5 Ghostwriting Myths: What a Top Ghostwriter Wants You To Know
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When a reporter asked Ronald Reagan about his autobiography, he quipped, “I hear it’s a great book. I mean to read it one day.” Reagan wasn’t joking: all 748 pages of An American Life were the work of a ghostwriter named Robert Lindsey.
Spare — the buzzy tell-all detailing Prince Harry’s life “staged in the public eye” — was not written by royalty. Bestselling author J.R. Moehringer penned the life story of the man fifth in line to the British throne.
From presidents to princes, ghostwriting has long been accepted in the world of traditional publishing. For thousands of years, in fact, famous and powerful people have hired someone to write their books. Now, thanks to the digital technology that made self-publishing easy and affordable for those less renowned than the Duke of Sussex, ghostwriting has entered the mainstream.
As a bestselling author, ghostwriter, and book writing coach, I’ve seen all sides of the publishing world. I’ve sold hundreds of thousands of books around the globe and, a few years ago, I started Storyglu.com to help authors create engaging books readers can’t put down. For some clients, ghostwriting is the best way to accomplish that goal.
If you have a story worth telling, you may have considered hiring a ghostwriter. But there are many misconceptions about this somewhat secretive service that produces a significant percentage of the bestselling books written today. This article will pull back the curtain to give you an insider’s view on how ghostwriting really works. It will help you understand more about the potential (and the pitfalls) of this rapidly growing industry.
Myth #1: Ghostwriters are only for the rich and famous
Ghostwriting can be quite expensive. Using someone who’s written multiple bestsellers to transcribe your story will cost well over a hundred thousand dollars. If you have the budget to hire someone with a proven track record, it’s going to improve your odds for success. For people who have spent a lifetime building their public persona, it makes sense to invest in the kind of high-priced talent that will enhance their reputation.
The truth is that the vast majority of authors using ghostwriters today are neither rich nor notorious. They are simply people with a story to tell or an idea to share, folks who don’t have the time or the confidence in their own writing skills to take on the monumental task of producing a book. Luckily, there are ghostwriters of varying skills who work for a broad range of fees.
You can have a short memoir of under 100 pages written by a novice ghostwriter for as little as $5,000. My company has more experienced writers and our fees range from $10,000 to $75,000, depending on how long the book is, the resumé of the writer, and the complexity of the subject. The secret is to match the type of book you want written with someone who has that particular capability, and who will work within your price range. Yes, that can take some legwork to find. But if there is a book inside of you that just has to be written, it may well be worth taking the time to find the perfect writer for your project.
Myth #2: Using a ghostwriter is deceptive
I’m ghostwriting a book for a lawyer based on his 40 years of keeping a daily journal. He writes beautiful prose in his diaries, but he doesn’t know how to organize his life in a book format that would engage a reader for 200 pages. Lewis has absolutely no qualms telling people that, in the very same breath, he is writing a book and also using the services of a ghostwriter. So, where’s the deception?
Today, many authors who employ ghostwriters are quite open about the assistance they receive. Ghostwriters are emerging from the shadows to be acknowledged for their contributions, often being referred to as “collaborators.” We’re even seeing some ghostwriters named as co-authors. Thankfully, the stigma attached with having someone else put your words to paper has faded considerably.
How you choose to describe the support you receive to bring your book to the public is up to you. But calling yourself the “author” is never ever a deception. A ghostwriter does not create a book out of thin air. You are the primary source material. It will be about your life and/or your message, and you will have to describe what you want your book to be about through interviews with your ghostwriter — providing enough detail to fill hundreds of printed pages. That makes you undeniably the “author” of your book even if you aren’t its “writer.”
The truth is that it takes a team to write a really good book. With most commercially successful releases, there is a veritable legion of beta readers, copy editors, content editors, fact checkers, proofreaders, and researchers involved. And yet only one person’s name typically graces the cover of the finished product. It’s simply accepted that good books require a bevy of specialized skills that no one person can possess. Ghostwriting simply takes the concept of book collaboration to the uppermost limit.
If the goal is to produce the best possible publication about someone’s life or the lessons they’ve learned, ghostwriting is just another level of support available — and there’s nothing deceptive about that.
Myth #3: A ghostwriter can “steal” your great idea for a book
The first question I ask a potential client who has inquired about our ghostwriting services is “what’s your book about?” Usually, that question unleashes a torrent of words fervently describing a life story or book idea that has been sitting inside the author for years, just screaming to be let out. But sometimes my question elicits silence, a pause, or even hesitation. Finally, the person begins to cautiously describe, in very general terms, a book that doesn’t make much sense due to the paucity of details.
This kind of author believes someone could pilfer their bestselling book idea and write it under their own name. But this wariness is based on a myth. The truth is that no ghostwriter could single-handedly create a book without the author’s input — especially if it’s a memoir or autobiography — because only the author knows the whole story. Even with a prescriptive nonfiction work (like a self-help, how-to, or leadership book), the idea alone is not enough to write the book. The magic is in the details, and that wealth of information resides inside the author, not the ghostwriter.
It's common legal knowledge that you cannot copyright an idea. But, once a ghostwriter starts to work on your book, you will own the full copyright to everything they produce. This applies even to the unfinished work in progress; your contract should explicitly describe this ownership. There’s nothing to lose by telling a potential ghostwriter exactly what your book is about in the early discussions. They will be able to identify any challenges inherent with your project and also help you see new possibilities for what your book could become. Most importantly, a ghostwriter can’t confirm if your book is within their area of expertise (and they certainly cannot give you an accurate quote on the cost!) without an in-depth understanding of the content.
Myth #4: Ghostwriting is an easy way to get your book written
Good books require a lot of hard work, so hiring a ghostwriter definitely makes that job much easier. But the truth is, as the author, you will have to work almost as hard as the person you’ve contracted for the writing. That’s because the story, the content, and the magic of the book’s message lives inside of you. Transferring that material to the printed page is a collaborative effort between you and your ghostwriter, which requires significant time and effort on your part.
My client Lewis is a great example. He has been keeping daily journals for over forty years. We estimate he’s written the equivalent of seven and a half War and Peaces in his daily diary entries. Initially, Lew thought all he had to do was ship hundreds of notebooks full of thoughts, stories, and musings to my office, and I’d pull a bestselling memoir out of a hat six months later with an “Abracadabra!”
Guess what? There is literally no ghostwriter on Earth who could do that.
Instead, we started the first of what would become dozens of recorded interviews where he would tell me, as best as he could from memory, the stories of his life. I created a chronology that flagged the key moments we needed to capture — the stories that would shape a narrative arc through his life. Then I asked Lew to comb through the journals himself to curate selected entries that described those specific times for the book to focus on.
It wasn’t easy. Remember: we’re talking about hundreds of journals here. He had to reread (and, in some ways, relive) difficult moments from the past, including the death of his spouse, and being disinherited by his family. A few months ago, I flew to California and spent a week living in Lew’s house. He took time off work, and we spent hours each day at the kitchen table. As I asked questions, he provided answers while scurrying back and forth to the den where he keeps his journals.
Authors must not only share the details from their lives and the idea-driven content for the book, but they also have to review the ghostwriter’s work and provide feedback in a timely fashion. There is much back and forth between the ghostwriter and the author over the course of six months to a year — sometimes much longer — and the customer has to stay engaged in the process. But, in the end, you will have earned every right to have your name on the front cover of your book.
Myth #5: Any good writer can be a ghostwriter
About half of our clients come to us after an unsuccessful collaboration with another ghostwriter. There are many reasons why ghostwriting projects falter, and both the client and writer can be equally at fault. Most of the time it’s simply a matter of the writer not being a good fit for the project.
The three most common reasons a writer isn’t right for your book are:
they are not experienced in your genre,
they can’t write in your “voice,” and
most importantly, they don’t have any actual ghostwriting experience.
This is why I want to focus on dispelling this final myth.
Let’s imagine you’re Prince Harry, and you’re looking for a ghostwriter. You read this fantastic coming-of-age memoir about a young man finding sanctuary from his chaotic family life in a local pub. The story resonates with your princely life experience and the writing is sensitive and engaging. The Tender Bar, written by the aforementioned J.R. Moehringer, was an international bestseller that was made into a blockbuster film produced by George Clooney and starring Ben Affleck. Sure, J.R. can write — but can he ghostwrite? The answer is a resounding “yes”! Mr. Moehringer also penned the autobiographies of tennis superstar Andre Aggasi and Phil Knight, the founder and genius behind Nike.
J.R. Moehringer is a triple threat. He writes his own fiction and nonfiction in addition to ghostwriting for celebrities. But many good writers struggle in the transition from doing their own creative work to telling someone else’s story. While ghostwriting requires a tremendous amount of artistic skill, it isn’t working with a completely blank canvas like a novelist does. The ghostwriter has limitations based on the actual experience of the author/client and the ideas they want to communicate. Ghostwriters have to “paint between the lines” of the content and narrative the client provides. Good — even great — writers are not always up to that challenge.
The biggest stumbling block for a writer that hasn’t worked as a ghostwriter is capturing the voice of their client. The finished work has to “sound” like the author speaking. It has to feel right in terms of language choice, pacing, and worldview. You can’t put ideas into the author’s head or assign reasons for taking action that are not inherently true to the client’s character. This is a very unique skill that only good ghostwriters possess.
When Andre Agassi hired Moerhinger, it was based solely on reading J.R.’s personal memoir The Tender Bar. It was a big risk. There wasn’t yet a track record of ghostwriting success. And, as the mega-bestselling memoir Open: An Autobiography proves, Andre aced his serve to win that match. Now, I’m not saying that a good writer who has never been a ghostwriter can’t do that job. It’s just that there’s no guarantee they can transfer their skills to this very specialized area of writing.
If you’re talking to an experienced ghostwriter who has written more than one book, you’ll be able to compare the publications. You can see if the voice reflects a different kind of author in each book or if they both sound the same. If pursuing a gifted writer who is new to ghostwriting, here’s a secret hack no one likes to mention: ask the writer to produce a sample chapter of your book. You’ll have to pay for that service, but you could save yourself a lot of money by quickly finding out whether or not someone is the right fit for your book.
If you’ve got a book inside you and aren’t the kind of person to write it yourself, ghostwriting is your best option. And who knows? If you have a great story and you find an excellent writer, you just might end up rich and famous yourself after your book lands on the New York Times bestseller list!
Steve Donahue is a bestselling author, book coach, ghostwriter and speaker. His books have sold hundreds of thousands of copies and been translated into multiple foreign editions. Steve is the founder of Storyglu.com, a book coaching and ghostwriting firm that helps nonfiction authors write books readers can’t put down.
