I’ve held many jobs over the years. I won’t name them all, but here are a few to give you an idea of my wide-ranging income-earning experience.
In 2008, I was a parking lot attendant at Andover High School.
In 2011, I was the Fountain Lead at Tower General Store in Yellowstone National Park.
In 2012, I managed a corner bodega called Field to City.
In 2014, I delivered sandwiches for Jimmy John’s.
In 2016, I made pizzas at Grizzly’s Bar in Stratton Village, Vermont.
In 2018, I delivered pizzas for Parkway Pizza in Northeast Minneapolis.
In 2021, I worked as a special education paraprofessional at Coon Rapids High School.
And in 2025, I’m the general manager at Lake Harriet Pizza.
There’s one thing all these jobs have in common: none of them are remotely related to my education.
In 2007, I earned a Master of Arts in history from Minnesota State University, Mankato. In 2019, I earned a Master of Fine Arts in creative writing from Augsburg University. I loved school and I’m proud of what I learned, but neither degree led me to steady employment in those fields. And it wasn’t for lack of trying—I’ve written hundreds of cover letters to prove it.
The truth is, those degrees weren’t free. As I write this, I still owe $2,745.60 from my undergraduate and first graduate years (2001–2007). For my MFA (2017–2019), the balance is $52,872.72. I’m paying them back slowly, but not from an income earned in my field. My education, it turns out, can’t be measured in dollars and cents.
So why am I telling you this? Because I need you to stick with me. It gets worse before it gets better—but it does get better if you keep reading.
When I couldn’t find a job that matched my training, I created one. In 2019, I founded History Through Fiction, an independent publisher of historical fiction. Over the years I’ve had to teach myself how to run a business, but I love it. I’m an author, editor, and publisher—and often also a publicist, webmaster, graphic designer, bookkeeper, social media manager, and administrative assistant. Most importantly, this work combines my two passions: history and storytelling. It’s the best job I could have imagined, and it’s the only one I want moving forward.
But here’s the hard part: it’s not profitable. Not yet. In fact, I’ve never once paid myself for the work I do for my business. Every dollar goes right back in. Even the money I earn as a freelance editor or book coach goes directly into the business account. A $4,000 developmental edit? Straight back in. A $250 monthly coaching fee? Straight back in.
This isn’t a complaint—it’s proof of how much I believe in what I’m building. Ask anyone who has partnered with me—Robin Henry (managing and acquisitions editor),
(virtual author assistant), Jillian Forsberg (author extraordinaire), or (editing client turned hybrid author). They’ll tell you firsthand about the heart and determination I put into this work.Every day, after closing my laptop, lacing up my shoes, and putting on my Lake Harriet Pizza shirt, I sit down and pray. I pray to do good work for the people I serve, and I pray for strength and patience until the day I no longer have to stop working on my business to go work another job. Until the day I can support myself fully through the business I built from the education I earned—the day I can finally use that income to pay off my loans.
I’ve prayed this prayer before every job—whether as Fountain Lead, bodega manager, or Jimmy John’s delivery driver. And I will pray it again today, before a long nine-hour shift at the pizza shop.
I haven’t always made the most savvy choices. I know I bear responsibility for some of the struggles I’ve faced in finding work in my field or making my business profitable. But I also know this: my heart is in the right place. I love what I do. I care deeply about the people I work with and for. And I have faith in myself and in this company I’ve built.
Today, I’m closer than ever to my dream. I’ll keep pushing forward—learning, striving, and holding fast to my integrity. I’ll keep publishing great novels. I’ll keep building lasting relationships with authors and readers.
This—this long, uncertain, hopeful process—is what entrepreneurship looks like. Or, to borrow from
: It’s how I built this.
I'd buy a "Liberate Colin from Lake Harriet Pizza" t-shirt, mug, or better yet, writing journal!
And student loans? Well, I paid off my last one the year that I turned 65. My mortgage was paid off sooner!
I've seen that advice to "consider yourself one of your bills." I get that -- and I have the unread book library to prove it!
Paraphrasing someone far wiser...it's not work if you love what you're doing, or, it's not work if you'd do it for free anyway.
Pulling for you...
I am sure that things will work out in the long run, as from what I have read from you in the past few months, everything seems to be going in the right direction. I have failed in business myself, at a law practice in the 90s. I was a good lawyer, terrible businessman. Since then, I was able to take care of my family's affairs successfully, but am now again in a different stage of my life, trying to write books, while doing a graveyard shift as security at a hotel/hostel in Toronto.
But there is one thing I remember that successful lawyers and businessmen told me that I ignored to my detriment, and you may be as well.
Pay yourself first.
That way, you are getting at least some financial compensation from it, maybe only just enough to buy something nice, or go on a trip. And there is a psychological benefit from getting to use some of the proceeds of your work for something that you will enjoy. And I say this understanding fully how much you enjoy watching the business grow. But something just for you. Maybe after a milestone, like the conference, you could start, maybe just from your editing jobs, to take and set aside something even as small as 5%. It would add up quickly, and you could use it for anything from refurbishing your home/workspace to a few days somewhere warm.