Articles

PIC is looking for smart, original, and entertaining literary humor articles, preferably 600–1,000 words. We welcome a wide range of humor styles and formats, but every article should have a clear premise or throughline and work as a complete, standalone piece. Please submit polished, proofread work with a descriptive, catchy title.

We pay $35 for each accepted article.

Payments are typically sent within five days of acceptance. Our average response time is two weeks, and we reply to every submission.

Guidelines

• Create a PIC account before submitting. This is where all of your published work will appear, so upload a photo and fill out as much of your profile as possible—readers are curious. Your PIC account is separate from the Submittable account used to manage your submissions.
• Submit one article at a time. Once you receive a decision, feel free to submit another right away.
• If your article is co-authored, each author should register their own PIC account. Include the names of all co-authors in the comments.
• Simultaneous submissions are welcome, but please withdraw your article immediately if it is accepted elsewhere.
• We accept only previously unpublished work and do not publish satire news.
• We do not accept AI-assisted writing. Please do not use generative AI to draft or revise your work.
• For more details and guidelines, view our full submissions guidelines.

Add-On Options

Submitting to PIC is always free. For writers who would like a faster response or more insight into an editorial decision, we offer optional paid add-ons, including an Expedited Decision, Decision Breakdown, and Editorial Notes.

Add-ons do not affect whether a submission is accepted. They simply change the response time or amount of editorial feedback you receive.