Get Paid To Write For Greeting Cards

Today i will tell you about a unique way to get paid for writing and that way for you is the greeting card market. Did you know that nearly 50% of the first class mail market consists of greeting cards? Cards are not limited to birthdays and holidays any more. You name the event, there is a card for the occasion.  

Three main companies dominate the card market today, according to Writer‘s Market. These companies are Hallmark, American Greetings and Gibson Greetings. They are your primary markets, although you may well find it easier to break in to one of the smaller card companies listed in publications like Writer‘s Market and magazines like The Writer and Writer‘s Digest which are available at the newsstand or your local library.

Women are the traditional card buyers by an overwhelming number. Visit a few card racks yourself to see the different styles under the various company names. This way you can find which style you feel most comfortable in pursuing and can direct your output at the proper distributor.  

Card companies are always on the lookout for promising new material. Again, these are short pieces which require quick, snappy thoughts that tell the message clearly and rapidly. It‘s the same style as headline, bumper sticker and anecdotal type writing; and, if you‘re doing those successfully, greeting cards may be a good choice for you.  

Each editor of a card company may prefer to see your submissions in a particular type of format. Once you have identified the companies you believe you can write for, send in a request for their writing and submission guidelines along with a self-addressed, stamped envelope for their convenience. In so doing, you‘ll save yourself the trouble of submitting material outside of their usual format, which they‘ll discard. Some like individual card ideas submitted separately while other prefer a list of ideas at one time. 

Typical cards categories are-

Traditional, which is usually the sentimental type of verse constructed message. These are generally the longest pieces of writing, often poetic type verses. 

Contemporary, which is also humorous, dominated mostly by one-liners about modern society while also conveying the specific message - birthday, anniversary, holiday, etc. 

Personal, which most often is a blank card inside for the buyers to write their own message. The focus of your work is to come up with an appropriate picture or phrase (or both) on the front of the card. 

Humorous, either by written word or visual gag. These are exceedingly popular and ones that are difficult to write and therefore in demand constantly.

Here are various reasons that cards are sent, to help channel your thoughts toward particular ideas that are easy for you to express

Holidays

New Year‘s Day,      Father‘s Day,      Valentine‘s Day,      4th of July,      St Patrick‘s Day,      Halloween,      Passover,      Thanksgiving,      Easter,      Mother‘s Day,      Christmas.

Special Occasions

Birthday,      Anniversary,      Belated Birthday,      Graduation,      Get Well,      First Communion,      New Baby,      Confirmation,      Congratulations,      New Job,      Engagement,      Vacation Trip,      Retirement Sympathy,      Thank You

General

Friendship,      GoodBye,      Missing You,      Haven‘t Heard From You,      Thinking of You,      Sorry I Haven‘t Written.

Don‘t forget that many of these categories have sub-categories with variations like mother, father, niece, nephew, son-in-law, and so forth. Cards can also be from the two of us, your brother and other people. There are even cards for single parents. 

There are different types of card styles, too, like pop-ups, children‘s cards and bawdy humor for adults only. Don‘t limit yourself. Experiment with all types of writing styles and themes. You‘ll eventually establish a comfort level and a knack for a particular category. 

Get Paid To Write

Have you ever heard the expression, "everyone has a  book in them that’s trying to get out? What does this really mean? Not everyone writes books, do they?

No, not many attempt the long, difficult process of  writing a book-length manuscript. But a growing number of individuals are being paid for their writing;  and, they’ve never attempted to write a book!

Why? Think about it! When you’re driving to work in the morning, listening to the radio, what do you hear? People talking, right? It may surprise you that very  little of that talk is spontaneous.

The radio people work from written material, which means ? Yes, someone has to WRITE the information down to be read over the airwaves. Here’s another example. Your mother’s birthday is coming up. What do you do? You buy a card.

Did you ever wonder who wrote the cards you look through when you’re searching for the right message? Well, it’s not a big company where people sit around all day writing cards. The writers of greeting cards could live next door to you since most of the material is submitted on a freelance basis.

How about your mail? Do you have days when you receive an endless amount of junk mail? Letter after letter of come-ons trying to get you to respond; these are not always thrown out. Some people read them and do inquire about the product or service mentioned.

More importantly, those letters and flyers are WRITTEN by someone! You’re getting the idea. Writing is a common part of everyday business life. From the brochures telling you about savings accounts down at your local bank to the billboard you drive by every morning on the way to work to the bumper stickers you read on the back of the cars in front of you. All of this is written by somebody. Why couldn’t it be you?

Writing is an essential part of everyday life. There are scores of opportunities waiting out there for anyone interested in making some money through the written word. It’s not just Stephen King and Danielle Steele.

Many of today’s successful freelance writers are completely unknown simply because their name doesn’t appear on their work. Yet you see it every day from television commercials to newspaper advertising.

Don’t have any experience? Nonsense! Everybody writes, from the notes you send with your holiday cards to lists you make before grocery shopping.

You probably don’t realize how much you write in a given week. In so doing, you are likely adjusting your writing depending on the subject or audience. When you send a note to school with your child, you’re writing in a certain style that’s likely different than a note you’d send to a relative.

This is exactly what writers do they alter their writing content based on their subject or audience. So who says you can’t write for a living?