Dec 31, 2021
For years, Megan Freeland worked as a public health pharmacist for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But over time, she realized she was missing the opportunity to apply a creative flair to her writing career.
Megan set out on her own to build a health content marketing company. Through StockRose Creative, LLC, Megan supports innovative health organizations, helping them use the power of words to reach their target customers and clients and turn them into raving fans.
In this episode, Megan shares not only how she uses her voice as a health content writer, but also how she handles writing for brands, many of which have their own voices, personalities, and writing styles.
Mentioned in this episode
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/megannfreeland/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/megpharmdwrites/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/healthwritingforhealthprofessionals
StockRose Creative, LLC website: https://stockrosecreative.com/
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Health Professionals to Health Writers Program
Megan Freeland’s Peloton Bike Review (YouTube link)
Dr. Ijeoma Ekeocha (LinkedIn Profile)
Episode 117 of The Pharmacist’s Voice Podcast Featuring Dr. Blair Thielemier
Episode 125 of The Pharmacist’s Voice Podcast Featuring Dr. Janan Sarwar
Episode 127 of The Pharmacist’s Voice Podcast Featuring Dr. Brittany Hoffmann-Eubanks
Maria Glukhovsky, PharmD (LinkedIn Profile)
Dubsado (Business/Client Management) Tool
Thank you for listening to episode 129 of The Pharmacist’s Voice ® Podcast!
Read the full show notes at The Pharmacist’s Voice ® Podcast https://www.thepharmacistsvoice.com/podcast
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Highlights from the interview
As a writer in a public health setting early in her career, Megan learned how to massage information to make it more digestible and actionable for the general public.
Information impacts behavior. Misinformation has an impact on the health of communities. Relevant and accurate information helps people live healthier lives.
We talked about Megan’s writing style as a health content writer. Writing style can take time to develop. You will learn what comes easily or is difficult through practice. You must practice to figure it out.
It’s harder to write a piece that’s not in your area of expertise. It’s “a heavier lift.” You need to find your niche so it’s easy to write. It’s hard to scale a business writing for clients who aren’t a good match for your skills. Find a lane you feel comfortable in and that feels natural to you so you can maximize your expertise and your impact in that lane.
Megan shared two stories about how feedback on her writing influenced her. Feedback can help a writer find the right clients.
Who are Megan’s ideal clients? Either digital health companies or innovative health companies, especially those who have either primarily black audiences or have a segment of their audience who is black. Megan likes working with clients who are specific about their audience and the types of actions or behaviors they are trying to stimulate.
There’s always room for a new perspective in the writing community. All of our perspectives are different. There are people out there who share your perspective and will be maximally impacted because they share your perspective. You will perform your best when you are writing for an audience you can relate to or that you’re passionate about or have expertise in.
Megan is a Health Content Writing Coach. Her program is called Health Professionals to Health Writers. You can find it linked to her profile on LinkedIn (as of December 2021). Her YouTube Channel is also called Health Writing For Health Professionals; it includes videos on Wednesdays: tips for getting started in health content writing and lessons Megan has learned along the way.
Nontraditional pharmacists need to share what they do so that other pharmacists feel inspired to use their pharmacist identity and skills to do something nontraditional too. We talked about how imposter syndrome can make it tough to “toot our horns.”
Megan is bilingual. She speaks Spanish and English. During her career as a pharmacist, she worked for an MTM company who needed a Spanish-speaking pharmacist consultant to help Spanish-speaking patients.
We concluded the interview with six questions for Megan:
- What are some pitfalls about content strategy creation?
- How can a writer address health literacy in consumer-facing content without being patronizing?
- How do you like the research part of being a writer?
- What’s your favorite part of being a writer?
- What are some challenges you face?
- What are some tools and resources you use?
Thank you for listening to episode 129 of The Pharmacist’s Voice ® Podcast!
🖥Check out Kim’s websites, and connect with her on social media!
✅Business website https://www.thepharmacistsvoice.com
✅The Pharmacist’s Voice ® Podcast https://www.thepharmacistsvoice.com/podcast
✅Pronounce Drug Names Like a Pro © Online Course https://www.kimnewlove.com
✅LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/kimnewlove
✅Facebook https://www.facebook.com/kim.newlove.96
✅Twitter https://twitter.com/KimNewloveVO
✅Instagram https://www.instagram.com/kimnewlovevo/
✅YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCA3UyhNBi9CCqIMP8t1wRZQ
✅ACX (Audiobook Narrator Profile) https://www.acx.com/narrator?p=A10FSORRTANJ4Z