Let's see whether this story
sounds familiar to you. You have a book idea in mind, and you decide you'd like
to work with a ghostwriter. You do your homework, come up with a handful of
potential writers, and interview them. Then you take some time to mull things
over. You get busy with work and family and a million other things. When you
reach out to one of those ghostwriters a few weeks (or maybe months) later, the
writer is busy and can't take on your project. Then you're stalled. Do you wait
for the ghostwriter to be available again? Do you work with someone else, even
if you're not sure he or she is right for your project? Do you start from
scratch? Or give up entirely?
Don't despair, but do know that in the world of ghostwriting, making fast, informed decisions is necessary for success. Most ghostwriters work as independent contractors and are happy to take on an interesting project that comes their way at the right time. But with any freelancer, timing is everything. Ghostwriters aren’t expected to sit around and wait for you to hire them, and good ghostwriters get bundles of projects each month. They could sign with anyone while you are making your decision, and you may miss the window of opportunity for working with your favorite writer.
The best way to ensure that you get the ghostwriter and schedule of your dreams is to give yourself the right amount of time. Even if you won't be writing your book, creating a book takes a lot of time and effort. If you just got a big promotion, had a baby, or are booked to travel around the world, hold off on your project. You should wait until you are in a settled state and have a reasonable amount of free time before you start the ghostwriting process.
Once you're ready to start on your book, set aside time to research different ghostwriters (you can look through this blog series for tips for finding the right one). Narrow your options, and then schedule interviews with your potential writers. Think of this interview process much as you would one for a job: you should choose the most qualified, interested person in a timely manner. If you wait more than two weeks to get back to your writer, you may find that he or she is now engaged in another project.
One way to make your decision simpler is to create a checklist for your interview. Write down all of the characteristics you are looking for in your writer, e.g., available, experienced in your field, comes highly recommended, shows interest in your project, is friendly, is deadline oriented, etc. After your interview, go through and check off everything you liked about that writer and add any other thoughts or impressions that you had about him or her. When your interview process is over, go back through your notes to find the writer who is best suited to you.
After you've made your decision, get in touch with your writer. As soon as you can, you two should create a schedule and get going on the project. You'll be far more likely to get the right writer, a good schedule, and an excellent product if you remind yourself to act quickly and decisively throughout the book-making venture.
Contact the Jenkins Group and tell us about your project
Don't despair, but do know that in the world of ghostwriting, making fast, informed decisions is necessary for success. Most ghostwriters work as independent contractors and are happy to take on an interesting project that comes their way at the right time. But with any freelancer, timing is everything. Ghostwriters aren’t expected to sit around and wait for you to hire them, and good ghostwriters get bundles of projects each month. They could sign with anyone while you are making your decision, and you may miss the window of opportunity for working with your favorite writer.
The best way to ensure that you get the ghostwriter and schedule of your dreams is to give yourself the right amount of time. Even if you won't be writing your book, creating a book takes a lot of time and effort. If you just got a big promotion, had a baby, or are booked to travel around the world, hold off on your project. You should wait until you are in a settled state and have a reasonable amount of free time before you start the ghostwriting process.
Once you're ready to start on your book, set aside time to research different ghostwriters (you can look through this blog series for tips for finding the right one). Narrow your options, and then schedule interviews with your potential writers. Think of this interview process much as you would one for a job: you should choose the most qualified, interested person in a timely manner. If you wait more than two weeks to get back to your writer, you may find that he or she is now engaged in another project.
One way to make your decision simpler is to create a checklist for your interview. Write down all of the characteristics you are looking for in your writer, e.g., available, experienced in your field, comes highly recommended, shows interest in your project, is friendly, is deadline oriented, etc. After your interview, go through and check off everything you liked about that writer and add any other thoughts or impressions that you had about him or her. When your interview process is over, go back through your notes to find the writer who is best suited to you.
After you've made your decision, get in touch with your writer. As soon as you can, you two should create a schedule and get going on the project. You'll be far more likely to get the right writer, a good schedule, and an excellent product if you remind yourself to act quickly and decisively throughout the book-making venture.
Contact the Jenkins Group and tell us about your project
I’m glad to see timing issues addressed so usefully. What occurs to me is three other things that clients might want to consider in advance to save time and avoid misunderstanding:
ReplyDeleteThe default expectation is that your ghostwriter will ensure verbal precision, and that you are responsible for informational accuracy.
As has been noted elsewhere in this blog, ghostwriters will also want to have some sense of your ideal core readership (the choir), and your forethought about the range of expectations of your intended audience (the congregation). A reader’s experience of a book is intimate. A listener’s likewise. Let the ghostwriter know if public readings will be a priority, or if you intend to record an audio version, in which cases the sound of the words, the rhythm of the sentences, and a more conversational tone, perhaps, will be a priority.
Whether your purpose is corporate celebration, critical analysis, or personal memoir (etc.), consider enriching your narrative with other voices, third-person points of view. You will, of course, have final say in what is used, but your ghostwriter is likely better equipped to generate the refreshing perspectives that come from independent interviewing.