Jobs That Help You Write In The Most Surprising Ways

I worked retail like you and yes, people-watching is absolutely fascinating. Great for those slower moments at work--catch sight of a person and invent a life for them.

I worked emergency dispatch and you got to do aural people-watching. The way they put words together and inflections of voice made it interesting. Those are things you think about after your shift, though. At the time, you're busy trying to help.

In both cases, it's surprising how a particular phrase or an inflection will stick in your head. Or how a brief glimpse of someone can blossom into an entire imagined story. Or maybe not-so-surprising considering all of our common interest.

I have a big job that supplies nearly all of the material for my stories. The job is called LIFE. And I agree, g. Any situation that puts us in contact with lots of different people generates information for us to extract. And if that situation triggers different emotions in people, all the better.

Working in the legal field, I write a lot but deal with with enough to spot a BSer a mile away. I am also up on many lawyerly tactics that are meant to get a certain result. Great research material.

Every job helps with writing. So does sitting in the park or lying on the beach.