Ghostwriting

An example of a good vs. bad choice

Hire 1 Good Ghostwriter — or Don’t Write the Book

By Lee Barnathan / May 15, 2023
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You have an idea for a book that you’re sure will be a big hit and reach a wide audience. You also have decided that, for whatever reason, you can’t write it yourself. So, you hire a ghostwriter. Unfortunately, the book you got was pure drek: typos galore, inconsistent style, questionable organizational choices, and words…

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A balance between artificial intelligence (AI) and humans

In Defense of Humans vs. AI

By Lee Barnathan / May 8, 2023
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To paraphrase William Shakespeare:  When machines do the work that we’re assigned And create the content that does abound We’ll all be free to do the things we love And leave the dreary work to be done by glove. I say paraphrase because this, I believe obviously, was written by artificial intelligence (I found it…

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Reasons a Book Gets Bad Reviews: The Storytelling Lacks

By Lee Barnathan / May 1, 2023
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What makes a great book? A lot of things, actually, but to paraphrase James Carville, it’s the storytelling, stupid. Publishers I talk to are always looking for a story that is compelling, one that’s unique, relates to the reader, puts the reader into the author’s world, and evokes an emotional response. So, too, are ghostwriters,…

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stories matter typed on paper from a typewriter

Ghostwriting: What is a Compelling Story?

By Lee Barnathan / April 24, 2023
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Just because you want to use ghostwriting services doesn’t mean the ghostwriter will want to partner with you. Like many creative types, ghostwriters want to work with people who have stories to tell that excite, motivate and inspire them. Ghostwriters like helping people tell their stories that move people to action and that which they…

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The Ghostwriter Respects the Author, and the Author Trusts the Ghostwriter

By Lee Barnathan / April 17, 2023
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I previously wrote about a ghostwriter’s need to be able to step into the client’s shoes and tell the story in the client’s voice and tone and style. To effectively do that, a ghostwriter must respect the client, the story and the information behind the story. Or the ghostwriter must decline the work. Everyone must…

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my story

A Ghostwriter Ensures It’s Your Story, Not Theirs

By Lee Barnathan / April 10, 2023
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Another important aspect to ghostwriting services is the ability to step into someone else’s shoes and tell that person’s story in their words, voice and tone. The worst thing a ghostwriter can do is submit the writing and have the person say, “That doesn’t sound like me at all. That sounds like you.” It makes…

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blocks in front of a person typing that spell ghostwriter

What is a Ghostwriter?

By Lee Barnathan / April 5, 2023
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Are you sure that person whose book you’re reading really wrote it? Chances are they didn’t, or at the very least, they got help. And I don’t mean the kind of help that an editor gives to every manuscript. I’m talking about the actual writing. Chances are, the author used a ghostwriter.  Simply put, a…

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man typing on a laptop

Ghostwriting: Having a Book Idea vs. Actually Writing the Book

By Lee Barnathan / October 25, 2022
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Back in 2002, the independent publishing services firm The Jenkins Group released a survey that said 81% of Americans feel they have a book in them. To which noted writer and editor Joseph Epstein wrote that he has little faith in Americans’ abilities to do so. In fact, most people never get that book out…

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