Born in Cape Town, Watson completed her master"s degree in creative writing under André Brink at the University of Cape Town. After receiving a second master"s degree at the University of Bristol in 2003, she returned to Cape Town where she completed her Doctor of Philosophy.
She worked as a lecturer in Film Studies at the University of Cape Town between 2004 and 2008. Watson has lived in Galway, Ireland since 2009. Watson is the author of Moss, a collection of short stories published in 2004.
In 2013, her novel The Cutting Room was published by Penguin South Africa.
Her short stories have appeared in several anthologies. She was a finalist in the Rolex Protege and Mentorship programme in 2012.
In April 2014, Watson was named in the Hay Festival"s Africa39 project as one of 39 writers from sub-Saharan Africa aged under 40 with potential and talent to define trends in African literature.
