Why I stopped caring if people understand what I do for work...

... and why I never want to talk about it in the first place.

When I got my first job out of college, it seemed pretty easy to explain.

“I’m working in sales at Random House!” I proclaimed in the days after accepting the offer. I bought myself a bus pass and a blazer (it turned out I needed the former, but not so much the latter) and took every opportunity to tell people that, while I was thrilled to have any job at the major book publisher, my ultimate goal was to become an editor. I had no idea what the job in sales would actually entail.

Over time, I did, of course, get a grip on what was required of me as a sales department employee. I shared some of those details with people in my personal life, but there were plenty of things I left out, too. Does anyone really want to hear about the minutiae of designing and maintaining spreadsheets and preparing paperwork for shipping facilities, especially from the mouth of an earnest twenty-something who insists that she’s well on her way to working on the ~creative~ side of books? I figured the answer was no. There was a lot about the job that I loved, but even I didn’t want to talk about those aspects of it.

And still, I told everyone: “I work in sales at Random House!”

Easily enough, my inner circle was able to parrot the same easy answer when asked at some point along the grapevine about what I was up to. “Oh, she works in sales at Random House!”

For a variety of reasons (that I might get into at some point here in the future), I chose to leave my publishing job in the fall of 2016. At the time, the plan was to pursue the all-too-vague path of “freelance writer.” It was a professional transition I’d seen others make and, given my long-time love of writing, it seemed like something I could figure out. My loved ones were supportive enough (at the very least, they were kind enough to act that way!), and since my plan to become a freelance writer sounded pretty straightforward and gelled with my personal interests and skills, I supposed it made enough sense for them to pass along the news of my big life change.

Within a few months, I realized that my life post-publishing and in the freelancing world was much less straightforward than I imagined it might be.

I learned that there were plenty of other ways for me to earn money—more money—than I’d originally assumed, and my time quickly splintered off into all kinds of different projects and endeavors.

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Currently Reading: Yellowface by R.F. Kuang
I was a little skeptical of all the hype on this one, which is why I’ve been slow on the uptake… but I regret waiting so long! It feels a little weird to read a deep dive into the publishing industry/process when I’m smack dab in the middle of those things myself, but I’m trying to keep it in the escapist realm as much as possible.

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Here is (what I think is) an exhaustive list of the things I’ve done for work over the last seven years since leaving my corporate job:

• Pitched, sold, and written stories and essays for women’s-interest sites

• Worked as a staff writer for an online women’s-interest platform, taking on day-long shifts and waiting to take on quick assignments for editors

• Pitched, sold, and written stories and essays for food sites

• Pitched, sold, and written stories for print magazines

• Copyedited science textbooks

• Written book reviews

• Sub-contracted through a podcast services company as a writer repurposing show episodes into blog posts

• Repurposed instructional videos about cooking, crafts, and organization into blog posts

• Written blog posts and sales copy for fitness and health brands and sites

• Created and produced my own podcast, earning money through ad sales and affiliate partnerships

• Worked closely with first-time authors to edit their books

• Sub-contracted through a podcast management agency as a podcast editor

• Worked directly with independent podcasters as an editor and consultant

• Taught writing in a pre-college summer program at a nearby university

• Taught undergraduate writing classes at another nearby university

• Designed and facilitated online writing workshops

• Designed and facilitated a writing workshop at my local independent bookstore

• Facilitated a premium book club for members of my podcast community

• Interviewed entrepreneurs and founders to help create copy for their websites

I share this list not to brag or show off, but to show just how nutty my professional life has been over the last few years. The balance of work I’m doing changes on a near-constant basis.

At this point, when people ask me what I do for work, I usually say some version of “writer and editor.” And when friends and family members appear to undersell my career to others, it doesn’t bother me very much anymore. Early on, I had a chip on my shoulder.