You’re a skilled writer. You enjoy telling stories and engaging your audience. You’re highly organized and an excellent listener.
And more than anything, you want to be paid to write.
If this sounds like you, then your next question should be, “How do I become a ghostwriter?”
Thanks to the rise of the ebook, there is more need now for ghostwriters than ever before. But how do you get started? What will a ghostwriter salary look like? And how can you be sure it’s the right career path for you?
In this article, I’ll cover everything you need to know about launching a career as a freelance ghostwriter.
In this article: Expert insights from Robert Tighe
To make sure all the information is accurate, I’ve spoken with an expert: Robert Tighe, a best-selling ghostwriter and the man behind StoryBud.co. Robert’s first book, Zero to 60, went to number one on the New Zealand non-fiction bestsellers list, and he’s currently writing the autobiography of one of New Zealand’s most successful high-tech entrepreneurs.
Robert was kind enough to lend his experience and insights for this article, so that you know you’re getting information from someone who has legitimately been there, done that.
What does ghostwriting mean?
A ghostwriter creates content (often a book) on behalf of someone else, and publishes the content under that person’s name. They typically take no public credit for their work, but they receive payment from the named author (or the author’s publisher).
But that’s the boring definition.
If you ask an actual ghostwriter (like I did), they’ll tell you that ghostwriting is more than just publishing your words under someone else’s name. It’s the art of conveying someone else’s story in a compelling, inspiring, and/or educational way.
Ghostwriting doesn’t always mean writing up a novel based on someone else’s life story. Ghostwriting (like ghosts, I suppose) can take several different forms.
“As a ghostwriter, I’ve got a passion for telling other people’s stories, turning their thoughts, knowledge, experience and ideas into blogs, case studies, opinion pieces, web content and books.”
What skills do you need to become a ghostwriter?
What does it take to become a ghostwriter? Like any job, there are a number of skills you need to succeed. We’ll discuss how you can build up each of these skills in the next section of this article, but let’s first look at an overview of the qualities that make a stellar ghostwriter.
Writing skills
For starters, you of course have to be a strong writer to be a successful ghostwriter. Once you start finding your first clients, you will have to show them that you are a wordsmith and well-versed in the ways of grammar.
Beyond grammar and mechanics, remember this: A ghostwriter is a storyteller, not a transcriber. You must be able to craft a compelling story using the base information you get from your client. This means understanding what makes for a good story—strong and realistic characters, a plotline that makes sense and moves at a good clip, and the difference between showing and telling. (Remember, even a nonfiction biography or story needs these components to be successful.)
Interview skills
As a ghostwriter, it will be up to you to gather the information you need to craft a compelling book based on your client’s stories or insights. This means you need to be an excellent interviewer, adept at asking the right questions to get insights out of your interviewee.
A big part of having strong interview skills is also being an excellent listener. Though you’ll be recording your interviews, you still need to be able to digest everything your client says, so that you can ask follow-up questions and get to the root of their story.
Voice and tone adaptability
The end product of your work needs to sound like your client, not you. Remember, the ultimate goal is for your client to publish the work under their own name, which means the text you put together needs to match their tone of voice.
During your interviews, you need to not only be able to listen well and ask insightful questions, but also examine your client to better understand how they speak—their cadence, vocabulary, and speech quirks—which you then will demonstrate on the page.
Marketing skills
Unless you plan to work for a ghostwriting agency or publishing house, you’ll also need to develop strong marketing skills to find your clients. The product you are selling, in this case, is you—and you’ll need to create a compelling case for why clients should choose you over the other ghostwriters out there.
Robert, for example, uses his website to draw in clients, by putting clear calls to action and examples of his work front and center on his site:
Robert’s full website can give you good insights on how he markets himself. He’s also prominent on LinkedIn and a strong believer in the power of networking.
The three P’s: Patience, Perseverance, and Passion
When I asked the expert to name the three most important skills for someone who wants to become a ghostwriter, Robert told me this:
Patience, perseverance and passion. Writing a book can take over your life for months at a time. You need to have all three of those skills or values to see it through to the end.
How to get started as a ghostwriter
Few people possess all of the above traits at the start, so don’t worry if you aren’t an experienced interviewer or don’t know where to start with your self-marketing strategy.
How you develop these skills will be part of your larger career story. For an example, let’s look at how Robert Tighe got his start as a ghostwriter:
Case Study: How Robert Tighe got his first ghostwriting client
I didn’t intend to become a ghostwriter. Growing up in Ireland, I was a voracious reader—my parents would get three Sunday papers, and I’d read every article in the sports sections.
This eventually led to a job as a feature writer/editor at The Red Bulletin, Red Bull's global adventure lifestyle magazine.
I learned so much in that role and also landed my first ghostwriting client as a result of a feature story I did for the magazine on Tony Quinn, a Scotsman who made a fortune selling pet food in Australia and invested $25 million into a world-class motorsport venue in Queenstown, New Zealand.
When I sent his Operations Manager the finished article I added a PS at the of the email: “Tony mentioned he had a few false starts with his book. If he's looking for a writer I'd love the opportunity to talk to him or his publisher about it.”
That PS led to me writing my first book, Zero to 60, which went to number one on the New Zealand bestseller’s list.
Of course, if you don’t have a job at a newspaper, there are still things you can do to land your first ghostwriting client. Here are some tips:
Spend a lot of your time reading
You’re in luck if reading is already one of your favorite pastimes, because reading is one of the best ways to understand how to tell a story. Consider some of your favorite books and what makes them work. Consider reading a few well-known ghostwritten books, as you can see what a strong final product looks like. (Bonus points if you can find a ghostwritten book that aligns with the type you’d like to write.)
Robert recommends Stephen King’s On Writing, which is one of the most revered books for budding writers of all genres and formats.
Whatever you choose to read, be sure to look at it with a critical eye. Reflect on what makes it such a good story for you personally, and read reviews and critiques to see what resonated with the larger audience.
Improve your writing with courses and practice
Reading is only half of the equation. To be a good writer, you need to practice—a lot. There are plenty of ways to do this, including:
- Taking a writing course
- Join a writer’s workshop
- Start a novel or book of your own
- Begin writing a blog
- Write essays or short stories
- Compose a daily journal
The more practice you get, the better. As Robert puts it, “Write as much as you can. Then write some more.”
Bonus tip: Robert also suggests taking a typing course. When you’re working as a ghostwriter, you end up transcribing a lot of your audio—speedy typing can save you time in the long run. While there are transcription services that automate this process, transcribing the words yourself gives you the time you need to process and reflect on your client’s words.
Begin building a portfolio
As you complete more writing, begin to collate it into a portfolio. Ideally, you’ll host this portfolio online on a website or blog, which you can later show to potential clients.
As your writing skills improve, begin submitting your work to official publications. You can write as guest blogger, submit your articles (or stories or poems or whatever you like writing) to magazines and newspapers, publish articles in newspapers, or do what Robert did and begin applying for jobs as a writer.
The goal here is to build up a body of work that makes it easy for clients to understand you are a professional and have experience as a writer. Don’t be afraid to put this experience front and center when meeting prospects.
Identify a niche, and use it to guide your marketing strategy
Identify a niche (or a few niches) where you’d like to work will make it easier for your to target your marketing strategy at the right people.
For example, let’s say you’re a big foodie, and your dream ghostwriting project would be a memoir or a cookbook for a famous chef.
Logically, your next step would be to look for blogs and magazines that would allow you to start
- Building a portfolio of work within the foodie niche
- Making connections with people who could become (or introduce you to) influential people within the world of gastronomy
Your marketing efforts shouldn’t end there. In addition to pitching your work to the right people, you need to continually build your portfolio, and consider other marketing channels like SEO, social media, and paid advertising (if and when you have the budget).
How much is a ghostwriter salary?
Before you start undertaking the actions above to become a ghostwriter, there’s one big question you need to consider:
How much can you actually make as a ghostwriter?
Unfortunately, there’s no easy answer, as your pay will be dependent on the scope of the project and your experience.
Pricing a book project is tough. It depends on so many factors like how much material the client has already, the length and scope of the book, how much research you have to do, how many other people apart from your client you will have to interview, to name just a few.
Working through a publisher may seem like a good idea, and indeed, it could help you land your first ghostwriter job. However, according to Robert, publishers typically pay peanuts for the amount of work you put in.
Instead, it may be more lucrative to target entrepreneurs and industry professionals directly and set a rate based on the estimated hours you want to work.
For his first job, for example, Robert estimated he would spend 200 hours on the project. He determined what hourly rate he would need to make that time commitment worthwhile, and set an hourly price from there. Over time, as you build your reputation, you can charge higher prices.
(Side note: That first project for Robert ended up taking closer to double that time, but as it was his first stab at ghostwriting, he was happy to take the lower rate in order to build his profile.)
What’s challenging about being a ghostwriter?
There are, of course, some unique challenges about being a ghostwriter that may turn some people away from this career choice.
Long projects. First, if you want a fast-paced career, ghostwriting may not be for you. As Robert explained, a single project can take anywhere from four months to over a year (or longer), and that may be your only project during that period of time.
Reliant on your client. Ghostwriters are very dependent on the clients they work with. This can be a wonderful thing if you enjoy your client and they are dedicated to the project. However, some clients can be flakey, which can turn into a waste of time. Robert’s advice? “Make sure your client really wants to bare their soul in a book before you agree to work with them.”
No glory (at least publicly). A good ghostwriter must be comfortable seeing their words published under someone else’s name. Part of your job is being discreet and letting your client take the credit for what is, ultimately, their story. (Of course, if you really want to see your name on bookshelves, you can write your own book as well.)
Feast or famine. As is the case with many freelance jobs, ghostwriting can lead to a “feast or famine” situation. At some points, you’ll have at least one or two projects to work on, keeping your bank account nice and full. But there may be gaps between projects, which is why it pays to budget well and have other skills (such as copywriting, content creation, etc.) that you can use to make sure you aren’t going hungry between book deals.
Should you become a ghostwriter?
Ultimately, ghostwriting can be an excellent career for writers who enjoy the process of telling someone else’s story. Working as a ghostwriter can also give you the experience and street cred to write your own book, or simply grow as a writer.
If the downsides of this career option haven’t spooked you (sorry, I had to have just one pun), then consider giving it a stab. You may find ghostwriting is right for you.
