To move on to the PhD or take time off....how does one decide?

[LordQuas]

I'm finishing my MA (poetry) in 2020. It was a funded program but I still have a ton of debt from undergrad. My plan was to go get the PhD, but the more I learn about the academic job market the more it doesn't even feel worth it. I wonder if it'd be better for me to take some time off, pay the debt, then maybe go back to get the PhD if I decide it's worth it. But also, I don't know. I like academia so far, not all of it of course, but I do like it. Maybe the job search won't be as horrible as I think. I don't know. Anyone having the same debate with themselves?