Social Articles - Writing and Speaking

Most freelance writers would not want to meet me at a party.

Here are just a few of the questions I'd hit you with:

Do you write books or just articles? Un

According to USFDA, a combination product is one composed of any combination of a drug and device; biological product and device; drug and biological product

der contract or on spec? What subjects do you write about? Why? Who's your audience? What topics are they most interested in? Do you do research to find stories or

; or drug, device, and biological product and fixed dose combination would include two or more combinations of drug.

Examples of combination products may in

o you let the ideas come to you? Do you want to make a living from writing or just supplement your income? How much do you want to earn? Do you write for deadlines

lude drug-coated devices, drugs packaged with delivery devices in medical kits, and drugs and devices packaged separately but intended to be used together.

r as you have time? Are you making progress? How do you know? Is what you want to accomplish even possible?

Why am I grilling you with all these questions? Let me

here is enormous increase in the number of combination products entering the market in the recent years. Combination products have proven advantages but fixe

xplain with an example.

Let's say your goal is to get published. Okay, then read your town's local paper, find an article that interests you each week, and write a

d dose combinations are still in the process of convincing regulatory authority on their advantages over the single ingredient formulations.

Combination pro

letter to the editor about it. Local papers publish the majority of the letters they receive, so worst case you'll be published in a few weeks.

Goal achieved, righ

ucts have become life saving products for the pharmaceutical companies who doesn’t have many innovative molecules in their product pipeline and have been inc

t? Technically, yes. But that's not really what you meant by getting published, is it?

Before you can ever hope to accomplish your writing goals, you must know

easingly used in the product life cycle management. Even the companies having product patents are trying to extend their product life cycle through the combi

n detail what those goals are in the first place.

S.M.A.R.T. Goals for Freelance Writers

The S.M.A.R.T. goal-setting technique is popular because of it

nation products and maximize the revenues. But the companies involved in this practice are overlooking that they are burdening the patients both economically

simplicity and power. Clarify your goals according to the following criteria:

Specific

Measurable

Achievable

Results-oriented

T

and physically. They need to rightly judge the benefits of the combination products and they have to even look at the risks involved when combining the produ

/b>ime-bound

Let's give it a try with the goal of "getting published."

Specific: What length--article, book, other? What topic? What style--news, human int

ts. Some of the combination products were well accepted by physicians while others suffered. Companies involved in development of combination products are fi

rest, investigative report? What publications? What medium--print or web? Will you query first or write it on spec?

Measurable: How will you track your prog

ding difficulty in defining their combination products and facing various challenges from selecting a combination to marketing it.

Following aspects would a

ress? By number of submissions? Number of queries?

Achievable: How big is this challenge for you? Have you ever done anything like it before? Has anyone els

dd to the challenges in developing combination products:

Which markets to tap where the combination products can do fairly well?
Which combination prod

? Yes, there's always someone who's first, and you may be that person, but make sure you know that's the kind of goal you're setting before you get started.

Res

cts are meaningful and rational?
Which therapeutic categories to select?
Which Combinations can address unmet needs of the patients?
Do combin

lts-oriented: What results do you want? To be published once or land a contract? Do you want to become famous? To make money? To raise awareness about a cause y

tions increase the patient compliance?
What would be the developing cost?
How to tackle the risks encountered during combination product developmen

u believe in?

Time-bound: By what date do you want to be published?

Vague goal: Get published.

SMART Goal: Query 20 alternative/holistic hea

t?

As combination products don't fit into the traditional categories of drugs, medical devices, or biological products, the USFDA is in the process of devel

th magazines about writing a 4000-word feature article on the link between optimism and longevity. Secure a contract within 2 months for the article to be published

ping new procedures for reviewing their safety, efficacy and quality.

Professional from academic institutions, pharmaceutical industries, health care indust

within 6 months from today.

It's important to note that with any goal, especially in a field like writing, the details will change as you progress. Goal setting i

y and representatives from various regulatory agencies are working out to design the regulatory requirements for manufacture and sale of combination products

not about stubbornness. It's about clarity. The more clarity you have from the very start, the more you can invite spontaneity and creativity into the process. New

.

As there is an increasing trend of the combination products companies manufacturing such products should be able to tackle the problems involved in the de

ideas can be measured against the original plan and explored as a conscious choice. And isn't choice your greatest power as a writer?

Freelance writers who learn t

elopment. They need to be wiser in analyzing the market trends and the regulatory requirements.

Companies that provide selfless information through particip

use the SMART goal-setting strategy will increase the power of their writing and sell more articles than their competition.

Copyright 2006 Curtis G. Schmitt

tion in industry events and feedback to regulatory authorities would be able to face the challenges and will be successful in developing combination products

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Social Articles - Goal-Setting for Freelance Writers - Smart Goals

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