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Sommore didn't read the same how-to book other stand-up comedians read.
Where others in her field were the life of the party at family gatherings or were the "class clown" in school, Sommore says she approached comedy the way an A student prepares to write a term paper. She did her research.
"It's not a natural thing for me," she says of stand-up. "I'm a student of the art of doing comedy."
Her homework included reading a book on how to succeed in the business. Then, Sommore did one of the things she has always done well: write.
"What makes me a comedian is my writing skills," she says. "My dad is a writer and an English teacher, so writing has always been important to me."
Between her research and her writing, Sommore, who doesn't divulge her real name, was prepared when she finally got onstage. She made her comedic debut in the early 1990s at a nightclub in Atlanta that hosted an open mike...