Humor: A Creative Escape from Reality plus Publishing Opportunities
Losing myself within the pages of a good book or the draft of a work in progress is my escape route when I’m overwhelmed with the world. So many people have lost their homes, are starving, are living in war torn places, have no safe to call home, worry for their lives because of their sexual orientation or religious beliefs… I could go on and on. But reader, you get the idea.
It’s easy for some of us to block it out and not pay attention. It’s easy for some of us to forget. Writers, perceptive writers who care, those writers pay attention and make a point of remembering. That’s our job. To bear witness, record and share what we’ve seen. We write truth, even if its fictionalized. We write stories. Our stories help the world to remember.
Just the other day I was talking to a friend who had completely forgotten the huge amount of people who died in the United States during the Covid-19 pandemic, 1.1 million Americans. It started March 11, 2020 and ended May 11 2023. On many fronts, our nation was in chaos as to how to address the crisis during the pandemic and how to save as many lives as possible. Those most at risk were frontline workers: nurses, medical staff, doctors, mail carriers, supermarket clerks, food processing workers, those deemed essential who continued working while others quarantined. And let us not forget that millions of Americans currently suffer with Long Covid, close to 7% of the entire population, and that even in 2025 people still are dying from Covid 19.
Currently, with a change in the U.S. administration, much of the federal workforce is on pause. Another situation, whether it is a virus that endangers lives or a fungus that threatens our food supplies, our safety cannot be taken for granted. So, I worry. There’s nothing I can currently do. I write.
My focus is to create some positive in the universe. When things get bleak, maybe if I write about something positive, I can make someone laugh.
Humor is one of the hardest things for writers to master. Editors tell me they are always on the lookout for short stories, essays, and poetry with humor. At the end of this post I will list a few markets. But the bigger question is how to get started writing something funny when you’re feeling melancholy
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WRITING PROMPT: Is there someone from your past who made you laugh? Maybe it was a teacher, a relative, a neighbor and you can describe their funny quirks or recall a specific situation. Or is there something you did that was so embarrassing you wince thinking about it? Blind dates and job interviews are good places to visit in your memory bank. With distance its easier to reflect or our mishaps.
Start by describing a very insecure character and put them in an uncomfortable situation. Whether they are at the doctor’s office, scared to take off their sock and reveal an infected toe or on a first date and needing to burp, imagine something silly happens. Make the reader laugh. Try it again. Who knows… you may create something that resonates and will lift your spirits. TRY IT.
Six Publications Interested in Publishing Humor
This is just a sampling but will get you started.
Defenestration
American Bystander
Little Old Lady Comedy
Funny Pearls
Havok
The Lit Nerds
Thank you for reading and feel free to share your comments and any questions. Don’t forget your can follow me for FREE. Just sign up, and you’ll receive an email each time I publish. If you enjoyed this post and want to support my writing, consider purchasing my little chapbook filled with short essays and poems, RECIPES FROM MY GARDEN and check out some of my other books. Thanks again.
Originally published at http://nadjamaril.com on February 3, 2025.
