Know Your Tools, Know Your Value: An Editor's Take on AI

Know Your Tools, Know Your Value: An Editor's Take on AI

Editor Crystal Herron joins Nuria and Morgan ahead of her session at the Early Career Medical Writer Summit, bringing a perspective that stands out from the rest of the lineup. As an editor rather than a writer, Crystal speaks directly to the anxiety so many people feel right now: if AI is going to take over, why even enter the field? Her answer is the opposite of what the worry suggests. There's room, there's need, and there's real value in what humans bring, even as the work itself changes. Crystal talks about why she was slow to jump on the AI train, what she learned about how these models actually work, and why the usefulness of AI looks very different depending on whether you're writing or editing. She makes the case that confidentiality, nuance, accuracy, precision, and persuasive judgment are exactly where humans still lead, and why knowing your tools and their limitations is what lets you show your value to clients and colleagues. Whether you're just starting out or 20 years in, this conversation is about staying in the field with confidence, on your own terms. Link to the summit: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://nurianegrao.kit.com/products/early-career-medical-writers-summit]⁠⁠https://nurianegrao.kit.com/products/early-career-medical-writers-summit⁠⁠ [https://nurianegrao.kit.com/products/early-career-medical-writers-summit] RESOURCES Núria's website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠nurianegrao.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [nurianegrao.com⁠⁠] Morgan's website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠morganleafemd.com⁠⁠ [morganleafemd.com⁠]

Help the Right Clients Find You: Marketing for Medical Writers Who Hate Marketing

Lori De Milto built a six-figure freelance medical writing business within 18 months, starting back in 1997 when the internet was barely anything, and she learned marketing from general business books. She joins Nuria and Morgan to preview her Early Career Medical Writer Summit session, "Blindspots and Breakthroughs: How to Market Yourself Like a Pro," and to reframe what marketing actually is. If marketing feels awkward, pushy, or salesy, Lori's message is that you probably just never learned how to do it in a way that fits freelance medical writing. Most general marketing advice doesn't work for writers, and that's not a personal failing. She explains why networking isn't transactional, why marketing is really about showing clients how you help them meet their needs, and why writing is usually the easy part while marketing is what feels hard, especially for people coming from academia, healthcare, or research. The conversation covers who actually seeks her out (including freelancers with 20+ years of experience), what happens when writers who never marketed suddenly lose a client, and why people transitioning from employment to freelance benefit from learning this early rather than struggling through years of trial and error. Practical, encouraging, and grounded in nearly three decades of doing the work. Link to the summit: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://nurianegrao.kit.com/products/early-career-medical-writers-summit]⁠⁠⁠https://nurianegrao.kit.com/products/early-career-medical-writers-summit⁠⁠⁠ [https://nurianegrao.kit.com/products/early-career-medical-writers-summit] RESOURCES Núria's website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠nurianegrao.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [nurianegrao.com⁠⁠] Morgan's website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠morganleafemd.com⁠⁠ [morganleafemd.com⁠]

Career Pivots and Pharma Copywriting with Alex Howson and Holly Hagan

Alex Howson and Holly Hagan preview their summit sessions on two distinct entry points into medical writing. Alex talks about pivoting into continuing medical education from academia, research, or clinical practice, and which existing skills actually transfer into the CME niche. Holly pulls back the curtain on medical copywriting in pharma, explaining the regulatory realities that shape the work and why it is closer to a creative, compliance-driven craft than the consumer advertising people assume it resembles. Link to the summit: ⁠⁠⁠ [https://nurianegrao.kit.com/products/early-career-medical-writers-summit]⁠https://nurianegrao.kit.com/products/early-career-medical-writers-summit⁠ [https://nurianegrao.kit.com/products/early-career-medical-writers-summit] RESOURCES Núria's website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠nurianegrao.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [nurianegrao.com⁠⁠] Morgan's website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠morganleafemd.com⁠⁠ [morganleafemd.com⁠]

Community as Career Infrastructure with Abigale Miller

Abigale Miller joins Nuria and Morgan to talk about why community is essential for freelance medical writers, especially as AI reshapes hiring, marketing, and the day-to-day of the work. She shares what she has learned from running AMWA's freelancer jam session and her own community, the Anthill, including why even twenty-year veterans still bring questions and doubts to their peers, and why intentional connection matters more, not less, as more learning moves online. Link to the summit: ⁠⁠⁠ [https://nurianegrao.kit.com/products/early-career-medical-writers-summit]⁠https://nurianegrao.kit.com/products/early-career-medical-writers-summit⁠ [https://nurianegrao.kit.com/products/early-career-medical-writers-summit] RESOURCES Núria's website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠nurianegrao.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [nurianegrao.com⁠⁠] Morgan's website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠morganleafemd.com⁠⁠ [morganleafemd.com⁠]

Inside the Early Career Medical Writers Summit

Nuria and Morgan introduce the Early Career Medical Writers Summit, running June 8 to 12 as an audio-first community experience on Slack with seven speakers, daily 20-minute sessions, and live Q&As. They walk through who the summit is for, including brand new writers, those a few years in, and folks considering a move from employed roles into freelance, and preview their own sessions: Nuria on how to talk to clients (and employers) about using AI, and Morgan on how to actually use LinkedIn once your profile is built without letting it take over your life. Link to the summit: ⁠ [https://nurianegrao.kit.com/products/early-career-medical-writers-summit]https://nurianegrao.kit.com/products/early-career-medical-writers-summit [https://nurianegrao.kit.com/products/early-career-medical-writers-summit] RESOURCES Núria's website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠nurianegrao.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [nurianegrao.com⁠⁠] Morgan's website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠morganleafemd.com⁠⁠ [morganleafemd.com⁠]