Juliet Fawcett, Freelance Medical Writer, is baking while she’s working. Cake making is important in MedComms…
One of the joys of being a freelancer is the opportunity to do tasks at home whilst working. So, today I’ll be finishing off my report on hypoglycemia treatment whilst making cupcakes for my son’s birthday tomorrow!! (which coincidentally is also the Alzheimer’s Society fundraising cupcake day)
This just in from Kris Rydholm Överby, freelance Consultant and Medical Writer
Today I am working from my office in Sigtuna, Sweden, and here is a picture of our 1,000 year old High Street founded by the Vikings.
My assignments today include literature searches and writing a case report for a MedTech company in Uppsala and preparing for a series of webinars this autumn for a pharma company in Stockholm.
The diversity of working freelance in medical communication!
Jane Tricker, freelance writer, is chilling out!
I have swapped my office and the rattle of keys for the beautiful Corbiere hills, birdsong and the gurgle of the pool pump this #medcomms day.
And an end-of-the-working-day message from Sheridan Henness, Freelance medical writer. And another example of how the #MedCommsPets can help us through the day.
MedComms Day is drawing to a close here in New Zealand, but it’s been a good one. My day started with packing off my CFO (Chief Furry Officer) Toby to doggie daycare, and then getting stuck into some work before the New Zealand Medical Writers Zoom call, specially organized for today by Peter. The call was great; I think working as a freelancer in New Zealand comes with some unique challenges, so it was good to talk about those things and put some faces to names. After that it was back into work. Today I was working on some manuscripts on ulcerative colitis and migraine, but tomorrow I’ll move on to some oncology work. Diversity in therapeutic areas is the name of the game around here, and that’s one of the many things I love about this job. But right now me and the CFO are settling in for some relaxation time before it all starts again tomorrow. I hope everyone who is just starting their MedComms Day has a great one!
Followng our Zoom meeting of the New Zealand medical writers, independent Medical Communications Specialist Nicola Ryan turns back to her work….
The photo is of my little corner of the world at home. Of course I’d rather be in Rarotonga (as pictured on the computer desktop), but happy not to have to go outside to commute on colder winter days!
#MedComms day for me started, as always, with checking e-mail. With nearly all my clients coming from the other side of the world, the first venture into e-mail each morning can be either a relief (no unexpected/urgent work) or a bit stressful (too many new projects, not enough time?!). I’m juggling the final stages of a few projects (journal page proofs, submissions, final author comments) with three manuscripts (two ORAs, one large review) that need to be completed by the end of the month – all fitted around the other smaller bits and pieces that come up on a day-to-day basis. Most of my work is direct with KOLs, or sometimes pharma or device companies, so I don’t always know how each day will pan out, but that’s what keeps things interesting – right? The zoom meeting with other NZ medical writers was a welcome interlude in my day. Great to see some new faces and some old ones too. It helps to feel less isolated. Very grateful to Peter Llewellyn for staying up well after the witching hour to make it all happen. Have a great day everyone.
Well, that was fun. Using zoom meant a group of us from aross New Zealand and elswhere could chat informally together about working life for medical writers. We covered off developing business, keeping clients and when necessary knowing when to turn away projects.
Thanks to Matt Boyd and Marie Cheeseman and Mark English and Adi Ferrara and Sheridan Henness and Blair Hesp and Harriet Lamb and Kathryn Lee and Daniel McGowan and Tricia Newell and Nicola Ryan and Lyndal Staples for joining in.
And it looks like we’ve agreed we’ll do it again, sometime soon. I look forward to it.
Lyndal Staples, Freelance Medical Writer, has sent the kids off to school and is now getting down to work…
Like all my previous posts to the #MedComms Day page, I’ll start my contribution with a good morning from sunny Napier, New Zealand. It’s shaping up to be another gorgeous, albeit chilly, day here.
My day as a freelance medical writer has started like most others. The kids are up, dressed and off to school and I’m just about to get stuck into today’s work. I’m currently working on some materials for an agency in the United Kingdom. I started my most recent contract with them last month, and it’s great to be back on board working with some familiar faces.
Later this morning I’ll be joining the Zoom video meeting of New Zealand medical writers organised by Peter. It will be great to catch up with those folks that I know, as well as a few new ones.
I’ll be following this year’s MedComms Day feed with interest. It’s easy to feel a little out of touch being a freelancer (especially one who lives at the bottom of the world…), but days like these remind me that I’m part of a big global community.
The North West London local meet-up of freelancers is wrapping up.
Cheers to another successful year, as freelancers on #MedComms Day celebrate at a Harrow restaurant in London!
From (left to right): Mina Varsani, Corinne Swainger, Petra Roberts, Deborah Powell, and Jane Lamprill (who took the shot).
We last heard from Jane Tricker, Freelance writer, this morning whilst she was struggling for a wifi connection on the train to London. She’s just arrived back home.
It turned out to be a very long day in London – I got back about half an hour ago. The slide deck was well received: the pharma client has already sent his comments back and I’ll be working on them tomorrow. This afternoon, I’ve been putting together a rather unusual style of presentation for a global brand team meeting – first draft to be with the client first thing tomorrow (hence the long hours). Time for a glass of wine, I think.
It’s become a tradition, as we head towards the end of another #MedComms Day, that Sarah Smith, a freelance medical writer and editor based on her boat in the Caribbean reminds us that you can freelance in #MedComms from anywhere these days… today that’s Calvigny Island in the background. A playground for the rich and famous apparently! Well played, Sarah!
Jill Kaige is a freelancer specialising in manging Zinc MAPS and Vault Promomats, based in Oxford.Corinne Swainger is a freelance medical copywriter, and organises regular local meet-ups for other MedComms freelancers and remote workers living in and around North West London. They’re meeting tonight to celebrate MedComms Day, so I’m hoping for more pictures!
Greetings from sunny Middlesex, in the suburbs of Greater London! As an independent medical copywriter, I love the diverse challenges that freelance life gives me, but like any other business, I still need to dedicate some essential time to focus my professional marketing plan. It was half-term last week, so I took some time off to assess my current and future business situation. During the past 12 years since I kicked off my freelance scientific career, pharmaceutical-healthcare communications have changed rapidly, which means I’ve had to adjust too, or risk getting left behind. While I’m looking to stay freelance in the future, I’m keen to find out what new marketing options are out there for small businesses like me. So, I’m talking to various colleagues inside and outside the industry for their thoughts before I take my next steps.
As part of these changes, today, I’m been tweaking the logo for my MediQuill Ltd, and updating my professional LinkedIn profile. I’m also investigating whether I want to specialise on a more niche healthcare market. For example, in recent years, I’ve focused more on devising medical promotions and medical education for primary healthcare professionals and patients, rather writing abstracts and clinical research reviews for secondary care. I’ve also branched out into creating medical education and promotions for medical devices, so today, I’m considering if, and how I could offer more specific services to those types of clients.
Finally, I’m definitely looking forward to catching up with a few other freelancers this evening to celebrate MedComms Day in our own way, at our local freelancers meet-up. Cheers!
Sarah Smith, freelance medical writer, set sail from the UK some years ago and hasn’t looked back. You can work from anywhere in the world with MedComms!
Morning everyone! I’ve just got up here on our boat (our home and my office) in not-so-sunny Grenada. I have a morning working on a writing project and a BBQ on the beach planned for this afternoon. At least if it rains the rain will be warm!
Julia Davies is a freelance editor.
Greetings from sunny Worthing! Today, like most days, is a day of juggling… editing projects from various clients, studying for my coaching diploma, a quick session at the gym, and an all-important break at the beach. I’ve been editing for over 10 years, and I particularly appreciate the flexibility and variety of freelancing; it enables me to do a job I love alongside my studies, as well as mostly (!) managing to achieve that elusive work–life balance. I love hearing from others around the world on MedComms Day and seeing how flexible and full of variety our industry is!
Quite a juxtaposition to this time last year, when I was huddled over my laptop in sub zero temperatures of Edinburgh. A completely different beauty surrounded me then, as did a vastly different culture and climate. This is why I love freelancing so much – I never know where I’ll be one year to the next.
The REALLY great news, is that I can provide an overnight service for all my UK clients. It’s win-win for everyone!
Jane Tricker, Freelance writer, is struggling with the wifi on the train, apparently, but has still managed to send this message in. Technology is great, when it works…
I’m writing this from the 7.25 train to Victoria, admiring the glorious Kent countryside as I go. I’m spending the day with DDBRemedy – an advertising agency based in Paddington. I’ve been working with this agency for several months on a range of projects (including a couple of pitches). My current project is to prepare a slide deck that will be used to introduce an existing regional sales team to a new drug in a new therapeutic area. The drug is due to launch in a couple of years’ time, and the deck will be used at a meeting to decide how many staff will be needed to support the launch, when and how they will be transitioned and what additional staff they will need in specific territories. My job has been to distil the information in hundreds of slides in the core deck down to 35 slides for a 50-minute presentation and provide a fresh approach to the storytelling for this meeting – the pharma client wants something that will encourage the delegates to think ‘outside the box’ for their launch preparaton.
Another great view from Kris Rydholm Överby.
This year, MedComms Day falls on our Swedish National Day Holiday! Everyone is enjoying bright sunshine and lovely weather as we proudly display the Swedish flag at home.
Not too much holiday rest for this freelancer, however! I have a number of projects I am working on today:
– Developing an educational slide deck for the innovative Swedish CPS 6000 system, which monitors negative and positive air pressures in isolation rooms and operating theatres
– Editing a review article for a Future Medicine journal
– Translation from Swedish to English of Medicvent product materials for evacuation of nitrous oxide, surgical smoke and anesthesia gases
Greetings from me to everyone on MedComms Day from Sigtuna, Sweden, founded by the Viking Erik the Victorious in the year 980. I will go back to work now so we can light the barbecue and celebrate Swedish National Day later this afternoon!
Mark English, freelance writer, is preparing for some serious traveling over the coming days. Ping him a message if you want to meet up and hear about freelance life in New Zealand – and those views. Oh, those views!
It was a cold start here in Wanaka, New Zealand with overnight snow on the mountains and mountain passes, so the log fire was cranked up well before work began. Like most freelancers in New Zealand, the start of my day consisted of catching up on emails that arrived overnight from various parts of the globe. I then incorporated some minor comments on an oncology e-learning tool and the rest of my day was spent organising an upcoming trip. Living in New Zealand, I don’t get the chance to meet clients very often, but we (myself and my better half) are heading on an overseas trip on Saturday visiting old and new clients in San Francisco, New Jersey, Philadelphia and the U.K. We are also throwing in an advisory board meeting in Barcelona just for the fun of it and then finally we are spending some time with family in the Lake District U.K. (can I order sunshine there please?). I have been a medical writer for 18 years now and I still absolutely love my job and the variety it brings. Anyhow, less of the I love my job warm fuzzies, does anyone want to meet me for a coffee and a natter on my travels? Yes? Fantastic. Here is my email address —-> mark.english@bellbirdmedical.com.
And finally, I will leave you with a much-requested photo. Here is tonight’s sunset over Lake Wanaka. If you look very closely, you might see Mt Aspiring in the far distance, New Zealand’s second highest peak at 3,033 metres!
#MedComms Day 