Keep in mind that ghostwriters for hourly projects bill for interviews, e-mails, and phone calls in addition to writing time. Most professionals break the cost of large projects into three or four payments; you should never be asked to pay the full fee up front. And always be sure to get a complete project bid or explicit hourly fees before starting a project. Find her on Twitter stacyennis. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
During this conversation, the ghostwriter often asks several questions to get an overview of the project. Proposal: The ghostwriter sends a project proposal. Once the proposal is signed, the project is a go. Book outline: The ghostwriter conducts one to three recorded interviews by phone or video conferencing, which are then transcribed. From those interviews, the ghostwriter puts together a two- to ten-page or so book outline, which the client then revises.
Interviews in person : Over three to five days, the ghostwriter interviews the client, again recording for transcription. This will sometimes result in more than single-spaced pages of transcripts! Expanded book outline: After the interviews, the ghostwriter creates an expanded book outline, anywhere from fifteen to fifty pages in length, depending on the complexity of the book. Again, there is some back and forth before arriving at the final working outline. Book draft: The ghostwriter then gets to do what she does best—retreat into a writing cave, only to emerge when the book draft is complete and ready to share with the client.
This drafting process can take anywhere from three months to a year. In a business book, this could be close associates from the past or present. If it is agreed that this will definitely add something to the book, it is again something that the author should arrange early on. Firstly, if it gets pushed back to the end of the process, it can become a distraction, or may never happen at all. I will only add that, generally, ghosts will want to spend up to twenty hours or so with an author, depending on the type of book in question.
My personal preference is to do so in one, to two, hour chunks. This, I feel is the optimum time to get the best material before an author gets tired of talking about his or herself and starts drifting off topic. However, this is not always possible, and I have been in situations where an author will only be available for, say, a solid week of interviewing. It is all doable. It is the lot of a ghost to adapt to a situation. The author simply needs to make themselves available for enough hours to relay all the necessary information.
While it is important for a ghost to check facts and question inconsistencies in a story, the onus is very much on the author to tell things as they happened.
The final important task in any collaboration is feedback. It is usual for ghostwriters to send draft chapters on a regular basis once they have enough material to start writing. It is crucial that authors read and review the material and send back comments. It is not just about factual accuracy either. The ability to collaborate is important. Unlike the novelist who works alone, the ghostwriter can expect to communicate with the client on a regular basis.
A firm understanding of the publishing industry is important. Getting a degree in English or journalism could be useful, but your real card up your sleeve will be your work portfolio. Think a ghostwriting career is in your future? Be Inspired. By Yvonne Shiau. Also on Mediabistro. Sign up to get our best career advice and job search tips.
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