Jobs Of Authors Before They Became Famous Analysis
Jobs of Authors Before They Became Famous
While names like Stephen King, Anne Rice and John Grisham are household names these days and associated with their bestselling books this was not always the case. Even the best writers had to do something to put food on the table while working on their books in their spare time. Here are just a few writers who eventually made it big, but not before they had to settle for jobs that were a little less glamorous than being a full time writer.
Stephen King The High School Janitor
Stephen King is the master of horror and supernatural fiction, but despite writing for fun while still in school, he had to take on odd jobs while studying. One of these was a summer job as a janitor at Brunswick High. One of his …show more content…
This happened when his father was sent to a debtors’ prison for being unable to pay his debt. His pay was a meager 5 or 6 shillings per week for pasting labels onto pots of blacking. It was a dark time in his life, but no doubt provided him with plenty of inspiration for the bleak situations he would later dream up for his …show more content…
Things looked very bright after he formed a brief writing partnership with Graham Chapman of Monty Python fame, but unfortunately did didn’t last very long. Although he was still writing, he had to take on other jobs to make ends meets and these included being a barn builder, chicken shed cleaner and hospital porter. He even ended up being employed by a Qatari family as a bodyguard.
Harper Lee The Airline Reservation Agent
To Kill a Mockingbird was published in 1960 and was immediately successful; eventually going on to become a true classic of modern American literature. The author, Harper Lee, studied law for several years, but never managed to complete her degree. Instead, she moved to New York City in 1949 where she became an airline reservation agent for Eastern Airlines and the British Overseas Airways Corporation. It wasn’t until 1956 when a friend of hers gave her enough funds to survive for a year as a full time writer that she quit her job and started on To Kill a Mockingbird.
John Grisham The Men’s Underwear
While names like Stephen King, Anne Rice and John Grisham are household names these days and associated with their bestselling books this was not always the case. Even the best writers had to do something to put food on the table while working on their books in their spare time. Here are just a few writers who eventually made it big, but not before they had to settle for jobs that were a little less glamorous than being a full time writer.
Stephen King The High School Janitor
Stephen King is the master of horror and supernatural fiction, but despite writing for fun while still in school, he had to take on odd jobs while studying. One of these was a summer job as a janitor at Brunswick High. One of his …show more content…
This happened when his father was sent to a debtors’ prison for being unable to pay his debt. His pay was a meager 5 or 6 shillings per week for pasting labels onto pots of blacking. It was a dark time in his life, but no doubt provided him with plenty of inspiration for the bleak situations he would later dream up for his …show more content…
Things looked very bright after he formed a brief writing partnership with Graham Chapman of Monty Python fame, but unfortunately did didn’t last very long. Although he was still writing, he had to take on other jobs to make ends meets and these included being a barn builder, chicken shed cleaner and hospital porter. He even ended up being employed by a Qatari family as a bodyguard.
Harper Lee The Airline Reservation Agent
To Kill a Mockingbird was published in 1960 and was immediately successful; eventually going on to become a true classic of modern American literature. The author, Harper Lee, studied law for several years, but never managed to complete her degree. Instead, she moved to New York City in 1949 where she became an airline reservation agent for Eastern Airlines and the British Overseas Airways Corporation. It wasn’t until 1956 when a friend of hers gave her enough funds to survive for a year as a full time writer that she quit her job and started on To Kill a Mockingbird.
John Grisham The Men’s Underwear