When I began ghostwriting in the late 1990s, it was furtive work. The ghostwriter was usually anonymous and very much behind the scenes, hidden away in the shadows of the book and constrained by nondisclosure agreements. Ghosts were often unmentioned even in the acknowledgments. When they were, it was usually vague, along the lines of “Thanks to [name], who helped make this a better book” or “I’m grateful for the research assistance of [name].” At the same time, it was and is an open secret that almost all political, celebrity, and sports memoirs, business and thought leadership books, diet books, self-help books, and similar nonfiction titles are ghosted. A lot of popular fiction is too, especially books by brand-name authors and celebrities.

Times change.

The recent spectacular success of Spare, a memoir by Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, with the well-known ghostwriter J.R. Moehringer, has made a big difference in the attitude toward ghosts. Moehringer was able to openly discuss his role in crafting the book, giving his own media interviews and even bringing up times he clashed with his author. The open acknowledgment of Moehringer highlights the way a ghostwriter is really a collaborator, working closely with the author to create a compelling story.

Today any embarrassment attached to hiring a ghostwriter is largely gone, replaced by the understanding that most people are terrible writers and need a ghostwriter to produce a readable book. Ghosts are now more likely to get true acknowledgment and the coveted “with” credit on the book cover, but that’s still far from universal. Ghosts still remain largely in the background and are often still asked to sign NDAs. If your ego demands acknowledgment, ghosting may not be a good choice for you. If you’ve been an editorial freelancer long enough to know that the important place for your name is on the check, you may be ready to try ghosting.

The Demand for Ghostwriters

Traditional publishing is always in need of good ghostwriters to help their authors create their books. In some cases, the ghost is attached to the project from the beginning, working with the author and often the agent to craft the book proposal and usually (not always) staying on to write the book. In other cases, the ghost is brought in to help the author once the book is under contract. And sometimes the ghost is brought in to rescue a book that’s in trouble. Getting this sort of work depends a lot on your contacts with agents and editors and your track record with similar projects.

Authors no longer have to follow the long, slow, and very chancy path of traditional publishing to create their books. The rapid growth of self-publishing and hybrid publishing options have made it far easier for anyone to publish a book. The new approaches require the author to invest their own money instead of getting an advance, but also offer higher royalties, much more control over the end product, and much greater speed to market. The flexibility and speed of the nontraditional approaches are highly attractive to authors who understand the value of a book for promoting their ideas and their business. In thought leader circles, the saying is, “The book is the new business card.” These individuals understand that they won’t make money from book sales—in fact, they will spend far more on the book than it will earn back directly. Their publishing goals are more pragmatic. They want a solid, well-written book that will build their credibility, establish them as a thought leader in their field, give them gravitas, and bring in new business and speaking opportunities. These clients rightly see their books as marketing expenses. They know or quickly realize they need help to produce their manuscripts and have no problem with bringing in a ghost and paying a reasonable fee.

To find their ghosts, clients often turn to companies such as Scribe Media that specialize in working with self-publishing authors. The companies match the client with a ghost from their roster of freelancers and provide additional book production and marketing services. The advantage to the ghost can be fairly steady work and reasonable pay. Ghosting agencies, such as Gotham Ghosts and Kevin Anderson & Associates, also match clients and ghosts and act in effect as your agent. I’ve gotten a number of great projects from both over the years. Another resource is the Association of Ghostwriters.

The high demand for self-publishing services, including ghosting, means a number of lower-tier ghosting agencies have started up in recent years. They advertise low prices and bargain deals, but be careful here. They need ghosts, but low prices to clients means low fees to freelancers. Exercise due diligence and don’t hesitate to turn down the work.

Clients also find ghosts through other means, such as web searches, LinkedIn, association directories (the EFA Member Directory and ASJA, for example), and word-of-mouth referrals. In my experience, the best and most lucrative projects have been through referrals.

Ghosting a Book

Most book projects are in the range of 50,000 to 75,000 words—sometimes more. Ghosted books tend to have short deadlines, hardly ever more than nine months and more usually six months or less, so the work can be fairly intense and all-consuming. Because I came to ghosting from trade book publishing and had spent several years as a book packager, I had a pretty good idea of the work involved. If you’ve never worked on book-length projects before, however, be prepared. Even experienced journalists accustomed to writing 3,000-word articles on deadline can flounder when faced with 60,000 words in five months. Rescuing a book in trouble or writing a book that’s a rush job can be even more intense. Failure to meet a deadline will wreck your reputation. Take on ghosting projects, but especially rescues and rushes, only if you are certain you can handle them.

Because books take so long, you can’t really work on other projects as the same time, which may mean turning clients away. But never underestimate the psychological effect of a waiting list—you inexplicably become more desirable. A ghostwriter needs several key attributes. You have to be a fast, fluid writer and often a fast and thorough researcher. You have to be able to pick up on the client’s overall way of speaking and expressing themselves. (Don’t worry about their writing style—if they could write they wouldn’t need you.) In my experience, this mostly means getting a sense of their conversational tone, their sense of humor, and a few characteristic turns of phrase. Crucially, you need have a good sense of the intended audience and how the author wants to communicate with them. You also need to remember that ghosting a book is a collaboration. You’re working with the client to create a readable, insightful book. To be a good ghost, you don’t need to be self-effacing or egoless. In fact, just the opposite—your client is counting on you to keep a firm hand on the writing and guide them through the publishing process. In the end, of course, it’s the client’s book, even if they insist on including something ill-advised. (Kristi Noem’s account in No Going Back of shooting her puppy is a good example.)

Every ghosting project is different. Much depends on the client and how they prefer to work. Many like to work with me to draft a detailed outline. I then go off and write a chapter or two; we review and revise, then repeat with the next chapters. Other clients have already written the manuscript. These projects sometimes teeter on the edge between developmental editing and ghosting to rewrite and amplify. What the skills involved are called doesn’t really matter—most clients don’t know and don’t care about the subtle differences.

A popular approach that works well for business books, self-help books, and memoirs is the “talk your book” method. The ghost and the author talk through (on the phone or video) a list of topics based on a detailed outline. The conversation is recorded and transcribed; the ghost massages and often rewrites the transcripts into a book. This method is relatively fast and takes less of the client’s time. It works well for shorter titles (around 40,000 words or fewer). It’s an interesting experience for both ghost and client. As the ghost, I often feel more like a therapist, mostly just listening and saying encouraging things like “I see, please go on,” or “Tell me more,” or “Let’s circle back to that.” When done well, the talk method can lead the client to new insights that strengthen the book. It can also be fun if you have a good rapport with the client and the conversation can veer off topic now and then.

Setting Your Fee

To write a book that’s 65,000 words long takes at least six months of fairly concentrated effort. Your fee has to be enough to make you happy for that period, because you won’t have time or mental space for working on much else. Many freelancers are afraid that if they ask for a substantial five- or even six figure fee, using a starting point of $1 a word, they’ll scare off the client. Adjust your fee a bit if the client is truly price-sensitive, but only up to a point. Charging too little suggests you’re inexperienced or that you’re desperate for the work. This undercuts a client’s confidence in your ability to handle the job. They’ll look for someone else.

You deserve a fair price that factors in your hard work, your expertise, and lost income if you have to turn other clients away. Many clients are accustomed to paying substantial fees to their lawyers, their accountants, their marketing consultants, and the like. They expect to pay well for your skills too.

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Sheila Buff, EFA Member and experienced freelance writer and ghostwriter
Republished from an article that appeared in the Summer 2024 issue of the Freelancer.