





































 V37 N3 / 2022 

©2022 American Medical Writers Association. All rights reserved.  
ISSN 2163-5315

AMWAJournal.org     9

Last month in the AMWA Journal, you may have read the 
first installment of the review of the popular annual con-
ference session, the Jam Session for Seasoned Freelancers. 
Here we summarize and discuss the experiences, ideas, 
concerns, and challenges faced by seasoned freelancers that 
there wasn’t space for in last month’s issue. If you missed 
last month’s article, we reviewed managing stress; email, 
travel, and security issues; and sculpting your business. 
Here, we discuss doing business with friends, referring cli-
ents, legal battles, and one of the costs of doing business.

* * *

THE FRIEND ZONE
When a seasoned freelancer finds themselves working with 
a friend and an issue or a concern arises, the best thing to 
do is leverage the friendship to be honest and transparent—
something you might not be able to do if the person were 
not a friend. Explain what isn’t working and why and ask for 
help to make it work better. Be proactive and act quickly so 
the issue doesn’t fester. Problems are much easier to resolve 
when they’re small.

Tips From Seasoned Freelancers
It is my view that, when working with one of your personal 
friends, the reporting structure should be quite clear. [In 
fact, whether working with a friend or colleague—freelance 
or as an employee—the reporting structure always should 
be crystal clear. There is no such thing as a “lateral hier-
archy.”] When I hire a friend, I expect them to follow my 
direction; if they have opinions that differ, I definitely wish 
to hear them and often have changed something based on 
input from others who work with/for me. But my vote is the 
final vote if the person has been hired by me. If a person is 
truly a close personal friend (outside of any business rela-
tionship), then I expect that we would be able to speak 
together honestly and try to compromise. However, if actual 

friction occurs and it seems impossible to resolve, then 
decide whether you want to keep the friend or the project/
client—and eliminate one of them.

—Cathryn D. Evans

At an AMWA national conference in San Diego several 
years ago, I encountered a young woman who had been in 
a workshop with me, and we chatted about issues raised 
by the speakers. Of course, the matter of “getting started” 
as a medical writer arose. Numerous workshop attendees 
had complained about related difficulties and obstacles. 
Engaging with the 50 or so eager faces surrounding me, I 
felt obliged to say, “In this room, I see and hear individuals 
who are educated, energetic, and eager. I can’t help but say, 
have faith in yourself! Never stop trying. Back away from any 
failed attempts. Focus on your eagerness for new opportuni-
ties. Seek new options.”
 Subsequently, that young woman took a new job. The 
pay was terrible, and the working conditions were worse. 
But she has kept in touch with me and has recalibrated to a 
different job. She is still a “work in progress, ” but she con-
tinues to correspond with me and actually has improved her 
working life. Each of us has gained a new friend!

—Phyllis Minick

* * *

MATCHMAKING
Some seasoned freelancers manage their workloads by 
referring clients when they’re either not the right person for 
the job or already committed to another assignment. When 
you’re ready to make an introduction, first contact each 
person involved to make sure they’re aware and on board. 
Then, send an email to both the client and the person 
you’re referring to them. Introduce them to each other and 
say something relevant and complimentary about each of 
them. End the introduction by wishing them both well and 

Brian Bass, with commentary from Cathryn D. Evans, Phyllis Minick, and Sherri Bowen

Jam Session for Seasoned Freelancers—Part 2

FREELANCE FOCUS

Sherri Bowen Phyllis Minick

http://www.amwajournal.org


AMWAJournal.org     10Freelance Focus

reminding the client that you look forward to working with 
them when the next opportunity arises. Some seasoned 
freelancers make so many referrals that they keep a spread-
sheet of who they refer and to whom.

Tips From a Seasoned Freelancer
If I am unable to take on a particular project for a prospec-
tive new client because of my schedule, I will give the person 
the name and contact information (email and telephone 
number) of a qualified colleague who might be able to fit 
the project into their schedule. I will recommend the person 
based on my personal experience working with them. If this 
exchange is by telephone, I will follow up with an email to 
the person I recommended with the name and email of the 
new client. If a long-term good client needs something and 
it is nearly impossible to fit it into my schedule, I will try to 
make it possible to fit it in, even if it means working nights, 
etc. I have referred a number of such new clients to other 
writers but have not followed up to see if the connection 
worked out; some writers do email and thank me.

—Cathryn D. Evans

* * *

LINGERING LEGAL BATTLES
It has been a few years since California enacted AB5 and 
threatened the livelihoods of freelancers everywhere. Since 
then, the COVID-19 pandemic has taken center stage, but 
seasoned freelancers know they need to remain vigilant and 
vocal and do everything possible to show that their free-
lance business is a real business. This includes establish-
ing your freelance business as a recognized business entity, 
such as an LLC or S-Corp, and describing your freelance 
business as a vendor rather than as a contractor.

Tips From a Seasoned Freelancer
Years ago, a member of this Freelance Contributors Group 
advised all of us to insert in each of our work contracts a 
“hold harmless” clause. She cited a coworker who had writ-
ten medication instructions for a pharmaceutical compa-
ny’s package insert. A patient sued that company, and the 
writer was also sued. I later included a similar hold harm-
less clause in my contract as a freelance writer with a major 
pharm company. The company agreed to my contract with-
out question. Anyone accepting this suggestion should have 
an attorney write that clause for their personal situation.

—Phyllis Minick

* * *

THE COST OF DOING BUSINESS
Seasoned freelancers have noticed an increasing number 
of clients requiring their vendors to participate in standard 
operating procedure (SOP) training, sensitivity training, 
and other similar programs. Should you charge for your 
time? You bet! Employees of the company are required to go 
through the same training and their salaries are not docked 
for the time, so freelancers should not be financially penal-
ized either. When a client asks you to participate in an inter-
nal training program, simply ask them how they want you to 
invoice for it. If they balk about compensating you for your 
time, consider it a red flag.

Tips From Seasoned Freelancers
Of course the freelance writer/editor should charge for 
any time required to study a new client’s SOPs and other 
training material! It should not even be a question. But if 
you are not sure, just tell the client, “Okay, I will charge this 
time at my normal hourly rate of $XXX and invoice you once 
I complete the training.” Especially if the project you are 
about to undertake is based on a fixed-fee bid, you should 
communicate that all extra activities not associated with the 
specific project, as outlined in your contract, will be charged 
hourly—just to be certain that the client does not think your 
training is part of the project bid.

—Cathryn D. Evans

Absolutely, you should charge for this kind of training time! 
In fact, all your time spent on behalf of a client's business—
whether it be training or even time with the IT staff to fix 
issues with your client-issued laptop computer—should be 
billed at your regular hourly rate. I have never had a client 
balk about compensating me for training time, especially 
since it's their requirement that I complete such training.  
I have also never asked ahead of time how they want 
training time to appear on an invoice. I just include a line 
item for training (and a separate one for "IT issues," when 
necessary) on my invoices. I do recommend printing or 
saving a copy of any type of confirmation of your completed 
trainings. Some companies record your training module 
compliance automatically in their internal system, but it's 
a good idea to keep a copy for yourself, just in case of any 
future disputes.

—Sherri Bowen

http://www.amwajournal.org



