Five Lessons I Learnt from Writing Books

Hello lovely folks,

The new year is here and it’s looking bright ahead. Fresh opportunities, lively discussions and new ideas. 2011 is going to be one brilliant year, don’t you think?

To the post, now.

Yesterday, I got an email from my client. It went like this:

“Nice work! Looks like people are gonna like the book.”

This was followed by an endorsement another author wrote for my client’s book ghosted by me.

My reply simply was:

“Woo hoo!”

Indeed. It was a “woo hoo” moment. This is my first endorsement. Well, technically, I won’t be the face of this book but I can truly say it’s my baby.

My client, Mr. B, now awaits more such endorsements from other authors.

This little incident sparked an interest to post about my experience in the field of ghost-writing till date. Despite what you have been thinking, you can become a ghostwriter and reap the benefits of good relationships with clients as well as earn your living off it. If you’re not interested in this type of writing, I still urge you to read further and apply the lessons to your own writing life.

So without further ado, here are the lessons learnt from the Land of Ghosts:

1. Apply for that Opportunity, No Matter What: When I was first approached by Mr. B, I had never written any books. Neither did have have much experience in ghost-writing. This was in August 2010. I was a writer at heart, sure, and I did have clips to show. Mr. B asked me to write a few pages as a part of screening. Yet, I was in double minds.

The lesson? In spite of being in two minds, I did my best and voila! He loved my writing and by weekend I was signing a contract.

2. Dump the Ego: Sure, ego is a good saver at times. But mostly, it is a source of nuisance. Utter nuisance, I’d say. Thankfully, I have now learnt to control it and release it as need be. When Mr. B approached me, I was left dumb-founded for a day or so. I didn’t know how to go about this supposedly larger-than-life opportunity. Non-fiction has always been close to my heart, and this seemed like a perfect thing to do. Yet, my ego kept hen-pecking, “Are you nuts? A BOOK? A non-fiction, 250 paged book?“

The lesson? In the end, I decided to dump the nay-sayer and continued with my job. I was the one selected out of several writers.

3. Expect More: When you give your 100%, you are bound to have better opportunities coming your way. When I first signed a contract, I was surprised to find it read like this:

“Writer shall provide services for the completion of three books.“

Three books? THREE books? I was in love. With myself.

The lesson? Always remember to expect more and be ready to deliver when the chance occurs. Give your 100% and operate from a clean, honest heart. Works like magic.

4. Consider Your Clients: Building relationships requires skill and patience. If there’s something that I learnt from ghost-writing, it is how to be patient. You and your client are in different countries, with different time-zones and attitudes to work and culture. A joke in your country may not be very well understood in theirs. Or, there is a good chance that your client won’t know much about a sub-topic in the book, for example, apart from the its title. Often times, as a ghost-writer, you will have to go that extra mile and do your own research. In fact, I can safely attest that in my first (and second) book, a major portion came from stroking Mr. B’s psyche and my personal research.

The lesson? While in ghost-writing business, don’t expect to be spoon-fed. A ghost-writer is supposed to have their finger on the right pulse, gather news, research, bring short and sweet anecdotes etc. for the book. The notes I got from Mr. B were short paragraphs and only a few pages long. It was my job to expound them and bring in fresh new details so that it stretched into a 250+ paged book.

5. Be Ready to Discard: It’s a given. You may have expounded the notes or strings of sentences from the client and converted it into a shining MS. But look again. Is it really shining? Isn’t that a blotch over there? Is that a discrepancy of voice? An anecdote your client does not find inspiring enough? Whatever it is, be ready to discard. And this not only applies to editorial changes  but also to subtle implications you use in your writing.

The lesson? Even though you believe you did majority of the work and induced many of the fresh ideas, remember you’re only renting the place. Just as you cannot force the landlord to pay for and keep the interiors you did while your stay at their property, so too you cannot force the client to keep everything you wrote and pay you for it. The book, in the end, will belong to someone else.

~~~

So there. Some lessons experienced by yours truly, first-hand. I hope this post helps you in whatever writing journey you’re at.

What lessons are YOU learning while you enjoy your stay at the writer-land? Perhaps, you also a ghost-writer with more lessons to share? Got ideas? Welcome to the Comment-area!

Photo by Random Ideal at PhotoRee.com

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Tags: Book writing, freelance writer, freelance writing, freelancing, ghost-writing, ghostwriting books, learn ghostwriting books, new writer, non-fiction, Non-fiction writing, Paid writing, writing contracts, writing inspiration, writing tips