Humor Writing Resources
Articles, classes, and books to help improve your humor writing
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 newsletter.
Market lists
Looking for places to submit your funny stuff? Here are some lists from me:
Humor writing markets: Where to Submit Your Humor Writing: 20+ Market Opportunities
Funny essays: Tips for writing and submitting funny personal essays.
Humor writing classes and coaching
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.
Sarah Garfinkel is a writer I’ve co-written with and can attest to the great feedback she gives. You can find out about her teaching and coaching services on her website.
Luke Burns teaches remote satire writing classes that I’ve heard good things about. Get more details here.
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.
Humor writing conferences and residencies
The Erma Bombeck Writing Workshop is an in-person conference that happens every two years in Dayton, Ohio. I have been several times and always enjoy it/pick up some good tips. There is also a writing contest and residency to look out for that happens in the time leading up to the conference.
St. Nells: This is a humor writing residency for women and non-binary writers. Check out their website and newsletter for residency application details and online classes (which are open to everyone).
Articles with tips for writing humor
General tips: Sarah Garfinkel and I wrote a piece for Brevity’s Nonfiction blog that highlights some techniques you can use in writing humor.
Satire tips: This NYT article by Teddy Wayne is a good one to check out if you are getting started writing short humor/satire pieces.
McSweeney’s tips: I wrote some thoughts/tips about writing for McSweeney’s here.
Short satire tips: 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.
Submitting tips: Kyrie Gray, the editor of Jane Austen’s Wastebasket, has some guidelines for submitting humor writing here.
Books, Podcasts, and Guides:
Podcast: Mike Birbiglia’s podcast Working it Out is the one I’ve found most helpful for humor writing and comedy tips. He interviews comedians, but I think the tips are helpful for all types of humor writers (and there are just interesting discussions of the creative life).
Comedy interviews book: 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.
My short satire guide: I have a guide for writing short satirical humor pieces that you can check out here.
Short satire writing book: Scott Dikker’s book How to Write Funny gives good tips on different types of humor you can use (which he calls funny filters).
Thanks for reading Humor Me, a newsletter featuring funny stuff and writing tips. In case you’re new here, I’m a humor writer and freelancer whose work has appeared in New Yorker Shouts, McSweeney’s, Real Simple, and more. Find out more about me at julievick.com.
Any typos in this newsletter are a result of the text being written by a human and not AI.
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Just found your page, looking forward to learning from you Julie!
Thanks so much for this - most useful!