Andrew Lo remembers an inspiring teacher from his childhood: “The best third-grade teacher ever.” So I paused to recall memorable teachers from my childhood.

One does stand out, though I can’t remember her name. Somewhere about eighth grade my English teacher arranged a special English class for me. It was very simple. Every day I was to go to the library, sit in an isolated booth, and just write. About anything. Which I did. She’d quickly look over what I’d written, and give me some feedback. I don’t recall much about the feedback – it may not have mattered much. What mattered is that I wrote and wrote, with a learned audience in mind.

This is a story both about the difference a teacher can make, but also about how teaching may not matter much. If you want to learn to write, well, just write and write.