So You Want to Write Greeting Cards...

I am reposting this entry from June, 2008, because so many of you contacted me to thank me for it. I guess there are a ton of wannabe greeting card writers out there! Writing greeting cards is fun and very rewarding. So for those of you who are newer readers and may not have read this post before, I hope you enjoy this one. And please let me know if and when your work is published in a greeting card. I'd love to cheer with you!

I got my publishing start in greeting card writing. A few weeks ago, my family and I went on a mini-vacation to Frankenmuth, Michigan. It was awesome. Well, except for the part about my daughter getting the flu and spending a not-so-fun afternoon/evening hanging over a trash can. But it was still nice to get away with the family.

Anyway, on to my point. When we were in Frankenmuth, while browsing in one of the hotel gift shops, I found one of my greeting cards. I've had three cards purchased by Blue Mountain Arts, but only one that is still circulating after ten+ years. I've seen this card in my local Cracker Barrel restaurant, my local Hallmark store, a store in Shipshewana, Indiana, the Shell Factory in N. Fort Myers, Florida, and now in Frankemuth, Michigan.

As fun as it is to get published in a magazine or ezine, there is something special about seeing a greeting card you wrote on a card rack. It's especially fun if there's only one left and you know the card is selling well. I mean, people buy magazines for ALL of the articles, which happen to include yours. People buy a greeting card exclusively because of what YOU wrote.(I'm totally not dissing article writing. I love seeing my name in a magazine. I'm just saying...)

So seeing my card reminded me that I really need to start sending in greeting card copy again. For me, it's fun, relatively easy, and it pays pretty well. Last year, I sent in a few to DaySpring (the Christian division of Hallmark) and had three accepted. I've gotten paid for them, but am still waiting for them to be printed. And I can't wait!

For all of you who have always wanted to try your hand at greeting card writing, either sentimental or humorous, I thought I'd put together a list of guidelines so you have a place to start. This list is just as much for me, as my goal is to send out a couple of batches by the end of April.

I hope it helps. If you have any questions, please feel free to post them here and I'll try my best to answer or at least point you in the right direction.Have fun and good luck!

Start here:

Blue Mountain Arts / SPS Studios

DaySpring

Design Design

Designer Greetings

Moonlighting Cards

Novo Card Publishers

Oatmeal Studios

P.S. Greetings

Papyrus

Warner Press

*reposted blog entry from June, 2008