In a post on the SFWA blog, Kathy Flann offers advice for injecting humor into your writing. “We think of humor as something that just … happens,” Flann writes. “Yet, as someone who writes both humor and fiction, I’ve learned that each is a distinct craft with challenges that can multiply when combined.”
Flann says science fiction/fantasy and humor have more in common than you might think. “What is humor if not an observant reimagining of the familiar, typically with some kind of an unexpected twist?” she says. “Writers of SFF create ten interesting twists before their well-observed breakfasts. So, why aren’t our bookshelves and our zeitgeists chock-full of hilarious SFF novels?”
It can be difficult juggling both the demands of your genre and your sense of humor, Flann concedes, but for those who want to try, she offers the following tips:
- Be sure the humor grows from the characters, or it might seem forced. You shouldn’t try to “make” funny happen. Give your character a unique perspective and let them talk. Your readers may or may not laugh, Flann says, but the only thing that matters is whether your character does.
- “Punch up, not down.” Most people don’t think it’s funny to make jokes at the expense of underprivileged. (Ed. note – on the other hand, some do!).
- Use your setting. If you’ve created an outlandish setting, dive deep. Readers are likely to accept humor in a weird environment.
