What Is Ghostwriting?

“There is no strife, no prejudice, no national conflict in outer space as yet. Its hazards are hostile to us all. Its conquest deserves the best of all mankind, and its opportunity for peaceful cooperation may never come again. But why, some say, the moon? Why choose this as our goal? And they may well ask why climb the highest mountain?…We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win.”  President John F. Kennedy, 1962

In speaking to Rice University that day in September 1962, President John F Kennedy’s words rang with the truest sense of patriotism. Every person listening stood straighter, their hearts filled with pride, resounding hope, and an unstoppable determination to do whatever it took to get a man on the moon before the end of the decade.

That speech, like almost every presidential speech before it, was ghostwritten.

In this case, the ghostwriter was Ted Sorensen, one of President Kennedy’s closest advisers and the generally acknowledged ghostwriter behind Kennedy’s Pulitzer Prize-winning book, Profiles in Courage.

Does that fact make President Kennedy’s speech any less powerful? Or is his book any less influential? Not in the slightest. Because those words, that passion, that life experience, were all Kennedy’s – it just took the skills of a writer, whose ideals were closely aligned with the President’s, to shape his beliefs into words that lit fires in hearts and spurred great minds into action.

Ghostwriters are craftspeople of the intangible word. Given a lump of remembered experiences and additives of facts and data, we break out our picks and wires and carve our material into something rich and wonderful . . . and entirely authentic to the author.

Why Choose Ghostwriting?

Authors may choose to use a ghostwriter for several reasons. Perhaps they don’t enjoy writing, or struggle to put their thoughts to paper. However, for many authors, ghostwriting is a time-efficient method for producing content while keeping up with a demanding career or other goals.

Some years ago, I worked with a well-known speaker who performed brilliantly on stage, but in conveying their ideas in writing, they hit a wall.

Not that they didn’t have the material. Instead, where they struggled was with developing their concepts. When speaking, there’s rarely a need for clear order. Thoughts bubble up organically and experienced speakers hop from fascinating ideas to intriguing facts, rarely paying attention to their order in time and instead, leaning into the curiosity and excitement they evoke.

This makes for a gripping presentation and one hell of a TED Talk, but it does not translate well onto the page. That was my job.

Over several calls, we pieced the speaker’s scattershot of material together, discovering where disparate themes connected and unearthing anecdotes that brought whole new facets of their talk to life. In the end, the book spoke with the same intellectual focus, rippling humor, and ideological impact of their spoken presentations. But now, anyone could follow it, apply it, and even make notes in the margins.

How Does Ghostwriting Work?

Every ghostwriting experience is unique, based on the needs of the author. The author and ghostwriter follow a book plan created at the beginning of the writing process, talking through each chapter with the ghostwriter, asking exploratory questions along the way.

Some authors love to be surprised by going into a chapter call, answering questions off the cuff and seeing where the conversation takes them. Others like to prepare, sometimes extensively, before the call, talking through notes and even preparing slides.

Others are seized with inspiration at three in the morning and type up stream-of-consciousness thoughts. The ghostwriter then cleans up those thoughts by condensing and shaping the flow, often puzzle-piecing materials into more appropriate sections of the work.

The Key to Successful Ghostwriting

However, they come at it, the secret to truly successful content is neither the pedigree of the writer nor the knowledge or conversational skill of the author — it’s the relationship.

A writer may be a four-time NYT bestseller or a highly successful entrepreneur with an unbelievable backstory, but the writing will inevitably be stilted, empty, and false if the ghostwriter can’t shed their ego and not only relate to, but believe in, the author.

The best ghostwriter-author relationships are evident from the very beginning of the writing process. When an author feels like they’re not only being heard but understood, and the words read like they poured from the recesses of their own mind, indistinguishable from their spoken word, then the ghostwriting process has achieved its goal and the author is a true author in every sense of the word.

If you’re looking to turn your thoughts into a published book, look into our ghostwriting services and discover how you can become a Forbes Books author.

How To Tell if a Ghost(writer) Is Real

There are two ways—neither of which involves remembering that the secret word is “Rosabelle.”

First, a true ghostwriter will want to talk with you before taking on your project. This casual consultation gives you both a chance to decide if you would work well together. 

During this call, the ghostwriter will likely share an overview of their process and then ask you to describe your book and your goals. You’ll also have a chance to ask about their interest in your book. What do they like about your topic? Have they written anything similar? Do they have a favorite type and style to write in? 

Some ghostwriters may also offer to produce a paid sample as part of the interview. This would likely be a synopsis of your book’s overarching goal, reflecting insights into your tone and approach. It would not be a perfect reflection of your final work, but a good ghostwriter will be able to capture enough to further pique your excitement about the project.

Second, a real ghostwriter will provide for a “getting to know you” stage before committing to the full book. This could be as “brief” as the book planning stage or up-to-and-including the first chapter. At the end of this stage, both the ghostwriter and author can decide to contract for the full book—or amicably end the project. 

I say “brief” because the planning stage can be quite involved, and a lot of good content often comes out of it. And a good ghostwriter will make sure that the author has access to those recordings and transcripts as part of this initial stage.

Ghostwriters write in a multitude of forms and styles. While a good ghost can almost always step into the vernacular and views of their author, it’s always easier to do so when you’re aligned from the start. And a real ghostwriter will allow for the time and the steps it takes to make sure it’s a good fit.

Lightning Round with the Expert

 1. What is ghostwriting?

Ghostwriting is the crafting of an individual’s words into polished prose that reads as authentically as if the named author spoke them directly onto the page.The best ghostwriting is achieved through a balance of experienced talent and research on the part of the writer, and subject-matter knowledge, openness, and vulnerability on the part of the named author. Just as importantly, there must be a strong compatibility between the author and writer to ensure the best possible results.

2. What does a ghostwriter cost?

Like any professional service, with ghostwriting you’re paying for experience, quality, and an end product that meets (or exceeds) your expectations. When working with independent ghostwriters, costs vary widely, ranging from $20,000 – $100,000 or more per book.

Factors such as the number of books written, positive reviews, awards, and industry focus can all influence this. Some ghostwriters may also provide a partial client list, though NDAs often prevent them from discussing every book they’ve worked on.

3. What does it take to become a ghostwriter?

Ghostwriters need to have an ability to not just listen to people but to hear them; to connect distant points in a conversation such that they can weave a scattershot of thoughts together into engaging narrative; the desire to run down rabbit holes of research, listen to country road stories, and take hard feedback as well as give it, when needed, and an unrelenting desire to learn – not just about one subject but everything. There is no topic so boring that a good ghostwriter won’t get excited to learn more!

4. What is the actual benefit of being a ghostwriter?

I love this question. If you’re a writer, you probably already know the answer. It’s simply because you get to exercise your craft. 

More elaborately, it’s because you get to write from a wealth of material, spreading it out like three-dimensional puzzle pieces and working with the author to decide how they come together. 

Sometimes this means extensive research, interviewing, and even visiting people and places to get a sense of the final work. It is deeply collaborative, inevitably investigative, and allows the writer to practice their craft and learn at the same time.

5. Do you think that ghostwriting is ethical?

Many of our authors understandably ask this question. It may not seem “right” that someone else is putting the virtual pen to paper on a book you’re authoring. And yet, the book you’re creating would not exist without you. 

Your ghostwriter is providing a process and creative direction, but the content – the intellectual property and transformative ideas – are all yours. Like the speech that opened this article, the passion and purpose were all President Kennedy’s. His ghostwriter ensured that his audience felt these as powerfully as he did.

 6. What attracted you to work for Forbes Books? 

To be honest, I saw a relatively young startup with incredible potential in a field that I loved – book writing. And after years in newspapers and ghostwriting both for corporations and independently, I was ready to focus on helping people get their knowledge out into the world.

I loved the research, getting to know experts in an incredibly diverse range of industries, and transforming clouds of thought into linear, captivating manuscripts. And as I learned more about the process, I also learned the value of relationships and helped shape the compatibility process between writers and authors. Now, I help lead authors through the book writing process from the beginning and I’m still excited to be learning something new every day.