GWA #2 - Ghostwriting 101 Part 1

In this first episode of the Ghostwriting 101 series I will be discussing what ghostwriters are and what they do. I think the best way to begin is to give you an example of someone who isn’t a ghostwriter. A ghostwriter is not…I repeat…IS NOT…a person who writes about ghosts! Now of course if you become a ghostwriter and are hired by a client who pays you to write a story about ghosts, well, then you would be a ghostwriter writing about ghosts. But I cannot stress enough that ghostwriters are not necessarily fascinated with haunted houses, cemeteries, etc. You have no idea how many times I have had to explain that. If you decide to become a ghostwriter you will inevitably have this conversation pretty much every time you introduce yourself to a group of people. And of course be ready for the jokes. “You’re a ghostwriter…but I can see you!” Or “wow, I’ve never met a ghost before, yet alone one who can write!” Be prepared because it never fails. Whenever I go to a gathering of any kind and tell people what I do for a living, there is always that one guy who thinks that he is the most creative person in the world because of his comment and of course also thinks that I’ve never heard it before. Trust me...I have. The Oxford English Dictionary gives my favorite definition of a ghostwriter. It defines them as “hack writers who do work for which another person takes the credit.” Any time a dictionary uses the word hack in a definition you’ve got to laugh. But, wait…it gets better. When you look up the word hack in the OED it says they are “people whose services may be hired for any kind of work required of them; a common drudge; especially a literary drudge, who hires himself out to do any and every kind of literary work; hence, a poor writer, a mere scribbler.” Well, isn’t that nice. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that I disagree with this assessment. Yes, it is true…we generally will write in any genre a client asks us to. And yes it is true that we are paid for our work and rarely get credit for it. However, I personally have more of a philosophical view when it comes to ghostwriting. You may have noticed that when I begin every podcast I use the tag line “for those who give a literary voice to the world.” There are countless people out there with great ideas for books or an amazing story to share but for one reason or another do not feel they can write it themselves. Ghostwriters give them the opportunity to share their thoughts with the world. It is important to note that ghostwriters don’t just write books. As a ghostwriter you can write speeches, newspaper and magazine articles, marketing materials, website content…really anything you can think of. Speech writers are probably the most famous of ghostwriters. That is because when politicians give speeches, it is widely known that they do not write them themselves and many times the speech writer is a known member of the staff. While secrecy is a common thread in most ghostwriting projects, it is not essential. Being a ghostwriter simply means that you are writing on behalf of someone else for a fee. So, how do ghostwriters do what they do? When working on a project of any kind, there are three general options. Most of the time, authors come to the ghostwriter with an idea. If this is the case, there are two ways to approach the project. Either the author can give the ghostwriter the idea, main points, and other general information and let the ghostwriter complete the project on their own and simply meet at the end for editing OR the author can give the ghostwriter the idea, main points, and general information but also sit down for a series of interviews so that the ghostwriter can take their actual words and incorporate them into the work. Most authors I have worked with prefer the second option. By taking part in the interviews the author plays a bigger role in the project and they can ensure from the beginning that their thoughts are being conveyed the way they want them to be. Of course things can always be altered in the editing process, but I know I always appreciate it when an author is willing to be interviewed. The third option arises when an author brings you a partially completed manuscript. This means that the author has part of or even most of the writing already done and just needs you, as the ghostwriter, to finish it. In this case what the ghostwriter does is completely based on how much of the manuscript is completed. If most of it is done, then the ghostwriter simply expands on the author’s thoughts a little and works on rewording and rephrasing. However, if there is still quite a bit to write, the author would choose between options 1 and 2 in order to finish the project. To sum it up, in option 1 a client gives the ghostwriter the idea, some quick thoughts and then just waits for a completed rough draft. In option 2 a client gives the ghostwriter those quick thoughts but also takes part in interviews in order to supply more information. In option 3 the client comes into the project with a partially completed manuscript. In the near future I will be dedicating entire episodes to the writing process, but I hope those quick thoughts were useful. Being a ghostwriter is incredibly fun. You constantly meet new people are always doing something different. Rather than thinking of a ghostwriter as a hack who basically sell himself to the highest bidder, I believe you should think of a ghostwriter as more of a liaison. As a ghostwriter you are the person in the middle who is taking the authors thoughts and putting them together in a way that will draw the attention of their audience. You are the author’s ally in this battle to get their stories out to the public. Maybe I should send these thoughts to the creators of the Oxford English Dictionary. Do you think they will listen? Yeah, you’re right…probably not. Feel free to contact me with your questions or comments at any time. I will answer your questions on air if I think the audience will benefit from hearing about the subject of your e-mail. You can reach me at gwapodcast@aol.com. That link will be included in the show notes at the official page for the Ghostwriters Anonymous podcast, http://www.ghostwriters-anonymous.com/. Click on the tab that says “Ghostwriters Anonymous podcast.” Thank you for listening and make sure to tune in next week for the second episode of the Ghostwriting101 series where I will be discussing how much ghostwriters should charge for their work and the things every ghostwriter should know before accepting clients.