r/Firefighting • u/Solanima • Nov 01 '22

Ask A Firefighter Day-to-day life of a Firefighter

As part of National Novel Writing Month, I am writing about a character who is a firefighter (among other things). Of course, I have never been a firefighter, and don't know what it's really like. I plan on doing some research myself, but I would like to hear directly from those of you who have been on the job: what's it being a firefighter?

I'm not just asking what it's like fighting fires (though that would be good to hear too). I want to know what it's like in your day-to-day life, how you spend your downtime, how close you are with your fellow firefighters, that sort of thing. Give me details that will help my novel feel authentic, in spite of the fact that I've never been in a major fire.

Also, if there is any media you would recommend for an accurate portrayal of your jobs (movies, documentaries, TV shows, books, even video games), let me know!

17 Upvotes

90% Upvoted

18 comments sorted by

View all comments

1

u/hockeypyroo Nov 01 '22

Rescue Me, Dennis Leary was one of the creators. It is the closest thing to the lives of actual fire fighters that has been put on TV. The fires & the ghost aren’t very realistic. Besides that; the home life problems, drinking ect. It’s pretty spot on.