Harris, Lynn 1969-

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HARRIS, Lynn 1969-

PERSONAL: Born February 3, 1969, in Boston, MA; daughter of James (a professor of linguistics, now retired) and Florence (an educational writer); married Rabbi David Adelson, 2003. Ethnicity: "Caucasian." Education: Yale University, B.A, 1990. Hobbies and other interests: Playing ice hockey.

ADDRESSES: Home—Brooklyn, NY. Office—Just Friends Productions, P.O. Box 150214, Brooklyn, NY 11215. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER: Journalist, author, comedian, and commentator. Performer in New York, NY, at comedy clubs and literary readings. Columnist for Glamour, contributor to Salon.com, New York Times, GQ, New York Observer, and other publications. Member of Brooklyn Blades (women's hockey team).

WRITINGS:

(With Larry Berger) Tray Gourmet: Be Your Own Chef in the College Cafeteria, illustrations by Chris Kalb, Lake Isle Press, 1992.

(With J. D. Heiman) MTV's "Singled Out" Guide to Dating, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1996.

He Loved Me, He Loves Me Not: A Guide to Fudge, Fury, Free Time, and Life beyond the Breakup, illustrations by Chris Kalb, Avon (New York, NY), 1996.

Breakup Girl to the Rescue!: A Superhero's Guide to Love . . . and Lack Thereof, Little, Brown (Boston, MA), 2000.

Miss Media, IUniverse (Lincoln, NE), 2004.

Contributor of articles to periodicals, including Glamour, Salon.com, GQ, New York Times, and the New York Observer.

SIDELIGHTS: Lynn Harris is a comic performer and writer who is known for her humorous observations about male-female relationships. Her writings include two volumes published in 1996: MTV's "Singled Out" Guide to Dating, on which she collaborated with J. D. Heiman, and He Loved Me, He Loves Me Not: A Guide to Fudge, Fury, Free Time, and Life beyond the Breakup, a humorous self-help book for women trying to survive the end of a relationship. The latter title inspired Harris's alter ego, a cartoon character named "Breakup Girl," who "dons a red cape and matching baseball cap to fend off bad relationships, mend broken ones and help get your stuff back," to quote Milwaukee Journal Sentinel contributor Christopher Borrelli.

Harris and illustrator Christopher Kalb not only created Breakup Girl, they also gave her maximum exposure through her own Web site and a book titled Breakup Girl to the Rescue!: A Superhero's Guide to Love . . . or Lack Thereof. Breakup Girl's advice—part commonsense wisdom from Harris herself, part suggestions from a professional psychotherapist—is dispensed in comic panels and straight question-and-answer format. Harris's aim is to ease the inevitable suffering young men and women endure when they end relationships. In the Boston Herald, Robin Vaughan had this to say about Breakup Girl: "If her persona is a bit kooky, her style of advice is sensible, human and often hilarious."

Harris told the Los Angeles Times that she gets some of her stand-up comedy ideas from the letters Breakup Girl receives. Harris has also been through breakups of her own and knows they are more than just fodder for laughs. She said: "No matter how strong we are, no matter what level of power or stature we achieve in society, we are still—for better or worse—ruled by our relationships. Bending steel bars—that's impressive. But mending broken hearts? That's power! The heart rules us . . . but Breakup Girl rules the heart."