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Hot Breath! (Learn Comedy from the Pros) · Oct 20, 2025 · 57 min

Caitlin Peluffo - Viral Social Media Tips, Crowd Work Advice, Doing 30 Mics Per Week + MORE

Caitlin Peluffo tells Joel Byars how she went from grinding 30+ open mics a week to crushing at the Comedy Cellar—while keeping her act protected in a clip-drunk world. She breaks down actionable goal-setting (not dream credits), balancing clean vs. dirty, why she won’t chase crowd-work virality, and the habits (structure, therapy, sobriety, gym) that keep the funny sharp. Plus: the whiskey-throw heckler story, her three-strike rule, and the meet-and-greet tactic she learned touring with Fortune Feimster and Matteo Lane. Support the show on our Patreon here: http://patreon.com/hotbreathpod What you’ll learn in this episode: - Clean when it pays, dirty when it slays—how to rewrite without losing yourself - Why protecting new material grows fans who return - A simple crowd control framework (playful shut-down → sincere warning → bounce) - The pre-show ritual that primes presence and consistency - How to write on stage—and the hour-per-week stage-time hack - Touring lessons from Fortune & Matteo: build markets, shake hands, stay humble Join our Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/HotBreathComedyNetwork/ Watch the full Caitlin Peluffo interview on Hot Breath! for more: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X6At_3wH3pk ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Watch the full Caitlin Peluffo interview on Hot Breath! for more. Subscribe for more comedy interviews and tips: https://www.youtube.com/c/HotBreathPod?sub_confirmation=1 Join our email list: https://hotbreathpodcast.com/vip Classes and workshops: https://hotbreathmedia.com

0:00-57:25

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show notes

Caitlin Peluffo tells Joel Byars how she went from grinding 30+ open mics a week to crushing at the Comedy Cellar—while keeping her act protected in a clip-drunk world. She breaks down actionable goal-setting (not dream credits), balancing clean vs. dirty, why she won’t chase crowd-work virality, and the habits (structure, therapy, sobriety, gym) that keep the funny sharp. Plus: the whiskey-throw heckler story, her three-strike rule, and the meet-and-greet tactic she learned touring with Fortune Feimster and Matteo Lane.

Support the show on our Patreon here: http://patreon.com/hotbreathpod

What you’ll learn in this episode:

- Clean when it pays, dirty when it slays—how to rewrite without losing

yourself

- Why protecting new material grows fans who return

- A simple crowd control framework (playful shut-down → sincere warning →

bounce)

- The pre-show ritual that primes presence and consistency

- How to write on stage—and the hour-per-week stage-time hack

- Touring lessons from Fortune & Matteo: build markets, shake hands,

stay humble



Join our Facebook group:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/HotBreathComedyNetwork/



Watch the full Caitlin Peluffo interview on Hot Breath! for more:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X6At_3wH3pk


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Watch the full Caitlin Peluffo interview on Hot Breath! for more.

Subscribe for more comedy interviews and tips:

https://www.youtube.com/c/HotBreathPod?sub_confirmation=1


Join our email list: https://hotbreathpodcast.com/vip


Classes and workshops: https://hotbreathmedia.com

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