Story Club with George Saunders

A couple of things to share with you this week… I thought I’d take another run at “The Legend of Lough Gur,” as a sort of specimen model of the way a short story works. Next week we’ll get started on something new.

First, thanks to all of you paid subscribers who have weighed in our story of the week, “The Legend of Lough Gur.” It’s always amazing to me how just setting a story in front of this group leads to such depth of analysis and insight and also spins us out into bigger questions of art, life, love, etc. THANK YOU! And now for our question of the week: Dear George, Thank you for Story Club, I’m grateful to be here.

So let’s talk about this lovely little Irish tale, “The Legend of Lough Gur,” which I found in a really fun anthology called “A Treasury of Irish Fairy and Folk Tales.”

One thing I like to do between big projects is find ways to ask myself, “What is a story, anyway?”

Well, I’m back home, feeling healthy again, looking at a relatively quiet summer, during which I plan to rest up while getting back to work – these two things go hand-in-hand for me. It will be a busy fall, with teaching, and lots of writing-related travel in September (schedule to come), and the opera in October, but I’m looking forward to it all. Now, on to today’s question… Q. Hi George, I have a theoretical question more than a craft question.

Hi everyone, As I mentioned last time, I flew out to L.A. this week and had to put some things in order there, including picking up a car I’m going to need for this busy fall. I was also looking forward to the drive as a chance to relax a little and see what I could absorb of this wacky place called America. Also, to be honest, I’m still wrecked from our loss of our dear dog, Guin, and was hoping this trip might help with that a little, too.

Am just about to fly back to L.A., so I can drive back across the country again (long story), so I thought it might be a good time to revisit a Story Club favorite activity….

So, I am happy to deliver the glad tidings that tickets for the opera of Lincoln in the Bardo (composed by Missy Mazzoli, with libretto by Royce Vavrek, based on the book by yours truly, are on sale now, here: https://www.metopera.org/season/2026-27-season/lincoln-in-the-bardo/. Let’s sell this baby out, with the special power of Story Club. (Also, it’s really good.) :) Story Club with George Saunders is a reader-supported publication.

I just received this magnificent, almost unimaginably generous response to your questions, from Ruth Ozeki. What a person! THANK YOU, RUTH!

Dear friends, Because you’ve all been so kind about our dear Guin, I’m just writing to let you know that she passed on Thursday evening, peacefully, beautifully, radiating so much love and patience, inspiring us….just the way she lived. So much to say about this dear being but I’m wrecked by this and can’t manage it right now. Just….thank you all so much for your support and for being such a beautiful community.