Today’s post is a guest post from the lovely Kelly D Smith from the My Life As A Writer blog. If you haven’t had chance to check out Kelly’s blog yet, here is a little more about her:
Kelly D. Smith is a Canadian romance author and ghost writer.Born in the GTA Kelly moved to the woods of Quebec when she was 14 years old but currently lives in Saskatchewan. A gypsy at heart, she has lived in 7 homes in 7 years and loves traveling, which you can often see in her writing.Being homeschooled her entire life Kelly was able to dedicate her time to reading and writing. When she turned 18 she attained her GED and has never looked back with regret.
Ghost writing is something I have heard of, but never fully understood all the in and outs, so when Kelly submitted a post about ghost writing, I was very excited to learn a little more about it! Anyway, enough from me, over to Kelly’s fab post:
Life As A Ghost Writer… Not As Spooky As It Sounds!
Have you ever heard of ghost writing? Most people haven’t. Hell, up until 9 months ago I hadn’t! Now it’s my job.
So, what is ghost writing? You ask.
Well, ghost writing, in a way, is another name for freelance writing. But not quite the same.
Freelance writers differ in the way that I write for people. Ghost writers focus mostly on books, biographies are very popular but I’m pretty sure there are ghost writers for every genre out there- I do romance and there seems to be an ample supply for jobs for that!
It’s a great business to be in. I’m able to help provide people with a product that they are happy with and I’m able to be paid for it in return- more than I make as an author at that!
As a ghost writer I’m able to help provide for my family, I’m able to make my own hours, and do something I’ve always dreamed of doing (be a writer for a living). What’s not to love about that?
Of course it does kind of suck that I’m not able to take credit for some of the work I do, I write some things that I am very passionate about! But that’s life, there will always be downsides to stuff.
Most of all though, ghost writing has been an amazing experience and it’s a great way to try new things.
they will tell you, they provide feedback and sometimes even booklets on writing the genre they want you to write- and most of all you gain experience. The more you write the better you will get, the more you will learn. And you get paid to do it!
Another popular question I get is “How do I become a ghost writer?”
Well, thankfully that is pretty easy.
I work through a third party website (Like ODesk or Elance) to ensure that both myself (the writer) and the client are as safe as we can be. Meaning I get paid and they get their product. Did I mention these sites are free to join?
Once you’re on the website it’s easy to get around. They don’t make it hard to figure out (thankfully!) and then it’s really just a matter of figuring it all out.
As a ghost writer it is your job to provide a client with what they are looking for and what you have agreed on with them. Sometimes this means writing something you don’t want to, other times it means going through 4 edits for them (though I suggest you put in an edit limit!) and other times it will be a piece of cake.
Quick Tips
Before we part ways I wanted to leave you with a few quick tips I’ve picked up along the way.
Interesting. I had heard of ghost writing, but I didn't realize that it was so prevalent. I saw some of those offers on Elance, and I wonder at how low some of them are. How cheap is too cheap?
Same here Liz I thought it was mostly celeb autobiographies, interesting to learn how wide spread it actually is!
Liz,
Honestly when I got into it I didn't realize either!
It's hard to answer your question, it really depends on the writer how cheap they are willing to go. I've had some clients offer to pay me $10 for a 5000 word project. Personally, I suggest NOT doing that!
On the other hand I know some people (ghost writers) who charge $900 for a 10,000 word project! Again, not something I suggest.
I charge $13 per 1000 words, but for repeat clients I'm willing to work with them on price and normally decide on $10 per 1000 words. I can't speak for anyone else but that's where I am on the price scale.
It comes down to what the writer and the author(the client) are willing to agree on. As a client you want to get the most bang for you buck, but you also want to hire someone who is GOOD,
As a writer you don't want to feel unappreciated.
I hope that answers your question! 🙂