“Everyone has a book inside them”—or so goes a widely held belief. But is it true?Well, some people have ideas for one or more books, and some people have lived lives that would be real page-turners if laid out in print. But not all of these people have a knack for writing well. Some have a poor grasp of grammar, spelling, punctuation…the basic building blocks of communication. Others have that part of it down pat, but their writing doesn’t “sing.” It plods. It bores. It’s yawn-inducing—the sort of writing that inspires the reader to put the book down rather than pick it up.
Of course, as there are solutions to so many problems in the world, there are solutions to that one, too—at least two of them. You can involve a collaborator or hire a ghostwriter.
Suppose you have a killer plot for a novel (and I don’t mean by “killer” that your book is a murder mystery), or great knowledge to impart in a how-to book, or inspiring and motivating thoughts that can really help people on the road of life, or a singular wit that will make people howl. But suppose also that your writing skills are deficient.
Either a collaborator or a ghost can take your thoughts, the basic structure of the book, the ideas, and turn them into luminescent words. So what’s the difference between a collaborator and a ghost? Credit. A collaborator gets a share of the byline. If your name is Bob Smith, and you sign a deal with a collaborator—let’s call her Leah Jones—the byline on the book may read “by Bob Smith and Leah Jones,” “by Leah Jones and Bob Smith,” “by Bob Smith with Leah Jones,” or, primarily in the case of autobiographies, “by Bob Smith as told to Leah Jones.” A ghostwriter, on the other hand, gets no credit. Even if Leah Jones does all the writing from the barest-boned idea that Bob Smith gives her, he gets all the credit. The book will be bylined “by Bob Smith.” Period. No credit to Leah Jones.
So what does Leah Jones get out of it? Money.
Collaborators usually split the royalties and any advance (although advances these days are almost as rare as palm trees in Alaska). The split may be 50/50, 60/40 (either way), or some other division. There is no one standard. While a ghostwriter may also agree to such an arrangement, more commonly the ghost will ask for a flat fee upfront. If the book is a best-seller, the ghost doesn’t get to share in the windfall, but if the book falls flat, the ghost hasn’t put all her or his work into it for no return.
Most successful writers of any sort—ghostwriters, collaborators, traditional writers, any sort of writers—not only write well but love to write. Still, it’s not a hobby. It’s a profession. And a self-respecting writer who takes her/his career seriously wants something in return for her/his efforts. If its not recognition and credit (in the form of a byline), he or she at least wants remuneration. If she can’t point proudly to her ghosted work and say, “I wrote that,” she at least wants to be compensated.
I speak from first-hand knowledge. In addition to the over-100 books I’ve written in my own name, I’ve ghosted quite a few books for clients. I can’t point to them with pride, as confidentiality is one hallmark of a good ghost. If “client X” hired me and paid me to write his/her book in his/her name, the byline on the book must read, “by X,” and I MUST NOT tell ANYONE that it was really I who wrote that book.
Do you think you have a book in you that you want to write? But are you skeptical of your ability to write well? Do you have the idea, the bare-bones skeleton of a book? I am not the only ghost out there. There are ghostwriters and collaborators besides me who can help you bring your book idea to life.
No matter where you live, you can likely find a ghost or collaborator nearby—although these days, with the internet, email, Skype, FaceTime, Dropbox, and other electronic means of getting together at a distance, geographic proximity isn’t as relevant as it once was. You may be more comfortable collaborating with, or trusting as a ghost, someone you’ve met face to face and gotten good vibes from. Or you may have paper materials—scrapbooks, photo albums, newspaper clippings, or the like—that pertain to the subject of your book and that, unless you scan each one in laboriously, cannot be sent to your collaborator or ghost electronically. (This is the case with my current major project, a nonfiction book I am ghosting for a client. The client lives nearby and brought me reams of paper resource material to research for the book.)
Do you have a book in you? Can you write it well—not only grammatically correctly but with style? Go for it!
And if your literary skills aren’t quite up to the task? Seek out a collaborator or a ghost. By this time next year (sooner if you self-publish), the byline on the book on your living room table might be yours!