{"id":3242,"date":"2014-04-28T21:08:40","date_gmt":"2014-04-28T11:08:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/?p=3242"},"modified":"2020-09-10T13:51:36","modified_gmt":"2020-09-10T03:51:36","slug":"always-watching","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/allisontait.com\/2014\/04\/always-watching\/","title":{"rendered":"Always watching: a key skill for writers"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"alwayswatchingallisontait\"<\/a>Mr10 left this little message on the back of my notebook. I found it after he left for school this morning. I wasn’t sure whether to be freaked out but, after hastily glancing over each shoulder and determining that he was not, in fact, behind me, I decided that I would instead be inspired.<\/p>\n

Always watching<\/em>.<\/p>\n

It sums up one of the key (sometimes overlooked) skills for writers (and one I also wrote about here<\/a>).<\/p>\n

I am always watching. The woman with the large black bag who stole from my local supermarket after pretending she was looking for a lost child. I knew that she hadn’t really lost anyone, she was nowhere near frantic enough.<\/p>\n

I am always watching. The little boy I know who tells an outlandish story and peers up at you from under his fringe, looking to see if you believe him, changing the words to match your expression.<\/p>\n

I am always watching. The old lady who asks for four lamb cutlets at the butcher’s shop, then catches herself, sighs, and changes her order to two.<\/p>\n

Always watching<\/em>.<\/p>\n

I might have this little drawing printed on some Moleskine notebooks and sell them at my (non-existent) Etsy store.<\/p>\n

What would you write in yours?<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Mr10 left this little message on the back of my notebook. I found it after he left for school this morning. I wasn’t sure whether to be freaked out but, after hastily glancing over each shoulder and determining that he was not, in fact, behind me, I decided that I would instead be inspired. Always […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":6295,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,5,758],"tags":[723,713,736],"class_list":["post-3242","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-advice-for-writers","category-writing","category-writing-tips-for-kids","tag-how-to-write-a-book","tag-writing-tips","tag-writing-tips-for-kids"],"yoast_head":"\nAlways watching: a key skill for writers<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"One of the key skills for writers - and one of the most overlooked skills of a writer - is the ability to observe. 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