How to Get a Job Writing Greeting Cards

Have you ever wandered through the greeting card aisle at your local grocer and decided you could do a better job on your own? Or maybe you make your own birthday and holiday cards because you want the sentiment to be more personalized? If so, then greeting card writing may be the career for you.

Difficulty:

Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Current copy of the "Writer's Market"
• Internet connection
• Patience
• Thick Skin
• Strong Work Ethic
• Three Months of living expenses in savings

1. Go to a local store and study the greeting cards as if you are the one buying for a greeting card company. Note the style of writing associated with each brand. Check the back and find out who the publisher is. When you find a line that goes with your personal style, buy a few so you can use them as a template for creating your very first lines.

2. Think of an occasion and come up with several different greeting card verses for them. Save them in a file on your computer called "ideas" or "verses" and the name of the occasion. For example, your baby shower file could be called "baby shower verses."

3. Next, pull out the cards you bought as samples of what you like and compare them to what you have written. Does the style fit with the line? Is there a different company that might prefer your idea? These are the types of questions you will need to answer for every verse you come up with in order for it to sell.

4. Now grab a copy of your Writer's Market and turn to the Greeting Cards Section. First, look up the company for the cards you bought. Call them and ask them to verify the name of the person you need to send your ideas to and how they want them sent. Many editors prefer batches at a time.

5. Look for other companies that may be a good match for your style. While it will be tempting to only go for the higher paying markets, in the beginning you need to build up a body of work and worry about the pay. Once you have about 50 cards under your belt you can start being more choosy.

6. Prepare your package for your editor. Be sure to follow instructions exactly. Good ideas often get rejected because they were sent to the wrong person or the writer did not follow instructions.

Tips & Warnings

• * Do expect rejection. This doesn't mean you are a bad writer. Many times your ideas just don't jive with the company's products.

• * Do learn everything you can about sales. Selling your ideas is 99% of the job. If you don't like to sell, you'll never succeed.

• * Becoming a greeting card writer is not the type of job for those who are unmotivated. Most greeting card writers do not work for one company, they are their own boss. The pay is based solely on how much you produce. Be sure you understand the basics of running your own business before getting into this.

• * Don't expect to get rich writing greeting cards. If you plan on doing this for a living, you might want to have a part-time job or a very healthy savings account (business experts recommend three months of living expenses) before you begin.

Resources

• Bizymoms Becoming a Greeting Card Writer Guide
• Writer's Market Online Edition