Nourishing Your Writerly Needs

Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in publication but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Bernard Grant, Writer, Editor, and Educator, based in Cincinnati, OH, USA.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

Writerly Nourishment is my work as a freelance writer, editor, and neurodiversity advocate. My clients come to me from all over the world, though I live in Cincinnati, Ohio. I write for individuals and organizations. The individuals I work with are generally neurodivergent people, Autists mostly, because they accept me and the unique ways I work—I'm Autistic and turned to freelance work full-time because people do not want to hire me for full-time roles. I gladly work with anyone, though.

I edit a lot of creative writers, novelists, memoirists, and people who have or want literary careers. Literary prose is my specialty, as I've worked in literary publishing part-time for about nine years. I also write and edit copy/content for various organizations, mostly in higher education, neurodiversity, and DEI spaces. Most of my work involves some form of advocacy, so I'm often writing DEI and neurodiversity-affirming content. I also write bios for various professionals.

For one long-term client, I write letters to prisons to help improve a specific prisoner's quality of life. I have two graduate degrees in writing and feel there are very few if any, limitations on what style of writing I can produce and edit.

Tell us about yourself

I started freelancing nine years ago when I started writing, but my freelance work was mostly off and on as I navigated graduate school. Writerly Nourishment became a full-time venture in April 2021, when I finished my Ph.D. I'm Autistic and turned to freelance work full-time because people do not want to hire me for full-time roles.

Because I'm openly Autistic, people do not want to hire me. This is actually why Elon Musk became an entrepreneur. People want to hire neurotypical people, people who have social performances, not us. I present authentically, which turns many people off. Society doesn't accept Autistic people, not yet.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

I love to serve others. My biggest accomplishments come when clients show me the results of my work. Most recently, an Autistic client who has been struggling to publish sent me the acceptance letter she received from a literary magazine. My edits enabled her to publish a short story and raised her confidence in her writing abilities. She's a skilled writer. I use social media to promote brilliant neurodivergent people, so it's rewarding when I help these brilliant people achieve their own goals.

What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?

Finding work is the hardest aspect of owning a business. Most nonautistic people do not want to work with an Autistic person, despite my many credentials: my writing awards and my extensive work and publication history in and outside of literary and academic spaces.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

Choose something you're passionate about. Serve the population(s) you care about. Focus on your strengths.

Always, always follow your interests and create your own rules.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://bernardgrant.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BernardGrantAu
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bernardgrant/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

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