If Someone Asks “What Do You Do?”, Is “I’m a Writer” Your Answer?
When I started calling myself a “writer”
On a layover flight to Oslo, on my way home from a writing retreat, I sat beside a woman who was traveling for work. We were exchanging stories when she eventually asked, “What do you do?”
“I’m a writer,” I replied.
“Oh, like for a company? Or freelance?”
My brain paused.
I don’t have an employer. Do I say “freelance”? But that word gives the impression I write for clients. And while I do that now and then, a bigger chunk of my income actually comes from my own writing.
“I’m… Well, I have my own writing business…” I faltered. Then, thinking she might interpret it as working in publishing, I immediately added, “I make money from my own writing.”
My answer sounded clunky. Most people don’t say, “I make money by consulting on strategic initiatives” or “I make money by analyzing financial data.” They simply say “I’m a consultant” or “I’m an analyst.”
She thought for a moment. “Are you like, an author?”
“I have a book, yes, I’m an author,” I continued faltering.
What she really meant, of course, was:
“Are you someone famous enough to make lots of money from their books and I just haven’t heard of you? What is your REAL job?”
How do I explain that yes, I have modest book sales, but because my book is literary fiction and I’m not a BookTok-viral author, my book sales are just enough for café expenses?
That I earn more from articles, newsletters, and digital products related to writing?
That I just came from an international writing retreat where I was funded to attend?
I suppose the real reason it’s hard to answer her question is because most people assume that “writers” are either super famous authors who make millions off their books, or B2B, SaaS, branding and marketing copywriters who make money either as employees or freelance digital nomads with no health insurance.
That’s why people have this unspoken expectation that when you say, “I’m a writer,” you’re supposed to follow it up with another “real” job.
It’s not uncommon that some writers answer the question “What do you do?” with “I work in marketing” or something similar.
“What do you do?” is just polite code for “How do you make money?”
Hey, it’s John here from the Writing to (L)Earn team. And we all know that when someone asks “What do you do?” they’re not asking about your hobbies, your passions, or what lights you up inside.
They want to know how you pay your bills. It’s a quick way to categorize you: Oh, you’re a teacher. Oh, you’re in tech. Oh, you’re someone rich.
But here’s the thing: we’re not just one thing. I write, yes, but I also make visual stories. I create digital products. I provide coaching. I enjoy listening to and playing techno music at gatherings. I’m someone who reads voraciously and thinks about story structure while going on mountain runs.
The question “What do you do?” tries to squeeze all of that into a neat little box, and writers especially don’t fit into neat little boxes.
You’re not an “aspiring” writer
At the writing retreat, I met people who worked in universities, in healthcare, in various industries. These were their “real jobs.” But they were unmistakably writers because they loved to write and they DID lots of writing.
Most importantly, their “real jobs” influenced their writing in meaningful ways that made their writing richer.
The government worker understood bureaucracy in a way that made her dystopian fiction eerily believable. The nurse brought a unique understanding of life and death to his essays. The accountant’s attention to detail made their mystery plots airtight.
Most of us are like this.
You might be a teacher who writes lesson plans by day and novels by night. An accountant who writes flash fiction during lunch breaks. A stay-at-home parent who writes while the baby naps.
You’re not an “aspiring” writer because you’re already writing.
How to feel comfortable calling yourself a writer
I call myself a writer because 60% to 80% of my working time is actually spent writing.
I’m a “writer” because I make a full-time living from my words in written form.
I think anyone who is doing either or both of the above should just go ahead and answer, “I’m a writer,” when asked what they do.
But here’s what really matters: I write.
That’s what makes me a writer. Not the income, not the publication credits, not the funded retreat invitations. The writing itself.
What about those “aspiring writers”? I think you should just write.
Because it is not what you want that defines you, it is what you do.
So yes, even if you’re working for a B2B SaaS company doing marketing copy, you’re a writer. It’s literally what you spend most of your working time on. What else are you supposed to be?
If you want to become a writer, then write.
The next time someone asks “What do you do?” try this: Say “I’m a writer.”
Don’t add qualifiers. Don’t explain. Just let it sit there. Because if you write, whether it’s novels or newsletters, poetry or marketing copy , then that’s what you are.
A writer.
-John, with Darius and Michael
Love this. Truly.
Michael--Fantastic and fun. There's a psychological side to the conversation that takes years and experience to understand. You've been conditioned to be polite and answer mother's questions or the teacher's questions. Grown up, you learn to ask questions.
That "What do you do?" question is someone else's monkey brain trying to put you in a category.
Usually I say "I know the answer to that question -- would you care to guess, first?" 100% of the time, their brain can't resist, and they want to look smart, so they say something like "lawyer" or something else. My reward for them leaning closer to me to hear what comes next is, "Good guess! I'm a journalist." Then, yes, Michael, they go to the do you get paid for doing that kind of question, with "Where do you publish" or "What do you write about?" That's my opening for the final question before they take over the conversation. I ask, "Can you tell me what you read, and I'll tell you if I've published in anything you mention?" The rest of the conversation is what they wanted to talk about anyway.