Writing your own book vs hiring a ghostwriter to do it
Rob Swystun
Ghostwriter for thought leaders, business executives, entrepreneurs, and fiction authors who have important stories to tell.
Authors write books for a variety of reasons. Sometimes they simply want to share their story. Others may want to impart their hard-earned wisdom on the world to help others (and help kickstart a lucrative speaking career). And still others may have the next Harry Potter series locked away in their brains just waiting to be poured onto the page.
But here’s the thing: It’s much easier to imagine a book than to sit down and actually write it. You may have heard about the abyss staring back at you, but the abyss ain’t got nothing on a blank page staring at you waiting impatiently for you to start spewing words all over it.
It can be daunting.
Fortunately for people who have ideas, but who don’t want to face the blank page, there are service providers who will write your book for you while you take all the (agreed upon) credit. Just like you can hire a carpenter to build your house, hire a plumber to install the plumbing, and hire an electrician to install the wiring, you can hire a ghostwriter to write your book for you.
Why hire a ghostwriter
There are a number of excellent reasons to work with a ghostwriter to bring your book idea to fruition.
Time
Time is our most precious resource.
And this is the reason why people who have that other precious resource (money) tend to hire specialists to deal with things they don’t want to spend their time on, like mowing the lawn, for example. If you can afford it, and you would rather spend your time doing something else, then it makes sense to hire a professional lawn mowing service to come and mow your lawn.
And the same goes for writing.
You may have a fantastic idea, but the time it will take to put that idea into book form is significant. If you’d rather spend your time doing something else, then it makes sense to hire a professional to do the writing for you. Ghostwriters make their living writing for other people, so you already know they don’t mind spending their time writing. (It’s the marketing our services most of us don’t like.)
So, person who has money but doesn’t want to spend time writing + person who spends time writing to earn money = perfect partnership. It’s simple word math.
Effort
Everything that was said about time can also be said about effort. Writing a book is a huge mental, and oftentimes emotional, load on someone. Books take months of research, writing, revising, and editing, and that’s just for the manuscript.
If you don’t want to expend the effort to do all that (and no shame if you don’t, it’s a ton of work) then you can hire a ghostwriter to do that for you. In addition to the aforementioned activities, ghostwriting also involves interviewing at least one person (you) and perfecting the author’s voice (because even if it’s not you who is writing the book, you still want it to sound like you).
It’s a lot of work that requires a lot of effort and if you–for whatever reason–don’t want to spend your mental energy doing it, hiring someone else to do it is a viable option.
Knowledge
While you may possess the knowledge of the subject matter you are writing about, a ghostwriter will have knowledge of the publishing industry, and likely some contacts within the industry. They’ll be able to tell you, for example, that most non-fiction books will require a book proposal that covers not only the book itself, but also market research about the book’s potential audience.
They’ll be able to tell you about the pros and cons of traditional publishing versus self-publishing versus hybrid publishing, and walk you through these processes. Ghostwriters are more than just writers for hire. They are partners in your book’s journey from your brain to the physical page.
Voice
Arguably the most important skill a ghostwriter possesses is the ability to write in other people’s voices. You don’t just want a book written, you want your book written. That means it has to be written as if you wrote it yourself. And this is where professional ghostwriters excel. They’re not writing your book in a generic voice or their own voice. They’re writing it in your voice. You may not have written it yourself, but using a competent ghostwriter ensures that your book still sounds like you, however that may be.
Professionalism
The research and writing are just one aspect of ghostwriting. The other aspect is the coordination. Ghostwriters often have to work with first-time authors who have no idea about the process and how it’s done, but a knowledgeable ghostwriter will be able to walk you through signing the contract, outlining your project, setting up the interview process, and even what to do after the manuscript is ready.
And ghostwriters are used to signing non-disclosure agreements and sticking to them, working with editors, working with agents, interviewing subjects, and relinquishing intellectual property rights to the stated author. You’ll be in good hands when you hire a competent ghostwriter.
Writing takes a lot of time and effort and if you can’t afford to spend that time and effort doing the writing, but you have the money to pay someone else to do it, the question really becomes: Why not work with a ghostwriter?
Well, let’s take a look at that …
Reasons you may avoid working with a ghostwriter
While there are myriad good reasons to work with a ghostwriter, there are some counterarguments to working with one.
Detachment
Remember a few paragraphs ago when I said writing a book takes a huge mental and oftentimes emotional toll? That’s because it’s hard.
But, when you are done, you have a real sense of accomplishment at what you’ve created. As someone who has paid another person to do the creating part, you will naturally be detached from the creative process and you may not feel that sense of accomplishment even if you are completely satisfied with the finished product.
Unreadiness
You may simply not be ready to engage a ghostwriter yet. While your exact scope of work with a ghostwriter is something you will have to negotiate with them, typically speaking, the ghostwriter isn’t responsible for coming up with ideas. That part is still on you. If your idea isn’t fully formed, or you are not really sure when you want to have a manuscript ready for pitching to publishers, or self-publishing, you may want to postpone contacting ghostwriters until you get your timelines sorted out.
What can a ghostwriter write for you?
Generally, ghostwriters are associated with books, but they can help you write just about anything you need written, such as:
Where do you find ghostwriters?
We’re all over the place!
You can simply search via Google or another search engine. This is especially helpful if you want to find a local ghostwriter. Or, you can check the directory of the Association of Ghostwriters or the Editorial Freelancers Association, or other writers’ organizations. Searching on LinkedIn or another professional networking site is also an option.
How much does it cost to hire a ghostwriter?
Of course the real answer is that it depends entirely on the project and a ghostwriter’s experience. But, for full-length books written by a competent ghostwriter, the minimum would likely be in the range of $25,000 and there really is no maximum. And, keep in mind that you will probably need to pay that amount in monthly installments in a relatively short amount of time, like six months. (Although, every ghostwriting agreement is different and you and your ghostwriter will have to negotiate an agreement that suits both of you.)
Writing a book is hard and takes an immense amount of effort and ghostwriters’ pricing reflects that. If you’re comfortable working with relatively new ghostwriters, the prices will probably be on the lower end. If you insist on a lot of experience, you need to be prepared to pay for that experience.
I like to tell people that the ballpark for hiring a ghostwriter is the same as purchasing a new vehicle. Some people just want a reliable Hyundai while others want a top-of-the-line Bentley.
I’m kind of a Mazda right now, so if you are in the market for a ghostwriter for your business, thought leadership, entrepreneurialism, memoir/autobiography, or fiction book, please send me a message here on LinkedIn or email me at contact@robswystun.com or visit my website at robswystun.com.