Cartoonist and regular MAD Magazine artist Tom Richmond just posted some insider tips on working for MAD Magazine over at his excellent blog.

Sorry to say, there’s no secret handshake or magic words, but the good news is that it’s at least easier nowadays to get your work in the mag than it was back in the 70’s & 80’s — MAD has opened up to a wider range of styles as well as a wider pool of freelancers that they work with.

And to quote Tom on the likelihood of your artwork getting seen:

Trust me when I say that anyone who sends work into MAD will get the proper attention paid to it, usually by art director Sam Viviano himself.

That’s good to hear, although Vivano’s artwork is phenomenal—it’s gotta be nerve-wracking to submit to him. I remember his work way back in my Scholastic Book Club days, in Dynamite Magazine. Now that’s going waaaay back!

MAD Magazine was the main inspiration for me as a very young kid to start drawing. I remember finding old Don Martin books my Dad had stashed in the attic, and even and old Alfred E. Newman bust my Dad had made out of sculpting clay (and he was an engineer back then, and now a lawyer!).

Anyways, the MAD Magazine artists were a huge, if not the inspiration for me as a budding artist. I can remember being mesmerized by all the artwork in the magazine, each artist for their own unique style and sense of humor. And as I got older, I came to appreciate the artists I wasn’t as keen on back in my younger days (Jack Davis in particular). I was a Mort Drucker/Don Martin guy primarily, but always envied Sergio Aragones’ genius work in the margins. Paul Coker always had some magic going on too.

Instead of getting all nostalgic in this blog post, I really should be getting some work together for submission to MAD.

 via Tom Richmond