Relieved to hear it!

tbd on if assembly was even done at this point, this might just be what fell out of the box

Fully support this. One should always rewatch Young Fronkenstein

@fishsqueezer.bsky.social -- idk why this occurred to me so late, but here's an example of another writer putting some strong snarkiness into an article to GREAT effect. Pure gold. www.salon.com/2023/10/27/w...

Ha, that's the joy of freelance. Some people want that snark, so you can bring your style to the projects that want it. I think a certain level of excitement and snark is pretty valuable. Too stilted and the reader will disengage (imo).

hahahaha I completely overlooked that part of it, didn't even cross my mind but that makes sense

My shtick is that I deep dive on the science and prioritize scientific accuracy - so they tell me a subject or topic, then I go do a lit search and learn up on it and insist on a scientific reviewer. My goal is to write accurate, interesting stuff that helps people learn or feel intrigued.

Other times its simply that the listed author doesn't have time to do the writing and story crafting. So they may give bullet points to a writer who then turns it into a draft. Then the author edits and molds it into the final article.

...They want the expert's name out there and they want people to read what they have to say. But the expert may be a great scientist, but less than stellar story teller. If you can't keep people's attention, it's a lot harder to be known as a thought leader.

Nah, I'm unattributed author (= ghost writer) for various reasons. Often companies want the writing to be associated just with them, so they're listed as the author. Other times its because the company wants to build up their own folks as subject matter experts. So....

www.bedrockocean.com/insights/rig...

www.nature.com/articles/d42...

Here's a few examples:

www.bit.bio/blog/molecul...

I've also helped write published papers because the listed authors needed a first draft, and have helped others write up website copy for their personal or laboratory pages. I think its just the sweet spot of understanding the material, having dedicated time to writing, and adding story flare.

That's where I come in. I read up on the topic, learn from the researchers there, then try to tell a story with it. My audience is usually "researchers on their coffee break." Often pieces authored by thought leaders or CEOs were written by a 👻 too and then (maybe) edited by the listed author.

Yea good q. It mostly comes down to the need for good story telling & accurate, nuanced descriptions of research. Biotechs, hospitals, non-profits -- all want to write about their work, but rarely have ppl who can do both (or have the time to do both)...