George Saunders might be the most critically acclaimed contemporary American author. He has inspired thousands of young writers with his writing and teaching. Getting Smart recently caught up with him to learn more about his approach to teaching and writing.

On writing to know. A lesson Saunders took from high school is that it’s one thing to say something, it’s another to write it down. “I write to know what I think.” In his 2005 novella The Brief and Frightening Reign of Phil, Saunders wrote about a president who comes to power by exploiting fear. Sometimes writing taps into things as they really are. “The part of our minds we don’t use on an everyday basis, that part comes forward in writing,” says Saunders. “This subconscious mind often reasons faster than the conscious mind, allowing it come to the table.”

On reading to write. When a high school teacher gave Saunders a copy of Atlas Shrugged and it took hold of him, he knew he wanted to be in that world. He recalls reading the Ayn Rand classic in the back of a car returning from a ski trip. "This image of myself on a college campus sprang up, wearing a sweater, talking about intellectual stuff — it was an imaginative vision, it made me want to go to college."

Read the full article about George Saunders and his writing wisdom by Tom Vander Ark at Getting Smart.