Unpacking the “Day Job”

An update, 3 years into this next chapter of my career: 3 years ago in May 2021 — after nearly 20 years in traditional tech roles as an engineer and a product manager — I left Stripe to start this 2nd chapter of my career. I don’t write often enough about this stuff, so here’s an update both for long-time followers and new followers: - I absolut... See more

“People view me as a writer and I am a writer, I'm a productive writer, but I don't start writing until the afternoon. The whole morning is devoted to listening to music and reading and mostly reading books.” What jumped out to me was a comment that signaled how seriously he took this good work: "I did not do this as a career strategy. I didn'

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These are fantastic questions, and I have to be honest that I’ve never not had another job in addition to writing fiction. And, so, when I meet someone, I generally just say that I teach, because that’s my 9 to 5 job that pays our bills. It’s not that I don’t think I’m a writer or even feel weird about asserting it, but most people who ask are just... See more