How to Work with a Ghostwriter to Finish, Publish & Sell Your Book

Working with a ghostwriter can be an exciting experience. It can also be the answer to writer’s block, tight deadlines or the barriers of fear or perfectionism (and all writers face those!).

Ghostwriters are skilled professionals who can help turn your ideas into a polished, engaging and well-structured piece of writing whether it’s a book, a blog, an editorial or even an EDM. But you have to be able to work together. Collaborating effectively with your ghostwriter is absolutely essential to creating a work that you’re proud of. This is especially true when you’re writing your book.

All ghostwriters work a little bit differently. Here’s how to work with a ghostwriter (namely me) to get your book finished, published and selling on Amazon! It all starts with where you are in the writing process.

How to Work with a Ghostwriter to Finish Your Book

Collaboration

If you have a manuscript that you’ve begun, but now you’re either stuck, out of time or simply need some help to get it over the finish line, then you need the collaborative approach to ghostwriting.

With this method we start by reviewing the manuscript as a whole then look to where there are gaps that need plugging, areas that need writing or chapters that need fleshing out. We work on it together with my role to advise on where work needs to be done and yours to provide the information needed to fill in the gaps. I’ll then do the writing, which you will review and comment on.

Coordination

If you just have an idea, or an outline, for a book, but haven’t begun it yet, then the best approach is the coordination approach. In this you give me all the information you have, and then together we flesh it out to get the rest of the info or story that needs including. I call it the coordination approach because it’s coordinated book writing with your expertise or stories and my writing experience.

How we do this depends on the type of book. But some methods might be:

• Interviews. This works especially well for memoirs or books that rely heavily on your own personal stories.
• Pink sheets. This is a method that comes from Thought Leaders, and works really well for those experts who are writing books in their specific niche.
• Voice memos. This is a great approach for people that find they think better when speaking out loud. You simply record your thoughts or ideas into a voice memo which is then transcribed for my use.
• Brain dumps. This is exactly what it sounds like. You, as the author, sit down and brain dump everything you can think of that needs to be included in the specific chapter or section of the. Prettiness doesn’t count here.

How to Work With a Ghostwriter to Publish Your Book

When it comes to publishing your book, it’s not just a finished manuscript that you need. You’ll need an acknowledgements page, a back cover blurb, an author’s bio and a synopsis for retailer sites (such as Amazon and Booktopia). Your ghostwriter can help you create well-written versions of each of these which don’t just accurately describe you and your book, but also subtly market your book to the world.

If you want to publish with a traditional publisher, you’ll need to submit a book proposal. Your ghostwriter can help you put together a well-written, concise proposal that puts your book in the best light. If your book is taken on by a publisher, they will often assign one of their own editors to review and update your manuscript. This can lead to a lot of additional writing, which your ghostwriter can also help you with.

How to Work With a Ghostwriter to Sell Your Book

Even if you work with a traditional publisher, much (if not all) of the marketing of your book will be your responsibility. You will likely need to create a website (or a dedicated landing page on your existing website) for your book. You may also need to run social media campaigns, write editorials in magazines, newspapers and other online forums to build awareness and even send out newsletters to your communities.

All of this can be easier and more effective with the help of a ghostwriter.

Best Practices for Working With a Ghostwriter

When it comes to how to work with a ghostwriter there are some tips that will help the process run more smoothly.

Provide examples

Provide your ghostwriter with examples of your work that showcase your desired tone and style. The benefit of a ghostwriter is not just that they get your story or message told. It’s also that they step into your shoes to create your sound.

If you don’t already have a body of work of your own, find examples that you like. Share these with your ghostwriter and tell them what you like about it. This will help them hone the writing to your desired style.

Provide a writing brief

Your ghostwriter needs to know what you want (so they can deliver it well). This includes your audience, insight into the goal of the piece (is to for marketing, or is it to tell their story?) and, of course, details on length of the work, desired writing style and tone of voice. Provide your ghostwriter with a full writing brief that provides all these details and anything else pertinent.

Be prepared to provide quality feedback

Your ghostwriter is an expert writer. But you’re the expert on your book. Your ghostwriter will do much of the heavy lifting. However, you need to be prepared to provide quality feedback on the writing at various stages of the book work.

Getting Started

The best way to get started with working with a ghostwriter is just to get in touch. I’m happy to chat with you about the best way to work together. Let’s get that book out of your head and onto the page.