I don't think comics necessarily think in literary terms. There is an element of developing your stage persona and your comedic voice, but I don't think comics see it like a character in a novel.

I don't do the mirror thing; maybe once or twice when I first started out.

Hard work is a muscle that you develop, as is taking risks.

People don't come to a comedy club simply to hear someone's thoughts, no matter how profound.

Comedy takes all of life and puts it through a lens of acceptance, just by the mere act of talking about it on stage in a communal setting. It's very primal and ritualistic in that sense.

Comedy clubs are arguably one of the last bastions of uncensored, public free speech.

Not that that's the goal, but sometimes these funny insights can also be deeply profound.