What Does a Ghostwriter Do?

You may have heard about ghostwriters but aren't sure what they do or what services they provide for their clients. A ghostwriter can provide many different services for writing, editing, or publishing your book. However, many ghostwriters are very niche and only offer specific services, with many offering book writing for their clients.

Hiring a Ghostwriter to Write Your Book

Many ghostwriters offer writing services to speed up or jump in and write your book for you. You may already have content as an online course, video channel, blog, or podcast. Even if you don't have content, a ghostwriter can assist you in creating your book with your guidance - writing beside you as your ghostwriter.

You'll want to find a ghostwriter who is transparent about what they offer you. There is a list of questions you'll want to ask them, which we will cover in another blog in more detail. However, you'll want to make sure that you feel very comfortable with your ghostwriter and that you and your ghostwriter have complementary personalities because they will be your best friend, working closely together as you both write your book together.

This should be you with your ghostwriter! Make sure you’re compatible before you commit, because you want to have a good connection with them.

Ensure you ask them their rate, how long of a contract you need to sign with them, and the expected start and finish date for your book. The ghostwriter may have one or more client projects ahead of yours, so you'll want to start looking for a ghostwriter six months ahead of your planned start date to ensure you can get your book done by your publication deadline.

Writing Your Book with a Ghostwriter

While the ghostwriter can write your book based on research, the best books are told via the story by you. Why? Because the people who follow you want to hear from you, so you're writing your book! So while a ghostwriter is writing the content, you'll want to make sure the content they are writing is in your voice and style.

The easiest way to achieve this, and the way many of my clients prefer to write their book, is to audio record your book and have the audio transcribed by an automated transcription service such as Descript.

Here's an example scenario of what writing your book with a ghostwriter may look like.

A small business owner, Jill, wants to write a book about her work as a human resources expert. Why does she want to write a book? Being a published author gives you credibility and notoriety for your work. When writing a book, you are seen as a legitimate professional in your vertical. Additionally, becoming an author also opens you up to many more speaking engagements.

Do you have to write a book to be an expert? No. Will you have less recognition? Yes. The fact is, being an author gives you a considerable advantage over others in the same field and a higher trust level with your current and potential clients. People who are authors gain immediate credibility when they have written a book and for a good reason.

Writing a book is an undertaking most people decide to take only once in their life. The process can be long and tedious, especially if you don't like to write, have a full-time job, or have children. I've heard stories of authors with children who would get up early, around 5 am, or stay up late, until midnight, every day and night for two to three years for their books to be complete. That's a firm and long-term commitment for your novel, which is why authors have more credibility.

A good ghostwriter can dramatically shorten the length of time for your book to be published since your book will be their full-time job for six months to a year of their time. In addition to shortening the length of time to having your book published, a ghostwriter can also give you ideas for your content, edit your information, assist you in organizing chapters, and assist you with publishing.

Each ghostwriter has a different set of skills that they bring to the table when writing your book. Therefore, before you employ a ghostwriter, have a set of questions available to ask them based on what you need or need to know.

Do you need assistance getting started on your new book or picking up where you left off on writing your book? Have you finished your book, and you're looking for an editor who can complete your book edits quickly? Are you looking for an experienced author, book coach, and ghostwriter to work with you as a team to write and publish your new book?

Find out how Write For You can work with you to create book content that tells your story. Book your complimentary discovery call today to find out how to work together with Write For You to achieve your goals!