From $1,000 Ghostwriting Gigs to Full-Time Ghostwriting [Interview]

Gail: Richard, there has been a lot of excitement in our writing community about your success. Can you tell us your process for ghostwriting and freelancing?

Richard: The first thing is to be confident. You need to be confident of your value. Never go for the low-ball bid, never try for the nothing jobs. Go big, all out, and you might be surprised at what you get.

Let me give you some history. I used to work for Trader Joe’s as the Director of Computer Operations and Technical Services. I’d been there 20 years, and it was a fantastic job. I did very well and loved working for them, but the stress was killing me.

I decided to make a go at being a writer because that’s what I’ve always wanted to be. I moved to Florida from California to work in a more relaxing atmosphere. One of the first things I did was get a job at a ghostwriting shop.

My first gig paid $1,000 to write a 25,000-word book. That might sound like a lot, but considering the work needed, it’s a ridiculously small amount of money. Practically slave wages. That didn’t last long because it’s impossible to live on that kind of pay. I could have made more working as a fry cook. I was taking courses at the time, and one of them stressed that $1,000 gigs are harder to get than $20,000 gigs. They take more work.

Gail: That’s an interesting comment. Can you elaborate?

Richard: The people who want $1,000 gigs are looking at the money and not the project. It’s very uncomfortable. When you have somebody willing to invest real money in a book, they’re more focused on the book. Sure, they’re looking at the money, but it’s secondary. It’s a whole different dynamic than people who are focused on price alone.

I feel for writers who get stuck in that bottom tier.

The shops paying those rates count on new writers believing that’s what the work is worth, and some good writers quit before they find out otherwise. It’s just as hard to land a $1,000 project as a $50,000 project. So why bother with the $1,000 project?

I began taking that attitude. I’m very confident. I started getting projects and picking up work through networking.

One of my early projects was local, for somebody who needed a computer security book rewritten. I’m also a cybersecurity expert with 33 years in technology, so that was a natural fit. I asked for a good rate, got it, and finished the book on time and on budget.

Gail: That’s a great example of how confidence pays off. The right attitude and a belief in yourself.

Richard: That book is online now. It’s called “Cyberheist” and it’s on KnowBe4.com, a major cybersecurity company. They were local to me, so it was easy to get interviews and such. Those were my first two gigs working on my own after leaving the ghostwriting shop.

I don’t take small gigs. I don’t even look at them. They’re just as much work to land and manage as large projects. I’d rather take six or seven serious projects a year than fifty small ones.

You can find current ghostwriting pricing on the ghostwriting page. At those rates a few projects a year pays the bills, and every one of them gets my full attention.

Gail: Yes. You have to factor in cost of sales as well as cost of administration. Richard: Exactly. It’s just as much work either way.

How did a new ghostwriter get the first projects?

Richard: The way I get projects is through networking and my blog. Prospects find my content, read enough to know I’m serious, and contact me. For more on vetting a writer, see how to interview a ghostwriter. None of the networking is done to sell. It doesn’t start with what I need, and I’d be embarrassed if it did. It starts with how I can help you. You start helping people. Before long they’re helping you back because nobody wants a one-way relationship. I had somebody email me out of the blue with a $15,000 ghostwriting project he wanted me to bid on. We’d connected through networking months earlier. That’s how it works. You build relationships and the work follows.

Gail: That’s true. It’s what you’re doing for other people.

Richard: The guy I mentioned is a big networker. His name is Ron Sukenick, and he’s one of the founders of BNI. I interviewed him as part of a book project, got a ninety-minute conversation with one of the top networking minds in the world. He explained how relationships are what makes you significant as opposed to always scrambling for business. (See Ron’s Networking Your Way to Success) I was already heading in that direction, but the conversation with Ron made me move much more aggressively toward relationship-based business development.

How do a ghostwriter’s own books bring in work?

Gail: What about your own books? Richard: I have 113+ books published now, some under pseudonyms, some under my name. Early on they weren’t selling well, and I had to figure out why. I picked one of my books, Focus on LinkedIn, because I knew there was a market for it. I put out a call for reviewers and 1,200 people asked for a free copy within 24 hours. About 60-70 came back with reviews, a solid return rate.

Once I had the reviews, I put the book on a promotional mailing list and got 1,000 sales in 24 hours. The book hit number 500 in the Amazon rankings and became a Best Seller in three categories for three days. After that, BookBub accepted me the same day I submitted.

The lesson is that writing the book is only the beginning.

Marketing the book is a completely different skill set, and most writers aren’t trained for it. Too many writers publish a good book, wait for readers to show up, and decide they can’t write when nobody comes. Nobody warned them that selling the book is a second job.

Gail: What a terrific story. Richard: One thing I learned is that since it’s your book, you can put whatever you want in the back material. I include links to my ghostwriting services, my other books, and my mailing list. If somebody reads the book and turns to the back, they find my promotional materials. It costs nothing except the time to set it up. Your book should be a lead magnet. You have lead magnets driving people to the book, and the book is a second level of lead magnet to your services.

Should a Ghostwriter Specialize or Generalize?

From Author Talks

Ginny Carter has ghostwritten twenty-five books and coaches entrepreneurs and consultants toward thought leadership, having come to it from marketing and social media. She described the path on Author Talks.

Audience Question: How specialized should you be? How small a niche should you address?

Richard: I promote myself as a ghostwriter who can write on anything. I can say that because it’s true. I’ve written a memoir for an Afghan politician, highly technical computer books, business books, and all kinds of other topics. Across 54+ ghostwriting projects, I’ve covered subjects I had no background in before the project started. When someone wants me to write them a book, I’ll look at anything and tailor my approach to their subject.

I don’t exclude markets. I can do the research. Of course, there are some projects I won’t touch, but the range of what a skilled ghostwriter can handle is much wider than most people expect.

A retired FBI informant once wanted me to write a book naming mafia names, and it would have been the biggest offer I’d ever had. I turned it down.

I kind of like to be breathing. Past that short list, I’d tell any new ghostwriter to stop turning down subjects just because they don’t know them yet. Learning somebody else’s world from the person who built it is the best part of this job.

Gail: Richard, thank you so much for your time. I love your knowledge and your expertise, and congratulations on your success. Schedule a free consultation to discuss your book project.

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