Story Club with George Saunders

Today, we’re working on “Apples” by Gunnhild Øyehaug. There’s so much to say about this story. First observation: just now, after I re-read it, and before I started thinking about what it had done, or how, I just felt very happy.

Hi Everyone, Back home after a wonderful visit to Washington and Lee University. Thanks to everyone there for a truly mind-opening series of discussions on writing and life and Vigil and…well, so many things. I got back home at 2 am, then had one day at home and got up at 5 am to join Missy Mazzoli for an interview at Oak Hill Cemetery - the first time we’d ever been there together - in advance of the opera, which premieres on October 19th.

So, today, we’re going to start our work on “Apples,” a dazzling story by Gunnhild Øyehaug, translated from the Norwegian by Kari Dickson. “Apples” appears in the wonderful new anthology, The Penguin Anthology of the International Short Story, assembled by Rabih Alemeddine and John Freeman. Many thanks to Rabih and John for the use of the story. We’ll be working on stories from the anthology over the next few months. I recommend purchasing it most highly.

Just a quick note to say that I’ll be at Washington & Lee University in Lexington, Virginia, as part pf the Tom Wolfe Weekend Seminar and the Mudd Center for Ethics Keynote. I’ll be talking about the genesis of Vigil and the process of writing it. On Friday, September 4th, I’ll be giving my talk at University Chapel at 4:30 p.m., followed by a Q&A session and book signing (which I keep typing “book singing.”) It’s a free event, no need to reserve a spot or RSVP. Hope to see some of you there.

Hello everyone and happy Sunday. Hope it’s been a good one so far. Feels like summer is fading fast - we are getting the first red leaves here in Upstate New York… Very happy, first, to be able to pass along Nona Fernández’s answers to your questions about her story “The Illumination of Santiago.” (After that, a few small news-type items for your consideration.)

Just getting ready to drive back home from Syracuse after my first class of the semester but wanted to share some exciting news about the cast for “Lincoln in the Bardo”: ‘Lincoln In The Bardo’ Movie Casts Dafoe, Bailey And Dinklage

Hi everyone, Sorry for the tech issues during yesterday’s live talk with Samuel Bercholz. But many thanks to those of you who made it through. :) Here is the full video – hope you enjoy it. It was so wonderful, getting to spend some time with Sam and talk to him about Buddhism and art and to benefit from his wisdom, Thank you, again, Sam. Also, here are the books Sam recommended toward the end of our talk: Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind, by Shunryu Suzuki. The Myth of Freedom, by Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche.

Hi all, Just a quick post to say that I’ll be interviewing one of my favorite people, Samuel Bercholz later today. Samuel is the founder of Shambhala Publications, a leading publisher of Buddhist books. He’s taught Buddhist philosophy and meditation practice throughout North America, Europe, and Australia for more than fifty years, and is just a bright light, who I dearly love. Story Club with George Saunders is a reader-supported publication. Please consider becoming a paid subscriber.

We’ve had a little delay in getting our questions back from Nora, so I thought I’d take this chance to write about something I’ve been meaning to discuss here for a while now – something all writers and editors have to deal with at some point, something that these people, I believe, for the most part, dread and find at least a little odious.

Over on the other side of the paywall, we’ve been having a great time working on the first of a series of stories from a remarkable new anthology called The Penguin Book of the International Short Story, edited by Rabih Alameddine and John Freeman. The book also featured a wonderful introduction by the editors, who have generously shared it with us here: Introduction Penguininternationalshortstory 9780593834138 3.15MB ∙ PDF file Thank you, Rabih and John.