Syllabus — Lynda Barry

Writing exercises and creativity advice from Barry''s pioneering, life-changing workshopThe award-winning author Lynda Barry is the creative force behind the genre-defying and bestselling work What It Is. She believes that anyone can be a writer and has set out to prove it. For the past decade, Barry has run a highly popular writing workshop for nonwriters called Writing the Unthinkable, which was featured in The New York Times Magazine. Syllabus: Notes from an Accidental Professor  is the first book to make her innovative lesson plans and writing exercises available to the public for home or classroom use. Barry teaches a method of writing that focuses on the relationship between the hand, the brain, and spontaneous images, both written and visual. It has been embraced by people across North America-prison inmates, postal workers, university students, high-school teachers, and hairdressers-for opening pathways to creativity.     Syllabus takes the course plan for Barry''s workshop and runs wild with it in her densely detailed signature style. Collaged texts, ballpoint-pen doodles, and watercolor washes adorn Syllabus ''s yellow lined pages, which offer advice on finding a creative voice and using memories to inspire the writing process. Throughout it all, Barry''s voice (as an author and as a teacher-mentor) rings clear, inspiring, and honest.