What Is Ghostwriting?

Many people don't know what ghostwriting is?  When I tell people that I'm a ghostwriter, they often ask if a write about ghosts.  Most people, however, have heard the term and have a general concept of what ghostwriters do.  They nevertheless don't really know much about the profession or how a ghostwriter operates.  If you are considering hiring a ghostwriter, it's crucial that you understand the profession.

Ghostwriting is a longstanding tradition in the publishing industry.  The chances are quite high that some of your favorite books have been written, in part or in whole, by someone whose name isn't on the cover.  Publishers have realized for a long time that many people with great ideas for a novel, or those who expertise in a particular field, can't write their own books, fiction or nonfiction.  For hundreds of years, especially in the twentieth century, ghostwriters have been used to execute books by people who cannot write their own work.

In some cases, the ghostwriter serves as a developmental editor, smoothing out a rough copy of the manuscript.  The ghostwriter rephrases awkward passages, reorganizes sections of the book, applies line editing to correct grammatical errors, and may augment sections of the book that are unclear or incomplete.

In some cases, the ghostwriter may receive nothing more than an idea or cast of characters and is told to write the entire book.  In the juvenile market, this was the case with many series, such as the Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew, or the Goosebump series.  The ghostwriter for these series received no public credit.

Ghostwriters may or may not receive open credit for their work.  In some cases, however, famous authors decide to franchise themselves by hiring writers to openly collaborate with them.  The author gives the writer a seminal idea, and the writer then executes the entire book.  Many books by Arthur C. Clarke, Tom Clancy, and James Patterson were (or are) written by writers whose names appear in small print at the bottom of the front cover.

It is estimated that approximately forty percent of books in the literary marketplace have been ghostwritten.  Ghostwriting covers a wide spectrum of services, from writing the entire book, to collaboration with another person, to editing the book for content or grammar.

~William Hammett

Contact: wmhammett@aol.com

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