by Chris Watson | Nov 8, 2020 | Original Writing, Uncategorized
I learned about voting as a kid in Rhode Island. Every few years, they would wheel into our schools a massive booth with switches, a giant lever, and a grey curtain that would swish clink shut on metal bearings. An adult would stand up in front of us and explain the...
by Chris Watson | Oct 15, 2020 | The Writing Process
In June of 2019, in the middle of my writing retreat in western Massachusetts, I realized I had no idea where I was going. Well, not me but my characters. I was 80,000 words into my manuscript, characters were leaving the city in which much of the action takes place,...
by Chris Watson | Oct 7, 2020 | The Writing Process
I’m faced with a challenge. A professional resource whose opinion I’ve come to trust advises that I need to cut another 7,000 to 9,000 words from my manuscript to avoid an automatic “too many words” deletion at the hands of prospective agents looking to work through a...
by Chris Watson | Sep 19, 2020 | Best Practices, Media
Not all writing is just for fun and fiction. Sometimes you want to get another story out there, perhaps your view on some news of the day, community issue, or social concern (as you know, we’re not hurting for those types of topics right now). When trying to get...
by Chris Watson | Sep 13, 2020 | Original Writing, Podcast Updates
The September 13, 2020, episode of The Epic Pencil podcast is titled “Message in a Bottle” and shares the narrative of my experience at Sea Education Association, the titular message in a bottle, and the unexpected audience that it found. I’m happy...
