Garrett Francis's Blog

We stood shapeless in front of the counter and he didn’t like that. Seconds after storming through the entrance, he raised his arms at the ten of us and punctured the silence of the last five minutes: “I know we’re in Seattle and lines don’t matter here but somebody tell me where the hell I'm supposed to stand.”

He was six-feet-tall, and narrow, with thinning black hair and a salty five o’clock shadow. The royal blue t-shirt he wore had short enough...

I’m trying something new.

Here’s the gist: on occasion I’m going to “deep read” a book, and I’m going to do it publicly. What’s the definition of “deep reading”? Glad you asked.

Put forth by this article:

The term deep reading was coined by Sven Birkerts in The Gutenberg Elegies (1994): "Reading, because we control it, is adaptable to our needs and rhythms. We are free to indulge our subjective associative impulse; the term I coin for this is deep reading: the slow and meditative possession of a ...

Welcome to the Obstacle series, where I pause to examine an obstacle I’m facing as an author.

This particular obstacle, the first of the series: speed (or the lack thereof).

I hope you enjoy it, and if you do, be sure to subscribe to receive future posts.

Rising Action with Author Garrett Francis is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Table of Contents

Rising Action with Author Garrett Francis is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

First and foremost, I’d like to thank my partner, Lindsy. You’ve stood by in support as I’ve ridden this story’s varying waves of torment. I love you and I appreciate you.

I’d also like to thank my mother and my father. Many parents would’ve at least reached for the steering wheel upon learning of their ...

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Rising Action with Author Garrett Francis is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

By the time Reyn can fit her arm through the hole that she has created in the theatre’s glass door, the candle has gone out. Her forehead glistens. Her breath is heavy. After allowing herself a moment of rest, she reaches her hand through the hole, jagged glass wide enough for her to angle her wrist without b...

Table of Contents

Rising Action with Author Garrett Francis is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Gone, gone, gone, she is gone, they are gone, all are gone and crack-crack, crack-crack, the sound of glass, the sound of anger, the sound of hope shattering, falling where it belongs, where it starts, where it leads, and crack-crack, crack-crack, crack-crack, crack-crack. Crack-crack—

Gone, all gone—

crack-cra...

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Rising Action with Author Garrett Francis is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Reyn lifts her arms over her head, and up goes her sweatshirt. Once off, the bearded man folds it gently and sets it on the green-quilted cot to his left. The other man stands nearer to the hallway, naked, watching, working to get his penis hard. His mouth moves but, in this dim light, Reyn cannot pinpoint an...

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Rising Action with Author Garrett Francis is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Four buildings populate the west side of the town’s lone dirt road. Marked in white paint on rotting plywood, feet above fruit pallets serving as doors, from north to south: McPHERSON’s PUB, McPHERSON’s HARDWARE, McPHERSON’s CLOTHING and McPHERSON’s ACCOUNTING, all constructed with bricks of varying color—dar...

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Rising Action with Author Garrett Francis is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Vitri’s fingers search for the grip of the 9mm. He draws the pistol but he does not aim it. The scarf is over his nose and mouth. His eyes are forward, squinting into the grey dawn light. Five hundred yards ahead, atop a gradual slope, are buildings. Buildings just built. There is the faint echo of hammer and...

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Rising Action with Author Garrett Francis is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Piles of wood flank Vitri’s feet. Chunks of all sizes. Enough to last the night. Yet Reyn, crooked arms overflowing already, continues to search the shoreline for more. She is frightened enough to practice avoidance. Vitri knows this. Understands this, but does nothing to ease her fear. Seated on a tree stump...