Writing a book is an exciting process, but it can be challenging to find the time, energy, and motivation to do it yourself. You might think that hiring a ghostwriter would cost too much money or require too much effort but it doesn’t have to!
If you hire the right person (and follow their instructions), writing with a ghostwriter can be surprisingly easy. If you’re ready to start writing your next book but don’t want all of the hassle involved in doing so yourself? Here’s how:
| Takeaways |
|---|
| 1. Ghostwriters can help you write your copy and get paid for it. |
| 2. Hiring a ghostwriter can be a lucrative opportunity for writers. |
| 3. Consider the benefits of ghostwriting, such as saving time and leveraging expertise. |
| 4. Protect your intellectual property by understanding copyright when hiring a ghostwriter. |
| 5. Ghostwriting offers a way to monetize your writing skills and creativity. |
1. Define Success
To make a real go of this, you need to define success before starting the project. This will help keep you on track and give you an idea of what the end goal is. A successful project might look like any one of the following:
- Defining success in terms of outcome: You want your book written by a ghostwriter so that it will become an Amazon bestseller!
- Defining success in terms of process: You want your book written by a ghostwriter so that it will be ready for publishing within two months!
- Defining success in terms of budget: You want your book written by a ghostwriter so that it costs less than $3,000! (Or whatever amount works for you.)
The point here isn’t necessarily which definition applies it’s just important to set up some parameters for measuring how “successful” this whole thing ends up being before getting started so as not to get overwhelmed when things inevitably start going awry later down the line.
Ghostwriting can be an incredibly rewarding career path. If you want to know what ghostwriting is all about, and how it can help you as a writer, check out our expert insights and advice.
2. Know Your Target Audience
The first thing you should do is know who your target audience is. If you don’t know who they are, how can you speak to them in the way they want?
Knowing who your audience also helps with knowing what they want and how they want it delivered. It may seem obvious, but if you don’t know who reads your content, then how do you know what will appeal or not appeal to them?
The next thing on our list would be knowing what type of writing service people might buy from you and what type of price range they might consider reasonable for these services. This helps determine whether or not there’s a market for the product (your book).
3. Provide Lots Of Information
In order to provide your ghostwriter with ample information and support, you should:
A good ghostwriter will ask questions about the project, but it’s still important that you be as clear as possible about what you want to say before he/she starts working on it. Make sure that you have a clear idea of what you want to say and how each part fits into the whole.
If this is your first time using a service like ours, try writing down an outline of what each section will contain that way there won’t be any miscommunication between us.
Include examples of what you have already written. Having samples of content written by yourself (or others) can help me understand exactly how I can best assist in completing this project for you!
I recommend making these samples available through dropbox or google drive so that I can easily access them without needing multiple emails back-and-forths between us every time we want to check something out together.”
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4. Establish A Timeline
A timeline is a good way to keep the project on track and manage expectations. When you have been awarded a book contract, it can be easy for your mind to wander toward all of the possible ways that you could expand your business by writing a book.
Having a timeline helps you stay focused on completing this one task first and then moving on to plan out how you will use your newfound credibility as an author.
It also helps both parties communicate their desired expectations: For example, if the ghostwriter has been working at a slow pace.
Because they want more time with their family or other obligations, this should be conveyed clearly before starting the project so that no one feels like they are being taken advantage of financially or otherwise.
Likewise, if someone wants something done quickly but doesn’t want to pay extra money for rushing through things (and thus potentially compromising quality).
Then communicating as much upfront will prevent any disappointment later down the line when deadlines pass without having met certain standards for quality workmanship or worse yet when deadlines pass without anyone noticing until it’s too late
5. Let The Writer Know What You Want It To Accomplish
Once you’ve established that you want to work with a ghostwriter, it’s time to talk about what the result will be.
In general, when people contact me for ghostwriting services, they have one of two goals:
- They want to publish an ebook or short book on Amazon or Kindle (or another online platform) and make money from it.
- They want their business website and/or blog to have more content to attract more visitors and generate more leads for their business.
Have you ever wondered about the world of ghostwriting? Find out what ghostwriting is and how you can get started. Our comprehensive guide will answer all your questions.
6. Know Your Budget
If you are serious about outsourcing your project, then you must know how much money you can spend on it. You should also know what kind of project you want to create and how much time it will take to complete the project.
If you don’t know these things, then following this guide will be difficult because:
- You may waste time looking for writers who can deliver a product that doesn’t fit within your budget
- It’s possible that an overpriced writer will steal your idea once they learn about what type of book or ebook are going to write
7. Find Out What The Ghostwriter Will Need From You To Get Started
Before you get started, it’s important to understand what your ghostwriter needs from you.
First, they will need information about the project and its goals. Second, they will need more specific details about the topic or topic areas in which you want help.
Third, if any resources would help them be successful in their writing process (for example books on related topics), let them know so they can reference them as needed.
Finally, once everything is settled with your ghostwriter and their schedule has opened up again after being busy with other projects (which usually happens around 9AM EST).
Send them an e-mail letting them know that their services are needed for yours and let them know how soon it needs to be completed by so that everyone stays on track with deadlines!
8. Have A Clear Process For Handling Revisions
You and your ghostwriter should also agree on a process for handling revisions. How often will you review the work? What constitutes “finished”? How many revisions are allowed (three, five, seven)?
How will you communicate with each other? A typical workflow might involve daily or weekly check-ins with the writer over email or Slack messaging.
You can use this time to let them know about any changes that need to be made, as well as get their feedback on the latest draft of your manuscript.
How long will you wait for a response from your ghostwriter before escalating things any further? Be sure to include all relevant contact information so they don’t have an excuse not to respond quickly enough.
If there is any disagreement over how much editing has been completed or what needs to be done next, how will it be resolved?
9. Know How Payment Works (And When It Happens)
When you work with a ghostwriter, you’ll be paid in installments. Payment is usually made at the end of each stage of the project, but it can also be made in full before the project is released or published.
Payment depends on your contract with your ghostwriter and their payment schedule. You should know their policy and make sure it’s acceptable to you before getting started: Do they pay by the hour? By the day? By word count?
What happens if there are any delays in completing your project due to illness or other factors outside of either one of your control?
If you’re considering writing a book, you might want to consider hiring a ghostwriter. Learn more about the benefits of this decision in our article on why you should hire a ghostwriter to write your book.
10. What If I Don’t Like The End Result?
- How do you feel about your own work? Do you love it and want to see it published? Or are you not satisfied with it and need someone else to polish it up?
- What is the purpose of what you’re writing? Is this a book, an essay, or something else entirely?
- How much time and money are you willing to invest in getting the result that is right for you (and pay for)?
Be honest about all these things with yourself and anyone else involved in the project, including your ghostwriter. Only then will everyone know what they’re getting into.
11. What If I Want To Change My Mind Mid-Process?
If you want to change directions in the middle of the process, let your ghostwriter know. It will be up to them whether they can accommodate your request and how much extra it will cost.
Some ghostwriters are more flexible than others, but generally speaking, if you decide that what you really want is something different than what you originally ordered, there’s going to be an additional fee for taking on that additional work.
This is because changing direction mid-project means significant amounts of time and effort need to go into making those changes and those costs have to be accounted for somewhere.
So always discuss any changes with your ghostwriter before making them and keep in mind that doing so may incur additional costs!
12. Choose A Ghostwriter Who Understands Your Industry, And Has Experience In Writing For It
When choosing a ghostwriter, you’re going to want to be sure that they understand your industry. If the person you hire doesn’t know about the industry and doesn’t have experience in writing for it, their work may be of low quality.
There are many ways to find out if a ghostwriter is familiar with the types of information and terminology used in your industry. You could ask them directly how much knowledge they have about your field before agreeing on terms (although this might put them off).
A better method would be to go online and search for some published works by other writers who specialize in writing within your field or niche market and then see what they write about!
If they mention using specific companies or brands when talking about something related to yours then chances are good that this person will understand both sides well enough not only put together an informative book.
But also provide readers with helpful insights into how businesses operate within these fields.
13. Try To Find A Ghostwriter Who Is Willing To Go Above And Beyond Your Expectations
If you’re looking for a ghostwriter, try to find one who is willing to go above and beyond your expectations. In other words, look for a ghostwriter who will be willing to go above and beyond the scope of the project.
This can mean that they are willing to work with you on multiple projects over time or it could mean that they are willing to work with other people in your organization or business.
For example, if you need help with writing an article that focuses on getting backlinks, then maybe you should look for someone who has written articles about link building before and knows what it takes in order themselves.
That way when they write this particular article for you, they won’t have any questions about what needs to be talked about because they have already had experience doing it before!
14. Stay Open-Minded To Their Suggestions – But Make Sure It’s Within Scope
When a ghostwriter is working with you, they’re going to make suggestions. Don’t be afraid of their ideas! The more open-minded you are, the better your book will turn out.
However, it’s important to understand that there are some things a ghostwriter cannot do for you.
If something falls outside of the scope of what they’re commissioned for (which we discussed in #12), then don’t expect them to change anything because it isn’t within their area of expertise.
Make sure that both parties are clear about ownership and rights before hiring anyone else; this is especially important if any money goes toward getting paid by another person or company later on down the line!
It’s also crucial that everyone involved has an idea about what exactly needs to be done so there aren’t any surprises along the way – this means asking questions throughout every step until everything feels right before moving forward with anything official like signing contracts etc…
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15. Be Clear About Ownership And Rights, Before You Start Working Together
If you’re going to work with a ghostwriter, it’s important to have an ironclad understanding of ownership and rights. This means being clear about what you can do with the material that they produce for you.
It’s also important to be clear on what they can’t do:
If there are any potential legal issues around their writing for you (e.g., if another writer has copyrighted something similar), make sure that person understands their limitations before starting the project.
Make sure everyone knows who owns the rights to their work, including how long those rights last and under what circumstances they can be used by other people or companies (and whether those companies are obligated to pay royalties).
These things may seem like common sense, but many freelancers don’t get around them until after working together for months or even years on end!
Conclusion
I hope this post was helpful for you. I know that writing is hard work, so it can be very frustrating when you are not getting paid for your time and effort.
But as long as you follow these tips and carefully consider what kind of content you want to publish on your blog, then you should be able to find a ghostwriter who will help make your blog more successful by producing great content in record time!
Further Reading
Reedsy – Book Ghostwriter: Reedsy provides professional book ghostwriting services, connecting authors with experienced ghostwriters who can bring their stories to life.
Indeed – Jobs for Ghost Writers: Interested in a career as a ghostwriter? Indeed offers insights into job opportunities and tips for finding freelance or full-time roles in ghostwriting.
The Writers for Hire – Ghostwriters and Copyrights: Your Guide to Copyright Protection when Hiring a Ghostwriter: This guide explains the importance of copyright protection when hiring a ghostwriter and provides valuable insights on protecting your intellectual property.
FAQs
What is ghostwriting?
Ghostwriting is the practice of writing content, such as books, articles, or speeches, on behalf of someone else, without being credited as the author.
How can I become a ghostwriter?
To become a ghostwriter, hone your writing skills, build a portfolio of writing samples, network with authors and publishers, and consider joining writing platforms or agencies that connect ghostwriters with clients.
What are the benefits of hiring a ghostwriter?
Hiring a ghostwriter allows you to have your ideas and stories professionally written and structured, even if you lack the time or writing expertise to do it yourself.
How much does a ghostwriter typically charge?
Ghostwriting rates can vary widely based on the scope and complexity of the project, the writer’s experience, and the industry standards. Some ghostwriters charge a flat fee, while others may request a percentage of book royalties.
Is ghostwriting legal?
Yes, ghostwriting is legal, and it’s a common practice in the publishing and content creation industries. Ghostwriters typically sign contracts that transfer the rights and ownership of the work to the client.
Costantine Edward is a digital marketing expert, freelance writer, and entrepreneur who helps people attain financial freedom. I’ve been working in marketing since I was 18 years old and have managed to build a successful career doing what I love.