Editor and Writer David Lynn ’72 Surprises, Delights at Kingswood

David created universes across multiple collections of short stories. After graduating from Cranbrook in 1972, he earned an undergraduate degree at Kenyon, spent time abroad in England, then returned for a doctorate in English from the University of Virginia and to work as the director of publications and editor at a nonprofit education advocacy organization in Washington, D.C. In 1988, he returned to Kenyon as a writer in residence, and never left. The collection Fortune Telling came in 1998; the novel Wrestling with Gabriel in 2002; Year of Fire in 2006, with the title story set firmly atop Detroit and Cranbrook Kingswood in 1968; “Divergence” in 2016 was selected for inclusion in The O. Henry Prize Stories as a best short story; Children of God in 2019; and most recently, Rebuilding the Goat Walk: An Eco-Memoir in 2024. He created universes inside the pages of the Kenyon Review, taking on the acting editor role in 1989 of the influential literary magazine founded by John Crowe Ransom and a frequent publisher of literary firsts, including publishing the title story from acclaimed short story writer George Saunders’s 1992 debut collection, CivilWarLand in Bad Decline.  

And David created realities, too. Under his direction as Editor at the Review, curious and passionate youth and adult writers convened at Kenyon College for workshops, fellowships, and to celebrate the written word. He launched the Review’s Young Writers Workshops, growing enrollment and broadening reach from twelve students to over 200 each summer (including, we find out in the Kingswood Library, a Cranbrook Kingswood student who will participate in summer 2025); the Adult Writers Workshops, now offered in person and online year-round; a Fellows Program that supports promising early writers to continue their craft while teaching; and the Kenyon Review Award for Literary Achievement, a signature award and gala, whose past recipients include Richard Ford, Elie Wiesel, Rita Dove, Zadie Smith, and, David Lynn. “None of it would have happened without David Lynn,” notes Matthew Winkler, a friend and Editor-in-Chief Emeritus and Co-founder of Bloomberg News. “The vision has gone farther than its original remit, beyond being a literary quarterly, birthing the most impressive literary program,” add his Review colleagues. 

The writing ends, and students volunteer to share their voices with the class. The listener sees glimpses into stories seeping with elements of uncertainty and unease; the unfinished stories feel slightly off-balance in a way that demands resolution. The pencils don’t stop. The writers have taken to heart David’s advice: stories are driven by tension and the desire for resolution, and to keep a story engaging writers should “raise the stakes, raise the risk.” 

“Writers create illusions,” he shares. “This is our job, we are trying to persuade the reader of the reality we create. A good story has its own truth. The fun part of writing is when the story takes on its own truth.” The stories, in just ten minutes, leave the listener wanting more.

With time for questions, students are eager to peer into the world of writing and publishing. He sometimes responds to a question with a short “yes” or “no”. Can I be a writer? “No. Find another way to feed yourself,” he says, remarking that the current literary landscape and publishing is deeply competitive, but today’s students benefit from a stronger and more connected community of writers. “Fit writing in with your lifestyle,” he says, listing an array of possibilities that require the ability to write clearly and communicate effectively. 

What is your favorite book right now, favorite author? “None,” he says. He is open to reading anything, including today’s popular genre fiction, and can’t stop watching Ted Lasso. Where do you come up with ideas? What does it mean to be original?  “Be true to yourself, your heart, and your mind, to create something that has never been created before,” he shares. How does he get past writer’s block? Freewriting, freewriting, freewriting. What about pursuing a minor in English? Absolutely! Is it bad to read too much fiction, and not enough non-fiction? Of course not!

Later in the day, students probe and poke the squishy questions about reading and writing: What about technology? What about phones? What is writing if people don’t read? 

“We do the writing to do the writing… the reason to be a writer is to do the writing, to find that this pursuit is deeply satisfying and rewarding,” he says. “We have to write stories that appeal to our readers. We need to be engaged and changed. We understand the world in the process of writing; we shape our understanding through this process, through literature. Stories help us shape ourselves and the world around us… we need stories.”