How to find a ghost writer
They say that everyone has a story to tell. The problem is in the narration. Let’s be honest. Some of us can string words together into decent, readable sentences, and some of us can’t. The former at some point join words professionally, helping the latter and getting paid for it in the process. And there’s no shame in admitting that even though you have a super nice keyboard, the latest word processing program, spell checker, punctuation checker, grammar checker and all sorts of checks, you just can’t write something that reads like you have it on your head.
That is the problem of writing. looks easy. Materials are cheap enough. (You can use a pencil and notepad to shout out loud.) You know the alphabet. You have a decent vocabulary. And you have a great idea. Unfortunately, there is a significant gap that stretches from mind to paper. It’s a long way to go. From the time most people manage their idea from their brains to the tips of their fingers to press the letters on their keyboards, something is invariably missing. And what they end up reading on the screen in front of them is nothing like what they had imagined it would be. Worse, some people can’t even get past the idea stage and don’t even know how to get started, let alone see their efforts come to fruition on paper.
If this sounds like you, then maybe you need someone to help you with your writing. Maybe you need a ghost writer. How can a ghost writer help you? Anything from an article to a book. Do you want some publicity for your business? How about writing an article about what you do to get it published in your local newspaper? It’s a great way to become an expert in the eyes of your potential customer base. Do you have an idea that you are sure will be a bestseller? Write a book! Don’t let your ideas go to waste just because you’re having trouble getting them on paper. That’s what ghost writers are for.
Ghostwriters can write from scratch or edit and rewrite something you’ve already written. If you have any typing talent, the second way is obviously a cheaper route. But if you’re completely stuck and can’t even get started, a good ghostwriter is worth their weight in gold.
An effective ghostwriter will talk to you and, more importantly, listen to you. He or she will be skillful in the interview process, making sure to get all the information he or she has so that it can be translated into the written word. A good ghostwriter will get into your head and become a natural extension of your thoughts. He or she will bridge that gap from mind to paper.
It’s a partnership, the relationship between writer and client, and depending on the size of the project, it can be a long one. Therefore, it is important to choose your ghostwriter carefully. First of all, make sure you feel comfortable with the writer. Make sure you feel like the ghostwriter is someone you can communicate with. He’s someone you’re going to be spending significant time with, so you’d better feel a healthy level of trust.
Second, especially in the case of a book you hope to publish, the writer must have a rudimentary knowledge of the publishing industry. No ghostwriter can guarantee publication (run screaming for one that does), but they should at least be able to point you in the right direction when it comes to finding an agent or publisher. They should be able to help you write a book proposal that summarizes your work (most agents and publishers will prefer to see this first, rather than the entire book), as well as help you with a query letter, a letter sent to agents, and publishers to get them interested in the book proposal in the first place.
Naturally, of course, you also need to work with a writer who can meet your budget. However, be careful. Good ghostwriters don’t come cheap. A book can take several months to write. Don’t expect a writer to basically put his business on hold for that period of time to write his book for the sake of peanuts. A decent ghostwriter might charge anywhere from $50 to $200 per page. Those charging at the low end sometimes seek compensation by taking a percentage of the book’s potential royalties, sometimes as much as 50%, while those charging at the high end may be left with nothing.
It would be wise to look for someone in the middle. Personally, I like the idea of giving the ghostwriter an incentive to finish the book by giving him some percentage of the royalties (even ten or fifteen percent). This makes the writer a little more involved in the outcome of the book.
The terms of your deal with the ghost writer should be explained in advance. Make sure a time is mentioned. And your payment to the writer should be spread over this period of time. If it’s going to take four months to write the book, then your payment should be divided into quarters.
Other terms include an understanding of how the ghostwriter will receive your information, the fact that the work will belong to you and will appear to the outside world as having been written by you and not the ghostwriter, and a note about non-disclosure to make sure that the writer will not disclose your story to anyone without your approval.
Do you have a story to tell? Don’t let it stay there in your head. Find the right person to put it into print and publish it for the world to see.
Copyright 2009, Jerry Payne