Do Ghostwriters Make a Lot of Money
Is a ghostwriter’s salary high? Many are those who wonder how much they can make. The answer depends on their motivation and on the type of projects they work on.
Other factors come into play. Like, how well organized they are, and if their research skills are good enough to make them good money.
Just what Is a Ghostwriter?
For those who are not up to date with the term, this type of ‘Ghostwriter’ has nothing to do with writing about ghosts.
Fair enough, you will obviously come across ghostwriters who actually write about ghosts. Yet, it’s best not to complicate matters at this stage.
It is a person who writes fiction or non-fiction for somebody else. The ghostwriter doesn’t put their name on the finished work.
The person who requested the ghostwriter to do all the work will be the name printed on the job, as the author.
Is Ghostwriting Legal
Yes, ghostwriting is 100% legal. The client will take all the credits due for the work from the actual author, That is how it works.
In other words, the client will get all the glory, and that includes the copyright of the work. The real author isn’t recognized for all the work done and remain invisibles to the world at large.
The work done by ghostwriters vary, and people hire them for different jobs, like writing eBooks, articles, blogs, novels, and more.
Ghostwriters work hand-in-hand with the person who hires them to write a project.
It goes without saying that in this kind of situation, there will be the full understanding that the client will get the full rights to the written product of the work carried out together.
The ghostwriter is not to sell the work to a third party or in any way make personal use of it.
This type of work is classified as being confidential. The writer is not to use any material the client might have given them to carry out the writing job.
A Ghostwriter's Salary and Business Clients
As far as the internet goes, content is king.
Businesses having websites always need up-to-date and fresh content regularly.
You’ll find some clients pay by the word, others prefer by the article. The longer the content, the more a ghostwriter’s salary will go up. The downside to this is that the project will take up a lot more of your time. This would be even more evident if you had to carry out a great deal of research for the client.
Even though most of the vast amount of information on the internet is free, some topics can be highly specialized.
This might work in your favor if you excel in a particular field. You can raise your fee higher than that of just a general ghostwriter.
Marketing Clients
Many are those clients who desire to market themselves and/or their products and services by having a book published in their name. In so doing, they will show the world a certain degree of expertise. Yet, their writing skills or their available time won’t be enough for them to write the book themselves.
In similar cases, you will go over the material they have forwarded to you. You then hold interviews to get ‘first-hand’ information from the horses’ mouth. With all this information at your disposal, you can sit down to write your client’s book.
Whatever the client decides to do with the book depends on the type of business the client is in. This could be sold, or given away for free, like a type of business card with the aim that it will trigger business in the long run.
Wealthy Clients and Ghostwriters
You’ll find that many famous people publish autobiographies. Yet, this does not mean they write them themselves.
The norm is that they’ll hire a ghostwriter to do it for them. The writer will then put together the book until the client approves it.
This type of work can be very lucrative, raising a ghostwriter’s salary substantially, but expect hard cases for clients who are not always easy to work for and make your life miserable with their extreme demands.
As a ghostwriter, you will come across so many different clients, and not all of them will be nice to you.
Being Clear about Scope
The only way you will be able to earn good money is if you are clear about the scope of the project. This apples from the beginning, and you stick to your guns.
You need to know important details, like how long the written piece has to be. You also need to know when the client wishes it ready, and how much you will get paid for your work.
In the eventuality that the project is huge, it is always recommended to get paid a retainer to secure your services. Once agreed, you can then set milestones with the delivery of certain parts of the project and get paid. If you don’t do this, then you might have cash flow problems.
You should be on the lookout for your client starting to make other requests and to add other elements to the already agreed job. It makes sense to agree to these requests if they make sense and once you’ve gone over and updated your contract.
Don’t let your client bully you into anything which you feel unfair about your work, time, and skills.
Your client should appreciate your professionalism by respecting your skills and what you are worth.
Repeat Ghostwriting Clients
The last thing on the list is to go for repeat clients. Earning money with this type of customer is so much easier and you don’t need to waste half your life applying for ghostwriting jobs
Ghostwriting Made Easy: 5 Day FREE Crash Course
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