Why You Should Get A Summer Job As A Writer (+ Project Live Your Story Summertime!)

Summer has pretty much arrived (contrary to the calendar’s beliefs) and with that comes the idea of summer jobs. 

I’ve spent the past few summers working different jobs and experiencing new things, but it wasn’t until recently that I realized how valuable those adventures have been – both for me as a person and for my writing. 

Even though the actual time I spent writing decreased while I had a summer job, that experience still helped my writing and storytelling skills in many ways. So, without further ado, here are a few reasons why I think you should get a summer job. 

Basic Time and Money Management Skills 

I’m sure you’ve heard this from adults plenty, but it’s true. Working means that you will have to manage your time and schedule. Working also means that you’ll make money, which means you need to manage said money. These are valuable skills for anybody, but especially entrepreneurs or authors. 

It’s hard to make a living as a writer. Writers are often entrepreneurs, taking on different jobs or tasks for enough to make a living. With the sheer number of different activities and commitments authors have (meetings, deadlines from publishers, critiquing, mentoring, coaching, etc.) writers need to be very skilled at managing their time. 

And because writing isn’t a job with a set hourly wage, financial management skills are very important too. You can’t learn how to organize your money until you start to make money… which you can with a summer job! 

Other “Adult” Skills Too 

We are all going to become adults one day. All of us, at some point, will need to leave the home we know and go out into the world. It’s a lot easier to do this when you have acquired basic life skills. You need to be able to clean your home, cook your food, and talk to people. 

Having a job can teach you these skills. When I worked at a coffee shop, we had to keep the store constantly clean. I learned how to make coffee and cook, and I learned how to talk to people in a professional way. There’s no way to simulate real life conversations – you have to go out into the world and just do it. 

Experiences to Thread Into Your Stories

When you work at a job, random things will happen. I met some hilarious kids when I worked as an assistant gymnastics coach. (Little kids in general will provide you with plenty of inspiration. The way they see the world is so different!) While cleaning windows, I once saw a hyper-realistic-but-most-definitely-fake cat, and it creeped me out and has stuck in my head since. 

I can guarantee you, these experiences will pop up in my stories. Side characters who have a taxidermied cat collection are much more interesting than just your regular, blank slate side characters.

Working at a job can give you endless inspiration and wacky events to put into your own writing. You’ll be able to write predicaments that aren’t cliche and predictable, but still believable. It will make your stories unique and entertaining. 

You Will Live

(Warning: Hannah gets relatively philosophical in this section) 

We often joke about how writers just want to stay home with books and tea – which is honestly quite true. Books and tea can make for a very relaxing evening. But the thing about writing is that we reflect our lives and experiences in our stories, and books and tea don’t neccesarilly make for the most compelling novels.

Even if you spend hours a day studying plot structure and character arcs, I don’t think you can craft a meaningful story without one vital thing: life experience. 

It’s because of an author’s experiences that they are able to portray such raw and realistic emotions. Because of what they’ve seen in life, and the wisdom they have gained from their triumphs and misfortunes, they are able to create realistic, relatable, and meaningful books. 

Writers can’t spend all their time on a computer or bundled up under blankets. We need to get out into the world and live. 

… and a great way to do that is to work a summer job. 🙂 

Project Live Your Story 

Or, if you want to experience the world in a different way, you could join Project Live Your Story

(haha, I have trickethed thee…this post was all one giant ad for employment and email challenges

If you’ve been around for a while, you might remember the first round of Project Live Your Story in January. That was such a fun experience that I wanted to do it again! 

Project Live Your Story (otherwise known as P.L.Y.S.) is a month-long challenge focused on getting writers away from their computer and out into the world. 

How it works: 

Starting June 21st (the first official day of summer! ☀️) you will be emailed one challenge per week until July 12th. Each challenge will be small, but every one of them will push you to get out into the sunshine and experience new things. 

There is also a private Slack community focused on building accountability and friendship! 

Ready to bring life to your writing? Sign up HERE. (Remember – sign ups end on June 20th!) 

I hope to see you there! Have a great summer, friends. 🙂 

-Hannah 

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