What a buncha lucky stiffs. I’ve taken Writing the Unthinkable and have Lynda’s books - a real treat!

hoganhere:

YES!  A free writing lesson w/LYNDA BARRY — this is what we teach in Writing the Unthinkable!  Professor Lynda is teaching this semester at UW in Madison WI and she’s being crazy-cool and sharing it with y’all!

All you need to start is ten nouns (just look around your room: ‘dictionary’ ‘band-aid’ ‘dog hair’ ‘rag rug’ OR look in your magazine or newspaper and write down the first ten nouns — the more “boring” the better) and follow the Lynda’s directions.  

Ooo-wee, you’re gonna feel so good. The exercise doesn’t last long either — shorter than a colonic or root canal — “accept chaos as a temporary state” — YOU CAN DO IT!  I know you can.

thenearsightedmonkey: 

Dear my great ” What It Is” class,

RE: Stories read out loud tonight: GOOOOOD!!!

Your homework:

Four Minute Diary every day (click here for video)

and

Seven and a Half Minutes Worth of Writing (click video above)

OK LET’S GO! STEP ONE:

First write ten nouns on ten little pieces of paper

Number a page from one to ten

Relax your whole body from top to bottom and say the alphabet to yourself or something else you have memorized and think back to early days in your life

turn over one of the pieces of paper and that’s your word.

Write down the first ten memories that come to you from that word

Read the list over

Circle one that seems vivid or has trouble in it and write it on a clean sheet of paper like it was a title to a story and then draw a big X on the page.

Then start the video.

Remember to skip a line as you go so your page is double spaced -that’s important- and if you get stuck to use the alphabet. It likes it!

Sincerely,

Professor Lynda (who looks forward to seeing you on Thursday)

PS: Even if you are not in our class these assignments are good to try just for fun.

P.P.S. Remember to monkey around