Me! Pick me! What about me?! And me! You can't leave me out! But you can't include everything. Your book/essay/show/standup comedy set can't go on forever.

There are so many things to write/talk about, so many stories, and so many beats in each story, that sometimes it's hard to decide which to pick.

Here are 9 great reasons to choose a piece of material:

1) IT'S FUNNY - That's enough of a reason, especially if you're working in a comedy format. Funniness is less important when you're going for tragedy.

2) IT'S TIMELY - Something that just happened has an urgency and energy when you try to communicate it, whether it's something in your personal life or in the world. If you're performing live, especially with stand-up comedy, a major story from the news of the week will be on everyone's mind and something big like Michael Jackson dying is almost a required topic. The audience wants to know your take on it.