A Swim in a Pond in the Rain: In Which Four Russians Give a Master Class on Writing, Reading, and Life

by George Saunders

The world is full of people with agendas, trying to persuade us to act on their behalf (spend on their behalf, fight and die on their behalf, oppress others on their behalf). But inside us is what Hemingway called a “built-in, shockproof, shit detector.” How do we know something is shit? We watch the way the deep, honest part of our mind reacts to it.

He’s a hypocrite, in other words, and, like all hypocrites, doesn’t know it.

feel qualified to say that there are two things that separate writers who go on to publish from those who don’t. First, a willingness to revise. Second, the extent to which the writer has learned to make causality.

name-dropper.

we are such people ourselves: sticking to hobbies and sweet daily habits, getting up early to write, frequenting a certain café, collecting ceramic ducks, going to Packers games with our faces painted green and yellow, and so on, trying to get in a few moments of celebration before that earlier-mentioned sinking ship goes down.

stories: Be specific and efficient. Use a lot of details. Always be escalating. Show, don’t tell.

These questions are above my pay grade.