How to write a fill-in-the-blank story that makes people laugh

A good fill-in-the-blank story is funny before anyone has added a single word. The players supply chaos; your job is to build a story that turns that chaos into a punchline. Here is how to write one, whether you publish it on Fun Libs or read it out at the dinner table.

1. Start with a normal situation

The funniest stories begin somewhere ordinary: a school trip, a job interview, a wedding speech, a recipe. When the setting is familiar, a wrong word stands out. "The principal gave a speech about spaghetti" lands because everyone knows what a principal's speech should sound like.

Pick one situation and write two or three plain sentences about it before you add any blanks.

2. Turn the important words into blanks

Go back through your sentences and replace the words that carry the meaning: the main character, what they're holding, where they go, how they feel. In Fun Libs you write a blank by putting the word type in brackets:

Last summer, (Name 1) went to (Place) with a (Adjective) (Animal).

Good word types to use:

• Adjective: a describing word (slimy, enormous, polite)
• Noun and Plural noun: things (a toaster, seven trumpets)
• Verb and Verb -ing: actions (dance, juggling)
• Name, Place, Animal, Food, Number: specific and easy to answer

Specific prompts like Food or Body part are easier for players than Noun, and they produce funnier answers.

3. Don't blank everything

A story that is mostly blanks reads like a shopping list. Aim for one blank every sentence or so, and keep enough of your own words that the story has a shape. On Fun Libs, stories that are almost all blanks are only visible to their author, for exactly this reason.

4. Repeat a blank for a running joke

If the same character or object comes back, number the blank: (Name 1) and (Name 1) again will both be filled with the same answer. A repeated ridiculous word is one of the most reliable laughs in the game.

Everyone agreed that Grandma Pickle was the best goalkeeper in town. Even the other team cheered for Grandma Pickle.

5. Save the best blank for last

Put a blank in the final sentence, ideally in the punchline position: the last word of the story. The reader's laugh comes right as the story ends.

6. Test play it

Before you publish, play your own story without looking at the text. You'll notice blanks that are confusing ("Noun" where you really needed "Plural noun") and sentences that only work with one kind of answer. In the Fun Libs editor, the play button does a test play that doesn't count as a play or show your story to anyone.

Ready to try?

Open the editor and write your first story. When you publish, it shows up in the community stories for anyone to play, and you can share the link with friends.