Julia Walton at Media Contacts has chatted with Krys Dylewska, freelance medical writer.

What attracted you to this career in the first place?

I fell into freelancing as a medical writer from in-house project management. It suits my lifestyle because as a freelancer I am able to work from home and take care of my extensive menagerie of pets.

What’s your favourite part of your job?

Getting paid! There’s a much more direct relationship between work and payment when you’re freelance so it’s a good feeling to reap the rewards for one’s hard graft.

What is the most challenging experience you have faced?

Being asked to do something completely wrong (be that impossible, unethical or unwise for the client’s business). An example was when a client wanted a set of slides that had been created for internal ‘cheerleading’ purposes to be adapted for KOLs, which is like asking to mix oil and water. Luckily, things like this have happened to me fewer than six times in 20 years and I am not afraid to say, ‘No’.

What’s a highlight of your career so far?

A recent highlight arose from working on a project for a big, global agency with one of their US divisions. Unusually for a freelancer, I was very heavily involved with being on calls and emails directly with the client. At the end of the project to deliver a slide deck she sent an email saying how pleased she was with the results. It was lovely to hear directly from the end-client that my insights and advice were so much appreciated.

Who would play you in the movie of your life?

Cher, because she has played a lot of feisty women who speak their minds and aren’t afraid to say controversial things, by being honest.

What would your key tasks in a typical day be?

It depends on what I am working on at the time, but they may involve responding to emails, making sure the brief is optimal for the end-client’s commercial objectives, researching, finding ways to add value, reading minds, and, of course, writing.

Thanks, Krys. Have a great day!