I'm open with my parents and my sister. My cousins would probably giggle and snort when they found out what I did and start asking me questions about the wildest cam moments.
I'm open with my friends, and when they introduce me to friends of theirs, I do a quick assessment, and I usually tell the truth.
When it comes to people I don't know, or who I don't want to know, I tell them I work independently for some publishers doing fact-checking/editing stuff. It's a boring topic, so no one wants to continue it. Likewise, my mom is honest with her best friends, but with others, she tells them I work "for an internet company," which is also so boring and vague, no one has asked her to go into more detail.
I always have a book with me, so people buy the editor line all the time. With my education, it's an easy field for me to go into, so no one questions it.
My friend who did phone sex told people she worked for an investment company. Technically yes, the parent company had "investments" in the title, so it worked. I tried it, but people kept asking me for financial advice.
Find something boring, but that you know enough to speak a few sentences about then say, "Oh, but that stuff is so boring, let's not talk about work!" and then ask people if they're ready for another round of wine/stuffing/pie