Haunted by Futility or Saving the World: Writing Climate Change

How do we write about climate change without becoming overwhelmed by urgency, anger, grief, or the feeling that we need to save the world in a single piece?

Join author Erica Watson for a three-hour craft workshop exploring the challenges and possibilities of writing about a rapidly changing climate.

Whether climate change is the main subject of your work or simply part of the world your characters, essays, or stories inhabit, this workshop will look at how writers can approach climate with greater intention.

Together, participants will read, write, and discuss examples of climate writing across genres, from journalism to science fiction. The group will explore how structure, perspective, literary techniques, and familiar climate-writing tropes can shape a reader’s experience.

Writing prompts will offer opportunities to begin something new or return to a work in progress. The goal is not to leave with all the answers, but with new questions, approaches, and tools for writing about climate with greater awareness.

Writers of all genres and experience levels are welcome. Sharing your work is encouraged, but never required.

Workshop Details
October 18
10:00 am to 1:00 pm
Linda Rapp Landing Room, Robert Service Campground
120 Robert Service Way, Whitehorse, Yukon

Registration: $15
Capacity: 20 participants

Advance registration is required.

About Erica Watson

Erica Watson is an essayist, writing instructor, knitter, and occasional community organizer living on the boundary of Denali National Park, Alaska. Her experiences in conservation advocacy, tourism, and environmental education inform her writing, which has appeared in Terrain.org and About Place Journal, among others.

Her book, Ghosts of Distant Trees, was published by Porphyry Press in fall 2025. Erica is a graduate of the University of Alaska Anchorage MFA program and a recipient of an Alaska Literary Award.

Thank you to the Yukon Arts Fund for supporting this workshop and helping make accessible literary programming possible in the Yukon.