Fantasy + Humor

[Richard P Titus]

My knowledge of fantasy writers is minimal. I'm interested in finding authors who integrate humor and fantasy. Can anyone suggest some writers I might consider?

I've seen authors use humor as an element of their stories, of course, but I haven't seen a fantasy writer that gives humor a major part in their stories. (Someone did suggest Terry Pratchett to me but that's the only recommendation I've received so far.)

Your input would be welcome.

Thanks.

Richard
(just registered with MS today, by the way)

 

[Ireth]

I've only read one of his books, but Tom Holt does really well blending humor with fantasy in "Flying Dutch".

 

[Devor]

I've been really impressed with the Order of the Stick webcomic. The first 300 strips or so are heavy on D&D humor, but it's at over 2,000 strips now and the majority of them are a perfect blend of epic fantasy adventure and genre-savvy humor.

Giant In the Playground Games

 

[Peat]

Well you've heard Pratchett once but the recommendation deserves repeating.

I second Devor's citing of Order of the Stick.

A couple of urban fantasy names - Jim Butcher and Robert Rankin

 

[skip.knox]

Silverlock, by John Myers Myers
The Warlock in Spite of Himself, Christopher Stasheff. More picaresque than straight humor
The Princess Bride, William Goldman. Obviously.
Pretty much any of the Myth Adventures, by Robert Asprin

You will notice that most of these, Pratchett included, rely primarily on satire. Straight humor is more difficult. Honestly, there's a good deal of humor in both The Hobbit and Alice in Wonderland. Never hurts to study the masters.

 

[cydare]

I'm definitely supporting the Pratchett recommendation! I suggest starting from Guards Guards, or Mort if you want to go for his earlier work. The Colour of Magic and The Light Fantastic are technically the first of the Discworld books, but they're better to come back to when you're more immersed in the world.

Diana Wynne Jones is good at combining humour with fantasy. Deep Secret is a great one by her.
I also recommend the Anvil of the World by Kage Baker.

 

[Stephyn Blackwood]

Depends on the kind of humour you're after to be honest. Prachett's hilarious, but I personally have to throw in a recommendation for Joe Abercrombie and Mark Lawrence. Although on the darker side, almost all of Abercrombie's books have had me cackling at some point or another, and Lawrence's second Trilogy The Red Queen's War has a protagonist who offers quite a few chuckle-worthy moments, and that's only in the first book of the three.

So if you're after more grim, sarcastic humour, Abercrombie and Lawrence are were to go

 

[Richard P Titus]

Thanks for all of your input and suggested reading. That helps a lot.

Still, your responses make me wonder why there isn't MORE humor in fantasy. It seems like an untapped resource. It's actually the approach I'm using in writing and I'm curious why more aren't doing it. I suppose it depends on one's perspective on what's entertaining. I was never much for the doom and gloom painted by many writers. On the other hand, I want to avoid the other extreme of the spectrum, that is, syrupy sweet and cutesy. It's a challenge to remain somewhere in the middle, I think. Anyway, for me, it's what makes the writing fun.

Thanks again for your answers.

 

[CupofJoe]

Years since I've read them but Piers Anthony's Xanth stories had a lot of humour in them. And the world looked like Florida...

 

[neodoering]

Second That

Years since I've read them but Piers Anthony's Xanth stories had a lot of humour in them. And the world looked like Florida...

Definitely second Piers Anthony's Xanth books. The first book in the set is A Spell for Chameleon. His storytelling is not just funny but often clever, and the relations between the sexes are healthy and set a good example for those young people reading the books.

 

[TheCrystallineEntity]

Oh, The Order of the Stick is awesome!

Also, Diana Wynne Jones' books are often quite funny [she's my favourite author].