Lynda Barry journal method
! [[ Lynda Barry four-square journal.png ]]
She explains in this video. She says, “If you do it everyday, you’ll start to notice what it is you notice.”
[[ Journaling—Examen—What did I do today? ]] [[ Journaling—Examen—What did I notice? ]]
Ben Snakepit makes a three-panel comic each day based on what he did that day.1 Maybe instead of the drawing aspect of Lynda Barry’s method, I can write a little song or poem each day. Maybe I can make a collage of pictures from that day.
It’s quick and easy to do, which makes it easier to build into a habit. (The thing I didn’t like about Julia Cameron’s Morning pages is how tedious it was.)
It fits all writing styles and mediums. I like how it can suit me as a songwriter.
It generates authentic ideas because it draws from things that actually happened to you. This is an exercise in How to find your voice and why and even write in writer’s block.2
Somewhere Anna Tivel has talked about how John Prine taught her how to see. I want to learn more about her and John Prine’s philosophy.
More [[ Lynda Barry writing exercises ]].