Why it’s boom time for ghostwriters. Plus, a ghostwriter’s grief, AI licensing advice, three people to follow and three books to read. Ghostwriters ascendant I just returned from the second annual Gathering of the Ghosts conference in New York. The room was filled to capacity and the discussion was fascinating, both in the panel discussions…
The second annual Gathering of the Ghosts conference begins today in New York. In preparation for that event, I did a deeper dive into our AI and the Writing Profession survey, sponsored by Gotham Ghostwriters, to concentrate specifically on book ghostwriters. The survey reached a total of 1,481 writers, of which 1,190 were classified as…
When two or more people collaborate on a book, there’s often a primary writer and a primary idea person. There are lots of ways that collaboration can work, but it pays to think about it before you get started, and adjust it while you’re working together. And it’s also important to for all the collaborators…
After a while, experienced ghostwriters and editors get a sense of which clients are going to be a problem. But it goes both ways: if you hire folks like us, you should also be aware of problems to watch out for in your editorial partners. Red flags for ghostwriters, editors, or book coaches evaluating clients…
Newsletter 99: The incredible benefits of creating a book with a wicked smart thinking partner. Plus, AI learns from really old books, authors make TikToks of scrawling edits, three people to follow and three books to read. What I learned from my intellectual soulmates I’ve written nine books and am working on another. Only two…
Choosing a ghostwriter is a process fraught with worry. You’re about to put your most cherished ideas — and the business goals that depend on your book — in the hands of a stranger. As with any other hiring process, there’s no set guide on how to do it. And what makes it even more…
The relationship between an author and their collaborator — editor or ghostwriter — can be challenging at first. The author is putting their creative vision in the hands of a stranger who is unfamiliar with their content and then asking for criticism. This is a very vulnerable position to be in. There’s risk for the…
Books are team efforts. People involved in your book project, like editors and publishers, have vested interests in doing things a certain way. There’s nothing malign about that, but as you work with these professionals, it can be helpful to know what motivates their decisions. How the people on your book team are biased (and…
In the Wall Street Journal, Jacqui Shine just published a piece called “Want to Earn Six Figures as a Writer? Try Ghostwriting.” Before you writers all start rushing into the ghostwriting field with your hands out, I thought it might be instructive to describe what it actually takes to become a well-compensated ghostwriter. First, a…