r/MedicalWriters

I'm really just throwing a ball here...

I was wondering if anyone would kindly share how they developed their medical writing skills. I'm particularly interested in how you approach reading and analysing research papers, and then writing about them - do you have a structure or process that you tend to follow?

I'd really appreciate any advice, resources, or tips that helped you when you were starting out. Thank you!

Last week I made a post asking how I could realistically make an extra $4,000 in about 2 months, and I was honestly blown away by all the responses. There were a lot of great ideas, but one suggestion kept coming up over and over again: medical writing, regulatory writing, medical communications, and clinical document review.

A little about me…

I’m a PharmD and currently work full-time in Big Pharma in clinical research. My long-term goal is to continue climbing the ladder where I work, and I’m actually in the middle of an internal rotation that’s helping me prepare for higher-level positions.
The reason I’m looking for a side hustle is pretty simple. I’d like to pay down some credit card debt and student loans, help cover expenses for my kids’ activities, and still have a little extra left over so I can get back into playing hockey in a beer league.
One thing that’s really important to me is my family.
We recently had a newborn, and we also have a toddler. My full-time job is mostly work-from-home, but I’m in my office all day and occasionally have to travel. Because of that, I really don’t want another job that requires me to leave the house several nights a week. I’d much rather find something I can do after the kids go to bed, on weekends, or whenever I have free time. The flexibility is honestly more important to me than squeezing out every last dollar.

The more I think about it, the more it makes sense to use my PharmD and clinical research experience instead of trying to start a completely unrelated side hustle.

For those of you doing this type of work…
How did you get started?
How long did it take before you landed your first paying client?
How quickly were you able to start making decent money?
What kind of projects did you take on in the beginning?
What are realistic hourly rates for someone just getting started?
Is the work generally project-based where you can accept or decline work, or are clients expecting ongoing availability?

I’m also trying to figure out where people actually find these opportunities.
What job titles should I be searching for?
Are they called Medical Writer, Regulatory Writer, Medical Communications Specialist, Clinical Document Reviewer, or something else?
Which websites have been the most successful for you? LinkedIn? Upwork? Contract agencies? Staffing firms? Company career pages? Somewhere else?
Are there any companies or agencies that are particularly good for beginners?
One thing I haven’t been able to find much information on is how people handle this while working for a pharmaceutical company.
Obviously I don’t want to create any conflict of interest or violate company policy.
Did you have to get approval from your employer?
If so, was it difficult?
Were you limited in the types of clients you could work with?
If you’re working as an independent contractor on a project basis instead of as an employee, does that usually make things easier?
Has anyone here successfully done this while working full-time in pharma?

I’m not looking for legal advice or ways around company policies. I just want to hear how others have handled it so I know what to expect before I spend time pursuing this.

If you were in my shoes today—with a PharmD, several years of clinical research experience, a full-time job in pharma, and only evenings/weekends available—what would be the very first step you’d take to land your first paid project?

I’d really appreciate hearing from anyone who’s done this. It seems like one of the few side hustles where I can actually leverage my background instead of starting from scratch. Thanks!

I got an email today saying that I have been invited to participate in the first round of interviews (suggesting there’s multiple) for an associate medical writing position. This is after I completed a writing test last week. I’m so excited and I can’t believe I’ve made it this far considering I have no formal experience!!

I was wondering if anyone could give me any advice on what to expect for the first interview or any tips at all?? Thanks in advance :)

Let’s be brutally honest for a second 90% of AI in healthcare right now feels like a fancy solution desperately searching for a problem.

I’m an entrepreneur looking to build something in the health-tech space, but I’m incredibly skeptical of the usual "let's disrupt the hospital system" hype. I want to build a lean, asset-light solution that solves a genuine, painful gap without needing massive VC funding and a ten-year runway to get off the ground.

I’m applying the "Mom Test" here: I don't want to pitch you an idea. I want you to tell me about your pain.

Whether it's in clinical workflows, patient follow-ups, bridging the gap between clinical care and D2C wellness/nutrition, or just the mind-numbing administrative tasks that eat up your day what is broken?

To get the ideas flowing:

What is a task you do every day that makes you think, "Why am I still doing this manually in 2026?"

Where is the biggest bottleneck in patient communication or education?

If you had a magic wand (or just a really well-trained AI model) that could automate exactly one micro-task in your practice, what would it be?

Hit me with your biggest frustrations. I’m here to take notes!

Hello everyone!

I’m a recent PharmD graduate in the United States seeking opportunities in medical writing. I have research experience and a strong background in scientific and medical writing, including literature reviews, clinical content development, data interpretation, and communicating complex medical information to diverse audiences.
I’ve been actively applying for entry-level medical writing positions, but as many know, the field is highly competitive. I’m eager to gain experience, continue developing my skills, and contribute to meaningful projects in medical communications, regulatory writing, publications, medical affairs, or related areas.
If anyone has advice on breaking into the field, recommendations for companies that hire entry-level medical writers, or knows of any opportunities, I would greatly appreciate your insights. I’m also open to freelance, contract, internship, or volunteer opportunities that would allow me to build experience and demonstrate my abilities.
Thank you in advance for any guidance or connections.

Hi,

UK based aspiring medical writer. I have a healthcare/life sciences degree. Is it worth it to pay for a £3000+ 8-week course from pharmalink academy at the CPD creditation service website. To get my foot in to the medical writing industry?

Currently full time working, burn out and inflation is kicking my butt at the moment. So shelling out £3000+ quid is a BIG DEAL for me.

Will appreciate advices.

I have been a senior writer since January. Currently on 44k and feel underpaid - do you think moving companies to a 60k role is feasible? Hoping to do so in Jan 2027 when I’d have a year of SMW experience! BTW I am publications focused and remote. My next pay increase would only be £900 in Jan 2027

I'm finding lots of opportunities for "remote medical writing", but when I look up the companies offering them, lots of reviews come up about the company being a scam or shady in one way or another. Are there any legit companies that are best to look up/keep an eye out for remote openings?

EDIT: Doesn't have to be contract, it can also be remote employment

Thinking of leaving a senior clinical embryology role and build income from multiple part-time or freelance sources.

I know portfolio careers are common in marketing and creative fields. I’m less sure what this looks like for someone with a science background.

My skills:
\\- PhD in reproductive cell and developmental biology
\\- Live cell imaging, microscopy, reproductive biology research, genome editing
\\- Scientific writing and journal publications, journal article peer reviewer
\\- Adobe Illustrator and Strong computer skills

Has anyone with a science or clinical background successfully built income from freelance or part-time work — without going back into a traditional role?

I am currently working full-time as a medical tech writer at a company, but I'd like to take on some extra work to pay some extra expenses. If possible, I would like to find a way to make an additional $5000/month.

I've heard there are some freelance medical writing jobs that can pay $75-$100/hour, perhaps more. However, from what I've looked up so far, it seems like many options won't have a consistent schedule or a consistent workload, and I need something that will pay regularly (and also fit into my full-time schedule). Any advice on how/where to search for these opportunities?

(please excuse me if there's anything impractical about my expectations, I don't know too much about non-fulltime options)

Looking for recommendations. I’ve been working in the device space as a writer and clinical trial manager for >10 years. Abbvie has an opening for a medical writer. Wondering if anyone has switched from device to pharma and has advice? Also, thoughts on Abbvie environment for writers? Thanks!

Tried claude, gpt, Gemini, and other tools, also whichever available in Flikover as well, but the content output is really stupid and senseless. Even 1000 words are not well written even after providing proper outlines, tonality, which english to follow, grammar, etc.,

Can you guys help me out here please.

TIA

Hey guys,

I'm building a tool called Vera and before I launch I genuinely want feedback from people who actually work in this field.

The main thing it does is document review. You upload a clinical study or any regulatory document and it comes back flagging compliance issues, structural gaps and ICH guideline mismatches with tracked changes and citations attached. The idea is it handles the tedious baseline pass so you're starting from a better place instead of doing a full manual sweep yourself.

The other thing that pushed me to build this was that most people in this field can't put client documents into ChatGPT. Unpublished studies, proprietary data, it can't go into a public tool. This keeps everything in your own account.

There's also a chatbot built on current CFR and ICH guidelines so if you have a quick regulatory question you can just ask it and get a cited answer without digging through the federal register.

A few things I genuinely want to know:

• Is the manual reformatting and compliance checking actually where a lot of your time goes?
• Does this sound like something you'd actually use or is it solving the wrong problem?
• What would you change or add to make it more useful for your workflow?

Happy to answer any questions about it.

I am a US based medical writer with just over a year and a half of experience in regulatory documents (oncology). I have a PhD, and prior to medical writing, my dissertation and industry research experience were in pre-clinical immuno-oncology. I don’t mind being a medical writer, but I want to know how people have used it as a springboard to other fields (regulatory affairs or strategy, project management, transitioning from drugs to med device or some other field, etc) and hear about their experiences.

Also looking to see if anyone has fared okay living outside of a hub, and if they get anxiety about having to find another job, or if that’s not a huge fear because of the remote nature of this type of work. Any insights are appreciated!