Who Where What Why When & How john@johnlisterwriting.com

You know what you want to say. I know how to say it.

I get your message to your audience by crafting copy that’s clear, concise and correct.

I'm a freelance writer for both editorial and promotional content. Either way, I'll save you time and money by making sure your audience gets the message first time while you can concentrate on what you do best.

Who

After earning a BA degree in Print Journalism at the University of Central Lancashire, I spent six years running the press office at Plain English Campaign. Since 2005 I’ve been a full-time freelance writer.

While I’ve focused on technology and financial topics, I’m skilled at learning new subjects quickly and then explaining complicated topics in a simple but accurate way that is appropriate to the intended audience.

I’m also a historian and writer on the professional wrestling industry and have published four books on the topic.

Where

You can email me at john@johnlisterwriting.com or leave a message on 07963 859058. I can also talk on Skype by prior arrangement.

I’m based in Bristol in the United Kingdom, but am extremely familiar and comfortable with both UK and US English.

Note I am not the health writer and campaigner John R Lister, who you can reach via London Health Emergency.

What

I work with a mix of regular clients and one-off projects in both editorial and content writing. While many of my articles are ghostwritten, as an example I’ve worked on the following in the past year:

  • Regular articles for tech news site Infopackets.
  • A monthly newsletter for a specialist recruitment agency.
  • A series of detailed guides and blog posts on privacy policies and data protection laws.
  • Articles on personal finance syndicated nationwide in local community magazines.
  • Articles and blog posts on green tech issues in the Middle East.
  • Case studies for a software provider.
  • Regular posts on ProWrestlingBooks.com and cricketquestions.com
  • Prompt writing and training content for a series of Large Language Models.

For more details and samples of my non-bylined pieces, check out my latest portfolio.

I'm also highly experienced in press release and newsletter writing from my time at Plain English Campaign.

Why

Sara Pegarella, Legalcom Group

John has been a fantastic addition to our team of writers. He regularly creates interesting, insightful content about complex legal topics, which shows how skilled he is at researching and conveying advanced concepts in general. He has even suggested potential article topics to us, which shows how invested he is in his clients. John is reliable, professional and great at what he does. I'm very happy to work with him and would recommend him to anyone who needs a quality writer.

Brian Elliott, Fighting Spirit Magazine:

Bringing John Lister into Fighting Spirit Magazine was one of the best moves I made as its editor. His unique combination of knowledge and craft allowed the magazine to tackle subjects that were also important to me personally. John gets my highest recommendation.

Dennis Faas, Infopackets:

John Lister has been writing for Infopackets as far back as 2006. As the CEO and Chief Editor of Infopackets, I've always found John's articles interesting to read. John is very flexible, able to put together compositions with minimal instruction, and always delivers on time. If there have ever been any issues, John has gotten back to me straight away. I highly recommend John if you are looking for a well-rounded, trustworthy and reliable writer for your company.

Simon Markham, HWWA Consulting:

We have regularly asked John to research and write articles for us for a number of projects and most commonly for the Latest News section of our website.

John is very approachable and easy to deal with. He picks up topics quickly and writes copy for us within the timescales we agree and we have found that we are able to post his copy without amendments. We will continue to work with John because we think he is excellent at what he does and do highly recommended his services.

Yan Fortin, Geeks Are Sexy:

John Lister is a very hard working writer. He has never let me down in about a decade of work and has consistently produced quality content for many years without skipping a day. He's the kind of person who will not let you down and will bring great value to your business.

Secure-D Lab

We have built an ongoing cooperation with John and we are very satisfied. He has shown great professionalism and has delivered pieces of high quality.

Agency clients:

  • Copify: Great copy! Followed instructions very well and the content is of high standards.
  • People Per Hour: Brilliant. Excellent. Fast turn around. Did exactly what I wanted first time. Easy to work with
  • Scripted: Great Work. Perfectly described and well researched. Would want to hire again any day

When & How

When you contact me about a job, I’ll normally reply with a price by the next working day. I charge by the job rather than an hourly rate. The price will take into account the length of the piece and the amount of research required.

It's helpful if you can answer the following before I start work on a job:

  • Where will the piece appear?
  • Who is the intended audience for the piece?
  • What is your main purpose in producing the piece?
  • What's the key message of the piece?
  • What specific points need to be covered in the piece?
  • How many words should the piece be?
  • Do you have any specific suggested source material?
  • Any other instructions or guidelines?

Unless agreed otherwise, I’ll send the copy to you within 7 days along with an invoice. The price will include one round of revisions if needed.

(In the unlikely event your email is undelivered, you can also reach me at jnlisterwriting@gmail.com)

(updated 18 February 2025)