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A small group of literary enthusiasts gathered around the fireplace at Woody Creek, Colorado’s, community center recently for a reading and Q&A with the Aspen Writers’ Foundation’s January Writer in Residence, Brad Watson. A finalist for the National Book Award for his novel The Heaven of Mercury (2002), Watson has spent his residency working on a new novel with an upcoming deadline. The Writer in Residence Program, offered in collaboration with the Catto Charitable Foundation, gives writers an opportunity to spend one month in Woody Creek to focus on current writing projects.
Before reading from a current work-in-progress, Watson underscored the importance of the privacy and lack of obligations that are characteristic of the foundation’s residency. “I have made more progress here in two weeks than perhaps the past year,” he said. “The lack of Wi-Fi, Internet, and cell service has been such a blessing.”
In addition to his public reading and talk, Watson visited a high school creative writing class at Colorado Rocky Mountain School in Carbondale, where he spoke to students about his writing process and current work.
The photo gallery above features high points from Watson’s reading, Q&A, and dinner after the event. For more information on the Writer in Residence program, please visit aspenwriters.org.
Caroline Tory is the program coordinator for the Aspen Writers’ Foundation, providing administrative, event coordination, marketing, and development support for the AWF.
