Dyslexia-friendly e-reader launches book for ad students with contributions from Saatchi & Saatchi and VCCP

Dyslexia-friendly e-reader platform LEO has announced Dave Birss’ acclaimed book A User Guide To The Creative Mind is now available.

From today, Monday 14 June 2021, dyslexic students in the UK will be able to read, listen or watch the book in a way that best suits their learning preferences. The book is available completely free through LEO’s customisable e-reading platform.

With video and audio contributions from three of advertising’s most highly-respected creatives, the book reflects Leo’s commitment to strengthening the link between education and the industry itself.

The three contributors are Kate Stanners, global chairwoman at Saatchi & Saatchi; Darren Bailes, ECD at VCCP London; and Shirin Majid, deputy ECD at VCCP.

The book is also introduced by Dave Birss himself, who worked for over 20 years in advertising at agencies such as Poke, McCann Worldgroup, OgilvyOne and DraftFCB. For the re-release he has contributed new and never before seen bonus content for readers to pore over.

First released in 2013, A User Guide has become internationally renowned for its incredibly practical advice on how to be more creative. From going to the pub, to rewriting the problem, to pretending to be Batman—the book offers an extensive array of tips and tricks to stimulate creativity.

The publication marks a major step forward in LEO’s mission to make advertising course material more accessible for advertising students with dyslexia.

Commenting on the publication, James Hillhouse, co-founder of LEO said, “A User Guide to the Creative Mind is the perfect next book on LEO. It’s practical, overflowing with great advice and a joy to read. And with Dave, Darren, Kate, and Shirin as our readers, it’s also a fantastic watch and listen. In fact it’s impossible to experience the book and not come away inspired.”

LEO is a free e-reader for advertising students with dyslexia. It was created after research conducted by Commercial Break, a youth transformation agency, revealed the extent to which lengthy reading lists were intimidating and discouraging dyslexic students from further education.

The e-reader is equipped with features such as customisable text, audio/video from a real human, a dictionary and focus mode. Together, these aim to give dyslexia students the tools they need to make learning material more accessible.

LEO was co-founded by James Hillhouse, Kat Pegler and Alex Fleming; three professionals all currently working in the advertising industry in the UK.

The platform launched in January 2021 with Steve Harrison’s seminal How To Do Better Creative Work, and will continue to expand the service this year with new books and partnerships in the pipeline.

Dave Birss has published a number of best-selling books on innovation and creativity, including his latest book How To Get To Great Ideas. Dave also co-authored Iconic Advantage, which looks at how businesses can use innovation as part of their growth strategy.