Are you a writer? Would you like to be paid to write? Or, more accurately, would you like to be paid more for what you write?
Have you ever considered becoming a ghostwriter?
Ghostwriters pen all manner of content, from books to blog posts, speeches, articles, and more.
4 Reasons to Become a Ghostwriter
1. Steady work and more money
When you find and onboard new clients (more about how to do that later), you start a business relationship. As you continue to work with a client, if they like your work, they will continue to return to you each time they need more content or copy written.
This continuity of work pouring in from your repeat clients means you have a steady income and can spend more time working (ie. making money) and less time promoting and marketing your business.
Plus, even though you aren’t credited for the writing in the final publication, if you are a specialist in the industry, you can justifiably change higher rates for the words you produce (more about niching later on too).
2. Less “self-marketing” required
Still feel a bit icky marketing yourself and your business? Do you feel imposter syndrome creeping over you again?
Well, the advantage of repeat or retainer clients is that, each time you get repeat requests from them to complete more writing projects, that is one less client you had to spend time searching for and onboarding. They’re already there. They know you. They like your work and pay you well for it.
Often they may even recommend you to other colleagues and contacts. In effect, they end up doing your marketing for you. Win!
3. A wide range of potential clients
Today, there is more demand for written content than ever.
With the advent of content marketing and social media marketing comes the need for words. Those words may be crafted into a series of compelling blog posts, EDMs (electronic direct mail), social media updates, or advertisements. Not to mention the copy which needs writing for all the web pages, landing pages, sales funnels, and more.
The material and reputational advantages of well-written content and sales copy are enormous for your client and their business. And you should charge accordingly.
4. Variety
Ghostwriters may choose to specialise with regard to the industries they work for. But within those industries, they write a diverse array of content types. From web copy to blog posts, speeches, feature articles, resumés, trend articles, right through to full-length books. This variety keeps you interested, keeps your mind working, and the job more fun.
Getting started
What sort of background do I need?
It’s not essential for you to have trained as a writer or have already worked in some kind of writing industry. But it helps.
However, if you’re just starting out, that’s great too.
It’s useful if you have some writing samples, no matter what genre or type of content they might be. If you have your own website, then your own blog articles can serve as writing samples if you are still searching for your first clients and building a portfolio.
You also don’t necessarily have to have a background in marketing to get started either. Depending on the type of content you end up writing, you may want to educate yourself on certain things as you go along. For instance, if you want to take advantage of opportunities to write SEO copy, it’s best to know what you’re doing!
But ultimately, if you love writing, you’re prepared to write across a diverse range of content types, you’re a fairly organised person, and you’re happy to say goodbye to your byline, then ghostwriting could be a good fit for you.
Kelly James-Enger’s article also outlines five of the attributes you would need to be a successful ghostwriter.
Saying goodbye to your byline
Ask yourself this question: “Am I happy to research, write and edit pieces of content of varying length, and see them published without my name on them?”
If the answer is unequivocally “yes” then perhaps you are cut out for ghostwriting.
But saying goodbye to your byline is only part of the job.
Ghostwriting is more than merely writing words on a page on behalf of another person, brand, or company.
Kelly James-Enger also outlines that “as a ghost, you must be able to ‘channel’ your client, capture and retain his or her voice, and create a piece that meets their expectations.”
Successfully channelling your client’s brand is all about accurately capturing tone of voice, which is not always straightforward at the beginning but, with practice, is an essential ghostwriting skill which can be honed and refined.
Finding clients : 5 types of ghostwriting clients
1. Businesses
There are so many opportunities to write in the business world. Whether writing for big corporates or small-to-medium businesses, all organisations need words written for what is now known as ‘content marketing’. This is an essential part of every brand’s ability to develop and retain a loyal league of customers or clients. And the good news is that there is so much content marketing writing work around.
It can be an idea to consider a niche—or two—if you are going to try to make a regular income from business content writing (more on niching below). Think about an industry you know and like and see if you can approach businesses working within that industry via well-written LOIs (letters of introduction). Many of them can turn into repeat clients for you, which is excellent for your portfolio—as well as your bank balance.
2. Individuals
Whether writing speeches, emails, resumés or books, individuals (sometimes high-profile ones) are frequently in need of the services of a ghostwriter. Sometimes they advertise on job boards, or may come looking for you via search engine results or LinkedIn. Or sometimes you are referred to them via word-of-mouth. In any case, it’s important to call yourself a ghostwriter so that your search results, online profiles, and business cards can help to bring the work to you.
3. Trade Publications & Custom Magazines
Aimed at a specific audience, these publications often take on freelance writers to pen feature articles or other informative pieces. What makes it different to writing for a consumer magazine is that the articles are frequently published without bylines (though not always), making you a “ghost” writer.
4. Marketing & Communications Agencies
Ghostwriting for marketing or communication agencies is essentially content marketing writing. A major advantage from a business development perspective is that once you start working with a particular agency and they (and their clients) like the words you are producing, then they will return to you again and again, saving you plenty of time sending out more LOIs and marketing your writing services.
5. Book Clients – collaborating and co-authoring
Sending an LOI can be an effective way of getting yourself known amongst publishers as a ghostwriter. But do your research first; ensure you know who you are approaching, what they generally publish, and be able to articulate how your skills will be helpful for them. You can read a bit more about ghostwriting books below.
Finding a niche
It is perfectly fine to be a freelance writer or ghostwriter without specialising in one or two industries or areas. It certainly keeps your options open, keeps the work continually interesting, and provides you with heaps of opportunities to make more money.
Or does it?
The thing to remember is: as a specialist, you can justifiably charge more for your services. If you have a problem with your eyes, you will go and see an ophthalmologist who will, invariably, charge you more money than a general practitioner. But you are paying more for their years of specialised study, skills, and knowledge unique to the eyes.
Writing is no different. If you know the IT business—whether from previously having worked in it, or studied IT—then you might decide to make writing for the IT industry your niche and focus on offering your writing services to tech companies. You can justifiably charge more if you can outline in your LOI your knowledge, skills, and experience relevant to their industry which sets you apart from a more generalist ghostwriter.
So, rather than being a jack (or jill) or all trades, perhaps consider becoming the master or one (or two).
as a specialist, you can justifiably charge more for your services.
A bit about ghostwriting books
Publishing houses are not the only clients who can offer you projects ghostwriting full-length books. Individuals are also potential clients in this respect. However, be careful here too. Ensure you ask pertinent questions and receive clearly articulared answers from your potential client or collaborator with regard to deadlines, budget, payments, and more. Agreeing to write for royalties rather than a project fee is very risky, unless you are writing for an extremely high-profile individual whose book will fly off the shelves after publication (and who already has a publishing deal agreed to). Otherwise, stick to a project fee to ensure you get paid no matter how the book performs post-publication.
Watch out for scams too—though these aren’t unique to ghostwriting books and should be kept in mind when searching for all kinds of ghostwriting work. Be careful of job boards offering jobs for companies you can’t find online through an easy Google search. Also beware companies or ads asking for money or asking for free custom-written samples tailored to their business.
If you’re hoping to set yourself up to ghostwrite books, it’s important to take the time to establish a proper Ghostwriting Agreement or contract to protect yourself and your business.
In Australia, the Australian Society of Authors has some useful resources on this topic, including a Ghostwriting Agreement Package, linked below under ‘Useful resources’.
Sally Miller’s website also has an extensive array of information about freelance writing, including ghostwriting and her book on the subject is incredibly useful and includes free links to her Work-At-Home Resource Library and book ghostwriting contract checklist.
Useful resources for getting started
- The Australian Society of Authors has a great Ghostwriting Agreement Package available for purchase
- Kelly James-Enger’s book called Goodbye Byline, Hello Big Bucks is a useful resource which covers your potential for ghostwriting, more detail on finding work and onboarding clients, what to charge, and a bit about contracts.
- The Australian Writers Centre has a summative article by ghostwriter Libby Harkness on being a ghostwriter.
- Elna Cain’s article on becoming a ghostwriter is thorough and detailed, including further tips and tricks of the trade for launching your career as a ghostwriter.
This is our last article in our series on ghostwriting. If you missed the earlier articles, please feel free to catch up and read about what a ghostwriter does and how to find the best ghostwriter for your brand.
Want more articles like this delivered to your Inbox? Subscribe to our newsletter below.