The Write Stuff, Part III: Your First Byline — A New Writer’s Guide

This is the conclusion of the three-part series "The Write Stuff." Read Part I and Part II.

Bottom Line Up Front

You do not need decades of service, a command badge, or a degree in English literature to write something meaningful for the EMS profession. If you have been on the job long enough to have been shaped by it—three years, even one—you have something of value to share. The barrier is rarely a lack of experience. The barrier is permission—giving yourself permission to believe that your lessons, your moments of clarity, confusion, progress, humility, frustration, humor, or grief, are worthy of being written down. They are.

The first byline is less about expertise and far more about perspective. The question is not “Do I know enough?” The question is, “Have I learned something I wish someone had told me sooner?” If the answer is yes, you already have the start of your first article.

Some new EMS professionals hesitate to write because they believe they haven’t “earned it yet.” They look at seasoned columnists, medical directors, chiefs, researchers, and longtime educators and think “I’ll write later, when I’ve been around longer.”

The reality is that recency and currency are a strength.

Those who are close to work, who vividly remember the first time they were handed a radio, lifted a stretcher, gave sad news, or managed their own nerves on scene, can speak directly to the experience of others still learning to do the same.

When you are early in your career, you see things sharply. You notice things others have learned to take for granted. You remember how it felt to not know, to be overwhelmed, to slowly realize that the work was becoming part of you.

That perspective is not just valid, it is valuable.

Where to Begin

Your first article will likely come from one of four places.

• A call you’ll never forget: Perhaps it was not dramatic; perhaps no helicopter was launched, no headlines written, no lives saved or lost in cinematic fashion. But something about that call changed you. It challenged your assumptions, reshaped your compassion, or revealed something true about work or yourself.
• A mistake that taught you something: We all carry a moment in our history that we would manage differently today. If you can write about that moment honestly, without self-flagellation, without defensiveness, you will offer one of the rarest things in EMS writing: wisdom offered without pride.
• A lesson you wish you had learned sooner: There is something, a skill, a mindset, a trick of communication or movement or mental preparation, that would have made your first year easier. If you wish someone had told you, then say it now for someone else.
• A shift in understanding: There was a moment when classroom teaching finally aligned with the living world. You began to understand why your supervisor insisted on a particular approach. You learned to see the patient as the center, not the problem. You discovered the value of stillness. That is an article.

You do not have to write about everything you have learned. Just start with one thing you learned that mattered.

How to Begin

When writing feels hard, it is often because we are trying to write well too soon. So, don’t. Instead, tell the story out loud, to yourself, to a friend, or into your phone’s voice recorder. Explain what happened, what you did, what surprised you, and what you learned. Speak it the way you would speak to a colleague after a call. That voice, your natural voice, is the voice your article should carry.

One opening gambit I use when I present my conference session "The Write Stuff" is to invite someone to recount a memory, call, or event, then work out from that memory how it shapes into a story to be told or written. Tell yourself the story, even record it. When you tell a story, there is usually a beginning, a middle, an end, and often a conclusion!

Once spoken, write down (or transcribe the recording of) what you said. Resist the urge to edit as you go. Get the story out. The shaping comes later.

Points of Reference

Even new writers can include references, and doing so immediately signals credibility. You don’t need a library database or a medical school faculty login. Start with what you already have access to—local or state clinical protocols, training handouts, guidelines referencing classes or onboarding, or a research summary shared in agency continuing education.

A single reference can bridge the gap between “My experience was this” and “This experience reflects what we know works.” Your story carries the heart. Your reference provides the spine.

Leaving the Reader with Something

Your article is not just a story, but a shared lesson. When the reader finishes, they should be able to say:

• I’ll remember that next time.
• That changes how I think about this patient.
• I’m going to try that approach tomorrow.

This is how we strengthen the profession—one insight at a time.

Writing Fear

Every writer, no matter how experienced, knows the moment of hesitation before hitting “Send.” The voice says “What if this isn’t good? What if I’m judged? What if I don’t sound smart enough? The truth is no one is looking for perfection. They are looking for honesty, clarity, usefulness, and respect for the reader’s time. If your article has those, it is ready.

And if your article is not accepted the first time, that is not failure. It is part of the process. Every good writer has received edits, requests for revision, or rejections. What matters is not the first answer, but that you keep writing.

Bringing "The Write Stuff" Trilogy to a Close

The EMS profession moves forward when someone takes the time to explain what they learned so that someone else does not have to learn it the hard way. If you have ever shaken your head in the ambulance bay, sat quietly in your car after a shift, found yourself changed by a patient, then you have something to say.

Say it. Write it. Send it. Remember, your first byline is not the end of anything—it is the beginning of your voice joining the ongoing conversation of our profession. And we need your voice in that conversation.

Finally

Thank you to all of our industry editors and EMS writers that gave their time and thoughts to me, They have enabled me to offer a 360-degree view of writers, writing and editing. Now it’s over to you.