Top 5 attributes to be a successful ghostwriter
By Matheo Walker – successful ghostwriter.
How to become a successful ghostwriter? Ghostwriters are known as those people who write a book hired by a person or company and who will not appear as authors of the same. In fact, as an author, a different person will appear, the person who has hired you.
This is very important because there is also the figure of a commissioned writer (for example, a publisher can hire you to write a biography), but the ghostwriter is someone who does not receive public recognition for his authorship or collect royalties.
As a ghostwriter, you will charge a fixed price agreed between you and your client, who from the end of the book will be considered the sole author of the book and you disappear like a ghost.
Although it may sound strange to some, this profession is most common, especially in the case of biographies and essay books as 80% of the works are usually non-fiction. The people who hire a ghostwriter are either publishers who need a timely job, or people who want to tell their lives, some episode they know, or even some fictional story.
Most ghostwriters have never written a book.
Nor will they ever write one. While they generally only sell the book to their friends and a small group of readers. And normally, someone who wants to dedicate himself seriously to writing wants to succeed on his own merits.
Many writers have published their work but they hire a ghostwriter for a specific topic as they have some reasons behind it. If you are worried about exercising this profession, although I already tell you, it is quite common and some now-known writers started like this. It is what is most abundant and it is normal.
If both parties agree, the ghostwriter may appear in the book as a proofreader or content reviewer. It is a way of giving visibility to this ghost work.
Some authors leave you a lot of space for you to add ideas or details of your harvest and others, especially when it comes to a biography. It is important to talk to the future author about what your method will be to be clear about how much work you are going to need and to be able to establish a fair price.
How much is charged by a successful ghostwriter?
It depends on many issues:
- The length of the final work: charging for a 10-page article is not the same as for a 200-page book; the normal thing is that in that case, the price per page falls
- Your experience: it is usual to charge lower prices if you are not yet a very experienced ghostwriter or it is your first or second job.
- The complication of work and style (it is not the same if you can write “your way” than if you have to imitate the style of other books by the same author or if you have to research and document yourself if it is not).
There are some techniques through which you can become a ghostwriter as well:
1. Improve Your Technique
No one is going to hire you as a ghostwriter if you are unable to submit a sample of your work. There, you will have to demonstrate that you have a good level of writing both spelling and grammar and you are a master of essential techniques such as blogs, dialogues, and descriptions.
If you are not good at grammar, don’t worry, there are some tools available online which can correct your grammar as well as spelling mistakes. Grammarly is the most commonly used tool that checks your grammar with free and premium plans. Another useful tool that is available on the internet is Pre-Post SEO sentence checker where you can check your grammar without any cost or any registration.
2. Get a good resume to be a successful ghostwriter
These first two points are common if you want to dedicate yourself to any profession related to writing. Getting a good CV is essential since it attests to your work and your formality.
Exude confidence in the quality of your work. Currently, there are hundreds of literary awards in which you can participate, so gain experience by writing randomly. Building a good resume takes time, it is one of the best investments you are going to make and that no one can take it away from you.
3. Put yourself in the place of your future client
Imagine that you want to construct a building. Would you hire a licensed architect with several years of experience or someone who’s CV says something like this “I have always liked the buildings and now I want to dedicate myself to designing them”?
The CV shows his enthusiasm for work but it makes clear that he has no experience or anything demonstrable that proves the quality of his work. When people have to pay, they will look very carefully at who they give their money to.
Building a good resume takes time, it is one of the best investments you are going to make and that no one can take it away from you.
4. Specialize
It will always be easier for someone to hire you if you have specialization in the respective field. For example, if like science fiction and you have done enough to specialize in this field, it can go on your resume and someone will hire you immediately if he wants the person for writing about science fiction.
In this way, if someone specifically searches for a writer to write articles or books, they will find you right away.
5. Make yourself known as a successful ghostwriter
Go, create a resume, and the audience at the same time. Write your blogs and articles, and publish them on the internet. Make social media profiles and show people your work. There are different social media platforms where people can follow you and if they like your work, they will share it on their time, and hence you will get the maximum followers.
So that is the roadmap through which you can become a good ghostwriter, and people will reach you after they know about you.