Through the years, I’ve learned that authors don’t always know everything that goes into making a book. Some people have a rough idea of how ghostwriting works, but most have a lot of questions about the content, structure, and format. That’s completely normal. I’m more than happy to share this information with you during our initial interview.
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Talk about your goals
A good ghostwriter will ask you to reveal your goals for your book early on. Over the last twenty years, I’ve heard a variety of goals from many clients. Some are interested in financial gain, while others want to share their story or wisdom with others. Many simply wish to complete their books for their loved ones.
I love to work with clients who wish to share their expertise or life lessons with others. I’ve seen that books that are written to help, educate, or entertain others can sometimes also become very popular and make a lot of money. On the other hand, fame and fortune seldom come when the author is purely money-driven. So that she can help you reach your goals, your ghostwriter needs to know why you want to write your book.
A detailed list of incidents
Any fiction book or memoir is comprised of a series of incidents. It’s a timeline of the events that happen to your characters.
To get started on your outline, I need to know what happened. This list doesn’t have to include a lot of information. When you first start out, it may only be a list of keywords that help you come up with the right idea. Then, when you talk to your ghostwriter, they’ll go over the scene with you and pull out the important details.
For instance, if you’re writing your memoir, you might jot down:
- The time I got food poisoning in LA
- The first horror movie I attended with a boy
- The time I flew to Paris to meet my sister
- Who was involved?
- Where did it take place?
- When did it happen?
- What was the significance for you?
While writing a memoir, it’s helpful to write down any real conversations that you might want to include in the writing. Your ghostwriter will change it to fit your book, but these words will show her how you and the other people in your story talk and interact with each other. If you think about it, you speak very differently with the different people in your life. I know I don’t talk to my mother-in-law the way I speak to my children or my neighbor.
The same goes for fiction. If you know a lot about the characters you want your writer to create, I think you should give them some dialogue to work with. That way your ghostwriter can build from that and meet your expectations easily.
I find it extremely helpful to get the addresses of former homes, offices, schools, etc. , so I can research details about the locations various characters visited throughout the story. This helps me get the scenes right, especially if my research turns up pictures of the inside too. I love to pore over local maps to get a feel for the area.
If you have any photos that are relevant, those are very helpful because they show how people, places, and things really looked.
Ghost Writer interview questions
FAQ
How do you interview a ghost writer?
What does a ghost writer need to know?
