Humor writing resources
Humor writing resources
A running list of resources for writing humor
As a humor writer, I sometimes get questions about humor writing and so I am setting up this page as a spot for resources that I have found helpful. I will try to come back and periodically update it but I will also share more timely updates/calls for submissions that I come across in my monthly newsletter (non-subtle hint to subscribe :)
So here goes…
Market lists
Looking for places to submit your funny stuff? Here are some lists (the ones I wrote should be non-paywalled if you use the link below to access them):
20 Markets that Publish Humor Writing. A list I created that includes satire and some funny essay markets.
18 More Humor Writing Markets to Submit To. (More of the same as above)
A List of Humor and Satire Websites That Accept Writing and Contributors A much more comprehensive list of satire and humor websites by Caitlin Kunkel.
50+ Humor Writing Websites to Read and Submit To Another good list on this topic from Points in Case.
A lot of literary markets will also run humor pieces. This is a list of places that includes humor-accepting lit markets.
Humor writing classes
Caitlin Kunkel frequently teaches humor writing and I’ve enjoyed the class I took with her (funny frameworks for fiction) and have heard good things about her other classes. She also has a short on-demand writing topical satire course that you can find on her website.
Elissa Bassist frequently teaches a variety of humor writing courses in person and online. I enjoyed her short humor writing class (which I took in person!) and she has others I’ve also heard good reports about. Find out more on her website.
Luke Burns teaches remote satire writing classes I’ve heard good things about. Look on his Twitter for details.
St. Nells: This is a humor writing residency for women and non-binary writers and they offer online classes (which are open to everyone). I’ve taken a few one-off classes through them and learned some great tips.
Second City. This well-known comedy training resource offers online classes on a variety of humor writing topics. I took Writing Satire for the Internet Levels 1 and 2 and learned some great tips, wrote some pieces that got accepted, and connected with other humor writers.
Tips for writing humor
This article is a good one to check out if you are getting started writing short humor/satire pieces.
I wrote some thoughts/tips about writing for McSweeney’s here.
Kyrie Gray, the editor of Jane Austen’s Wastebasket, has some guidelines for submitting humor writing here.
I often recommend the Newsletter of Humorous Writing to humor writers. They highlight a few pieces and then talk a bit about why they work well. This is a good way to pick up some tips.
Sarah Garfinkel and I wrote a piece for Brevity’s Nonfiction blog that highlights some techniques you can use in writing humor.
Books:
The book I’ve found most helpful for guidance on writing short satirical pieces is Scott Dikker’s How to Write Funny.
Mike Sacks’ books that interview comedy writers also have lots of great info on writing different types of humor (including writing for TV, screenwriting, and short humor pieces): Poking a Dead Frog and And Here’s the Kicker.
*This page contains affiliate links. If you purchase something from one of the links I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.
Thanks so much for this - most useful!