9 Tips to Help You Prepare to Work with a Ghostwriter

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By Luke Palder. Most memoirs are written not by the authors themselves but by ghostwriters. Although these authors have fascinating stories to tell, they often don’t have the time or desire to painstakingly write a manuscript on their own.

A ghostwriter is a professional writer who takes the material and anecdotes an author provides and uses their writing expertise to create a cohesive narrative that keeps readers engaged. This allows the author to expertly package their story and deliver it through the crisp, compelling words of a professional who adjusts their style to emulate the author’s unique voice.

Hiring a ghostwriter can feel daunting. Even after tracking down a great ghostwriter with the right experience, writing style, and personality, many first-time authors aren’t sure how to prepare for their first interview. That’s why we’ve written a quick, step-by-step guide to help you prepare documents and get ready for your first interview with your memoir ghostwriter.

1. Clarify your vision, theme, and message

Before you start working with your ghost, you should have a clear idea of the kind of book you want to write, or at least the general theme and message you want to convey. A memoir isn’t just a factual retelling of the various events in your life—it’s a story, and it needs a central theme to tie everything together.

Take some time to determine how you want to tell your story. Do you want to tell the full story of your life, from birth until now, or do you want to concentrate on a particular period? Do you want to focus on a certain aspect of your life or personality? What message do you want readers to take away? If you’re uncertain about the theme or message of your memoir, you can work with your ghostwriter to sharpen your vision, but consider these issues on your own first.

2. Draft a writing brief

Your ghostwriter is a professional writer, but they still need clear directions from you to know how to best structure your memoir to meet your goals. Before you meet with your ghost, take a few minutes to draft a writing brief that describes the following:

your target audience (if you just want to write for the general public, consider which demographics would be most interested in your story)

your vision and intended goals
the approximate length
the writing style (first or third person, conversational or formal, etc.)
anything else you think is important for the ghostwriter to know

It doesn’t have to be detailed—just a brief description of your vision will go a long way.

3. Brainstorm notable events in your life

Think about the moments that have shaped you, whether they’ve been filled with joy, sorrow, anguish, or any other emotion. Any event you feel has significantly affected your life is valid.

But while it can be useful to restrict your thinking to the events most relevant to your memoir’s theme, such a limitation can also leave out important context. Err on the side of providing your ghostwriter with more anecdotes than necessary. Even if they don’t make it into the book, they help the ghostwriter understand you, how you think, and why you’ve made the decisions you have. Your ghostwriter needs to understand you well to write you well.

4. Gather relevant journal entries or blog posts you’ve written

If you’ve kept a journal or blog throughout your life, it can be a treasure trove of information for your memoir. Journal entries and blog posts are like snapshots of particular thoughts and feelings, which can help bring your anecdotes to life in a way that simply recounting them in the interview may not. The events you’ve written about can also help jog your memory, uncovering long-forgotten incidents that may enrich your story.

Don’t be embarrassed about showing your ghostwriter highly personal documents like your diary entries. A willingness to be vulnerable is central to writing a great memoir that truly touches your audience.

5. Collect any relevant newspaper articles or other publications

If any important events from your life have been printed in a newspaper or other publication, those records can prove invaluable for your ghostwriter. Third-party publications offer an objective or outsider view into the anecdotes, helping provide more perspective than your subjective memory of the incident. Your subjective experience of the events is crucial to a great memoir, but factual accuracy is also a priority.

6. Compile relevant photographs

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and photographs can be a great way to provide your ghostwriter with more information or context about the events and people in your life. You can include some photographs in your memoir to help bring your story to life for the readers, but even if you don’t intend to publish a photograph with your book, showing it to your ghostwriter can still be worthwhile. Anything that gives your ghost more insight into you is worth bringing to the interview.

7. Write short bios of the other people who will appear in the memoir

Your memoir isn’t just about you—it will also feature people from your life who have influenced you. It’s important that your ghost understands the people in your life, including their idiosyncrasies and motivations. Consider who in your life is going to appear in your memoir as important characters, and write brief bios for your ghostwriter. Photographs, newspaper articles, and other external sources can also provide valuable insight into the side characters in your memoir.

8. Provide information to aid the ghostwriter’s research

Ghostwriters aren’t only professional writers—they’re also expert researchers. Part of a ghostwriter’s job is verifying the information the author gives them, and you can facilitate your ghost’s research by providing locations, addresses, companies, and other pertinent information they can use to do their own digging. Writing a full manuscript for a memoir is a time-consuming process, so your ghost will appreciate anything that makes the job quicker and easier. You’ll also benefit from an accelerated path to published authordom.

9. Go into your interview with courage and honesty

The most important thing to take to your interviews with your ghostwriter is the right attitude. Sharing deep, intimate moments of your life with a stranger certainly isn’t comfortable, but this awkward vulnerability is crucial to writing an impactful memoir that resonates with readers. This is why it’s so important to work with a ghostwriter who you connect well with. As you prepare for your first interview, be ready to share, genuinely and openly.

Every ghostwriting experience is as unique as each book

Ultimately, the collaboration between you and your ghostwriter is unique, factoring in your individual needs and goals, your personality, the type of memoir you want to write, and your ghostwriter’s working style. Accordingly, the interview process will also be uniquely tailored to you and the arrangement you have with your ghostwriter. It’s always worthwhile to ask your ghostwriter what they would like you to prepare before you meet for the first time. Whatever the circumstances, meet your ghostwriter with honesty and kindness, laying the foundation for a fruitful collaboration and a stellar memoir.