.chucklemonkey.com/hacklist.htm ). "Hack" jokes are a perfect example of the need for a comic to be unique.
Being a "hack", on the other hand, refers to a comedian who steals joke from other comedians. I cannot stress strongly enough that this is not acceptable under any circumstances. I have read and heard elsewhere that beginning comics may "re-write" other comedians jokes to learn their voice or style. This is completely untrue. There is no such thing as "borrowing" a joke, and even taking a part of a joke is flat-out wrong. Should you get a reputation as a hack, your fellow comedians will disown you, and rightfully so. Even worse, you will never be able to look yourself in the mirror, or proudly refer to yourself as a stand-up comic.
It is true that two comedians can come up with similar jokes independently. Comics refer to this as "parallel thinking." Your reaction to this depends on the situation. If another open-miker in a different town has the same joke, perhaps you can keep yours. But should you see Chris Rock or Lewis Black doing a similar joke, you need to junk yours. True, it's painful, but it's not worth a solitary joke to be even suspected by an audience member or a fellow comedian as a hack.
Trial and Error
For all the books, and seminars, and articles like this one, writing comedy material is a personal process. You need to find your voice and your style. The most important thing to remember is that it takes time. Ask any headliner, feature, or MC, and ask them how good their act was six months, or two years in. I watch tapes from six months ago and shudder at some of the jokes, which now seem weak.
If you write a joke, and you think it's funny, try it on stage. If it doesn't work, try it again. Play with the delivery, tinker with the setup, or just keep trying. Stand-up is unfortunately a trial-and-error proposition. You will write jokes that you think are the funniest thing you've ever written, and they just won't pan out. And you will write jokes that you don't even think are funny, and they will kill. But you need to try them all, on stage. Not to your friends, or mom, or significant other, but on stage. If they don't work, suck it up and move on. But when they do work - you'll quickly understand why being a stand-up comic is so exciting, and rewarding.
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