Being your own boss certainly has its perks. As a freelance health writer, you have the freedom to be location-independent, choose your own hours, and work on projects in the areas you care about most.

But being a freelancer also comes with its challenges, and the most commonly cited? Income fluctuations.

Not knowing what you’ll earn from one month to the next can be scary! Financial stability can feel like a distant dream for freelancers—it’s more feast or famine for us.

But it doesn’t have to be that way. There are strategies you can use to stabilise your income as a health and medical writer, giving you a more predictable, stress-free income stream.

1. Make a well-planned budget

A well-planned budget is the foundation of financial stability. I hear you, and you’re right—creating a budget is not the most exciting task. However, it’s essential if you want to stabilise your income.

Here are some tips to get you started:

1. Calculate average income: As you’re reading this blog, I’m guessing your monthly income varies, which is a budgeting nightmare. To plan more accurately, calculate your average income over the past 6-12 months. This gives you a better idea of what you’re working with.
2. Calculate fixed business expenses: Identify all regular payments necessary for your business to function. I’m talking about things like invoicing software, writing applications, website hosting, and professional indemnity insurance.
3. List your personal expenses: Do the same for your personal expenses, listing costs such as rent or mortgage, insurance payments, utility bills, etc. This view of your personal outgoings will help you understand how much you need to cover your basic living costs.

With these three figures in mind, check that your average income covers your essential outgoings.

Just knowing that your average income can cover your expenses eases the pressure of needing the same income month after month. You can pay your essential bills, and that’s what matters most!

You can also use the difference between your average income and expenses as a baseline. Don’t splurge on your fancy new office equipment when you make more.

Save the excess for months in which you might earn less until you have a sizable backup cushion.

2. Find stable clients for your expenses

Another tactic I like to use to ease the financial stress of freelancing is to find a few regular monthly clients to cover my basic expenses.

Refer to the calculations above and cover the essential ones with regular, consistent, reliable monthly client work.

Here’s how you can do it:

1. Identify essential services: Offer health writing services that clients need regularly, such as writing weekly health blogs, creating a monthly email newsletter, or managing social media. These consistent projects can provide a stable income.
2. Upgrade one-time contracts: Look for opportunities to turn one-time projects into ongoing work. For example, if you’ve written website copy for a health brand, suggest that they start a health blog to drive more traffic to their site.
3. Propose retainer agreements: Another option is to secure a few clients on retainer agreements where they pay you a fixed fee for several services. This could include a mix of content creation, medical editing, and consulting services tailored to their needs.

By securing a few stable clients who provide regular monthly work, you can cover your essential expenses and reduce the financial uncertainty of freelancing.

In the “worst-case scenario,” all your must-cover costs are sorted.

3. Diversify your clients and projects

Relying on a single client is risky in the freelance world. If they terminate the contract, you’re left high and dry with no backup. Even relying on one client to provide a significant part of your income can leave you in a sticky situation.

In short, never put your eggs all in one basket.

But when choosing clients to work with, it isn’t all about the numbers—you want the most diverse client base possible. This might include:

• Having a global client base: Expanding your geographical reach can protect you from regional economic downturns. If one country’s economy nosedives and contracts are pulled, you’re protected elsewhere. Working globally also opens up more opportunities.
• Working across industries: The healthcare sector is vast, so there are plenty of different health writing niches to focus on. Working with clients in various areas, such as pharmaceuticals, health tech, or medical research, can reduce your risk.
• Taking on a variety of projects: Diversify the type of health writing you do at any one time. For example, mix SEO writing, medical copywriting, and patient education materials. This also keeps things more exciting for you and adds depth to your medical writing portfolio!

The more you diversity the location, industry, and type of writing, the safer you are.

If one client or industry faces challenges, they might terminate the contract. But with your fingers in other pies, your income won’t take a significant hit.

4. Maintain client relationships

Just because a project has finished doesn’t mean the relationship with your client should.

I have completed several “one-time” projects in the past, only for clients to return wanting more work in the future. Some clients have returned more than one year after our initial contract ended, and I have become their go-to writer for subsequent years.

To keep clients coming back, you need to carefully manage your client relationships. Doing this works wonders for your financial stability because:

• Repeat business: Being present and following up with clients keeps you at the forefront of their minds. They’re then likely to return with more projects, providing a steady income without needing to constantly find new clients.
• Referrals: Happy clients are your biggest cheerleaders and best marketers! They can refer you to their network of healthcare professionals, opening new opportunities without you having to do much marketing effort.
• Trust and reliability: Building long-term relationships (even if you’re not actively working on a project together) fosters trust. Clients who trust you are more likely to rely on you for various projects and refer others your way.
• Negotiation leverage: Long-term clients who appreciate you and value your work are often more willing to negotiate favourable payment terms that stabilise your income. Not sure what I mean? There’s more on this below!

5. Negotiate your payment terms

Negotiating “favourable payment terms” is about setting up payment structures that provide a more consistent and predictable income. Here are a few strategies to consider:

• Retainers: Retainer agreements are my favourite and a fantastic option for long-term projects. Clients pay you a fixed amount each month for a set number of hours or projects. This ensures you have a guaranteed income stream.
• Advance payments: Request an advance payment before starting a project. This can be any percentage of the total project fee, but I always take 50% upfront. Advance payments provide immediate cash flow and reduce the risk of non-payment at the end of the project.
• Split project payments: Break larger projects into milestones and request payment for each. For example, you could ask for 30% upfront, 30% halfway through, and 40% upon completion. This evens out your income, making it easier to manage.
• Volume discounts: Offer clients a discount if they commit to a set volume of work over a specific period. For example, a 10% discount if they contract you for 6+ months. This encourages long-term commitments and secures your workload in advance.

Although these strategies won’t necessarily alter the amount of money you’re making, they will help you secure a more consistent amount each month.

6. Create a passive income stream

Finally, passive income is worth mentioning. Creating a passive income stream isn’t a “quick fix” to financial stability—setting everything up takes time. However, it’s a sure way to add a revenue stream and ease the feast-or-famine cycle.

Here are some ideas specifically tailored for health writers:

• Offer training courses: Platforms like Health Writer Hub offer training courses that cater to health writers. You can create your own courses to teach others about the intricacies of health writing, SEO for medical content, or navigating the freelance world.
• Sell digital products: Create and sell digital products like health writing templates, eBooks, and resource lists. Once created, these can be marketed to other writers or healthcare professionals and sold repeatedly with minimal effort.
• Monetise your blog: If you have a blog, consider monetising it. You could try affiliate marketing, sponsored posts, or advertising. If your blog already has a large following, consider making it available on a subscription-only membership site.
• Leverage social media: Got a large social media following? If so, your social platforms can also be monetised. Platforms like Instagram, YouTube, and LinkedIn can be used to share valuable content, attract followers, and secure brand partnerships.

These income generators can provide a steady stream of revenue that complements your freelance projects, ultimately leading to more financial stability and freedom.

So, are you ready to end the feast-or-famine cycle? Do you want the perks of running your own freelance medical writing business without the stress of an unsteady income?

Embrace these methods today and move one step close to financial stability.

By Hannah Thornley

Hannah Thornley is a part-time freelance health and medical writer and full-time digital nomad. With a passion for creating a healthier world through clear and engaging medical communications, Hannah creates health content that’s easy to understand yet hard to forget. She’s worked with various private healthcare clinics and wellness professionals, specialising in crafting SEO-friendly health blogs and website copy that sells. Connect with Hannah on LinkedIn or learn more by visiting her website hannahthornley.co.uk.