We just talked live with George Saunders, modern master of the short story and novella, essayist, and author of two novels, including the Booker Prize-winning Lincoln in the Bardo (soon to be a movie starring Tom Hanks), and the new Vigil, the Ink Book Club’s February pick. Saunders is also a dedicated educator of other writers, both as a professor of English at Syracuse University and here on Substack, where he runs StoryClub. We talked to him about:
Why a good book is never actually about anything
How this Trumpian era has challenged his ability to understand evil
How he has tried to locate the largeness of capitalism and other political forces in the intimacy of human interactions
His exploration of the tension between idiot and wrathful compassion
Why hearing from readers and students is like being in a dark room, reaching out, and feeling a smiling face
How to solve your writer’s block by thinking of writing as a gift, not a challenge
And some of the writers he admires most who deserve more recognition, among them Claire Keegan, Samanta Schweblin, Annie Liontas, Deb Olin Unferth, and Sydney Rende
Whether you’re a writer, a reader, a thinker, or all of the above, you won’t want to miss this conversation. Just click on the video player above to watch.
We’re making a preview of this conversation open to all. If you want to watch the whole thing, we invite you to become a supporting subscriber, which includes membership in the Book Club and access to our discussion guides, group chats, and live discussions.
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How to participate in the Book Club
Each week, we’ll post questions — our discussion guide — on Sunday, and on alternate Wednesdays we’ll meet for a discussion with the Club or a visit from an author or other special guest (occasionally we’ll schedule on alternate days or times, but we will let you know). Look out for posts with further details. We invite you to chat or comment on our posts with your insights and questions in advance of our meetings.
To participate in our meetings and author talks on Substack Live, join from your phone or tablet with the Substack app. You can also watch from your computer at The Ink, and comment and ask questions in our chat, but you won’t be able to join the live video discussion. Make sure you enable notifications, and when our meetings begin, you should receive an email alert; if you can’t find the message, just check the notifications tab (the small bell-shaped icon to the upper right of the website or lower right of the app at the time of the event to find a link.
Book Club meetings are open to paid subscribers to The Ink, so if you haven’t become part of our community, join us today!
