If you're interested in offering your ghostwriting (or editorial) services on Reedsy, use this link for a $100 bonus! reedsy.com/p/michelle-schusterman
Thank you so much for this much needed explanation Michelle, to the people entering this world of becoming a ghostwriter! The expectation management can be the tough part I was lucky to come across a Houston Based company Writers Of The West that helped me like a guiding light in this hazy world and I'm happy to be one of the oldest and experienced ghostwriters on their team!
This is another fantastic how-to video! Thank you for this! You are so generous with your information and so knowledgable. :D And your subscriber numbers are zooming upwards!! Congratulations!
As someone with zero interest in ever hiring or being a ghostwriter, I have no idea why I love this series so much, but I absolutely do! I guess I never really knew anything about ghost writing before aside from the fact that it happened. Thank you so much for sharing! One random question: If something you wrote for a client became a break-out success (Maybe no theme park in the works, but huge demand for more content) would you charge your client more to write a sequel(s) than your normal rate?
Thanks so much, Amelia! :) That's an interesting question. I don't think I would, if only that it wouldn't feel right to charge one client more than another for the same work...but I'm not sure. I'd have to give it a lot of thought!
Thanks so much for this series! I'm a 17-year-old author (both traditionally and self-published) and I've just recently become interested in ghostwriting. Your videos have been very helpful for me (might have spent the last few hours binge-watching them...). However, I've now had two freelance sites turn me down because of my age, including Reedsy. I wish that my credentials could speak for themselves (I'll have my associates degree next month, two months before I turn 18). I am on Fiverr, but I haven't had much luck yet. I got one gig yesterday, but that was before I watched your video and discovered how much I could be charging. I'm only getting $150 for a 30k word novella. People keep telling me to just wait until I'm older (a woman from Reedsy implied that I shouldn't even bother when I turn 18 since most of their ghostwriters are over 30), but I'm much too stubborn and determined for that. Do you have any advice?
Hi Carynn! First off - congrats on all the success! That's so awesome. FWIW, I often get requests from teens through Reedsy and they do have a parental consent policy - I know that's simply a need for them to cover themselves legally. Which is very frustrating for you, I'm sure! But soon enough, you'll be 18 and able to offer ghostwriting services on that platform. (Um, I see no need for you to wait until you're thirty...that's ridiculous!) I've never tried Fiverr, but in general I've heard it's okay for lots of small, lower paying jobs...tougher for the higher paying stuff. But you know what? It's a start, and you're going to get those testimonials (PLEASE don't forget that step! It really is super important to show future clients that your past clients loved working with you!) I firmly believe that skilled creatives should get paid fairly for their work, so I'm not going to tell you to be happy with low pay or "do it for the exposure" (a phrase I can't stand). But I will say this: I started my freelance career writing 1,000 word blog posts for $5. The more I built up a portfolio of published writing and solid client testimonials, the easier it was to charge a higher rate, and the more requests I started to get. It can feel like a slog, but you'll get there. Did you watch part 3 of this series? I cover more ways to get the word out about your services there, but the short of it is - build a platform (a website and your preferred social media) with lots of samples of your writing. The more a client can see you as a person with a passion for storytelling, the more likely they are to hire you.
@@MichelleSchustermanAuthor this was so helpful, thank you! Yes, I just watched part 3. I hope you'll do more videos on ghostwriting soon! As for the parental consent requirement that you mentioned, does that mean that my parents would just need to sign a waiver or something like that? If that's a possibility, they'd be 100% onboard. The woman I talked to didn't make that seem like an option.
@@justcarynn3227 I've got two more planned in this series - I'm hoping to put them out by the end of May! As for parental consent - I'm sorry, I meant the potential clients who reach out to hire an editor or ghostwriter. I honestly don't know Reedsy's policy on the age for professionals and whether parental consent would work - perhaps try contacting someone at service@reedsy.com to ask? My fingers are crossed for you!!
I love that you added options for anonymity. 😅 (in terms of "I don't want my image out there") So I'm glad that's not a deal maker/breaker. But on that note, you mention talking with your clients on the phone. Would the ability to do that make or break anything? Because, for me at least, that's something extremely difficult when it comes to auditory processing. (Taking an hour to decipher that a deep voiced person said what turned out to be a standard greeting is not ideal, considering other words usually follow that. 😅) Because yeah, I understand text and email are things, but I also know a lot of people who who don't want to bother writing or typing or taking the time to clarify something ambiguous through text. So would it be considered unreasonable to say calling is off the table?
Absolutely - I know a LOT of people don't want their image out there and for very valid reasons! FWIW, I don't think not being able to have a phone conversation would mean you couldn't get these types of jobs. Aside from my first client, only one has ever requested a Zoom chat, and that first year I didn't have TH-cam or any videos on my site. So clearly people are still willing to hire! But with some clients it's definitely going to help if they can hear you. And you know, you make a good point about people not wanting to type - a potential client might have great reasons for preferring a phone chat to email correspondence. In that case, I think it's just a matter of finding the right client-ghostwriter match. Everyone works a little bit differently, and this is a partnership!
What if you're an unpublished writer? I'm not published but I have found ghostwriting jobs in the past (mainly on upwork although I don't really like that platform). Do you have any advice on that?
Oh totally! Lots of ghostwriters do it without writing their own books. The key is writing samples and being able to show credentials. It's tough, because sometimes there are DNAs involved in ghostwriting, but the more testimonials and samples you can collect to show potential clients, the better!
@@MichelleSchustermanAuthor By credentials, do you mean like a creative writing degree? I'm doing an MA in Creative Writing but I feel like it often doesn't really count...
Only took three days and three attempts to actually get to watch the whole video. 😅 Do you think you might end up raising your rates if you hit the bestseller list with some of your ghost-written projects?
I have SO many half-watched or barely started videos in my history/watch later section! LOL I wouldn't say no for sure, but I don't think I would. I can't publicly say what books I've ghostwritten, so I wouldn't be able to prove it! And if one of my own books took off and I was getting royalties or generally earning more there, I would probably do less ghostwriting work altogether.
If you're interested in offering your ghostwriting (or editorial) services on Reedsy, use this link for a $100 bonus! reedsy.com/p/michelle-schusterman
Just needed a quick things done. Is this 100$ claimable?
Thank you so much for this much needed explanation Michelle, to the people entering this world of becoming a ghostwriter! The expectation management can be the tough part I was lucky to come across a Houston Based company Writers Of The West that helped me like a guiding light in this hazy world and I'm happy to be one of the oldest and experienced ghostwriters on their team!
Five out of ten clients returned for more work: Well done, Michelle!
Aw thanks Heather! :D
This is another fantastic how-to video! Thank you for this! You are so generous with your information and so knowledgable. :D And your subscriber numbers are zooming upwards!! Congratulations!
Thank you so much, Regina - for the comment and for watching! :) I really love making these videos and I'm so happy they're helpful!
Am loving this series just for the information aspect!
Thank you so much, Joey! :)
As someone with zero interest in ever hiring or being a ghostwriter, I have no idea why I love this series so much, but I absolutely do! I guess I never really knew anything about ghost writing before aside from the fact that it happened. Thank you so much for sharing!
One random question:
If something you wrote for a client became a break-out success (Maybe no theme park in the works, but huge demand for more content) would you charge your client more to write a sequel(s) than your normal rate?
Thanks so much, Amelia! :) That's an interesting question. I don't think I would, if only that it wouldn't feel right to charge one client more than another for the same work...but I'm not sure. I'd have to give it a lot of thought!
Thanks so much for this series!
I'm a 17-year-old author (both traditionally and self-published) and I've just recently become interested in ghostwriting. Your videos have been very helpful for me (might have spent the last few hours binge-watching them...). However, I've now had two freelance sites turn me down because of my age, including Reedsy. I wish that my credentials could speak for themselves (I'll have my associates degree next month, two months before I turn 18).
I am on Fiverr, but I haven't had much luck yet. I got one gig yesterday, but that was before I watched your video and discovered how much I could be charging. I'm only getting $150 for a 30k word novella.
People keep telling me to just wait until I'm older (a woman from Reedsy implied that I shouldn't even bother when I turn 18 since most of their ghostwriters are over 30), but I'm much too stubborn and determined for that. Do you have any advice?
Hi Carynn! First off - congrats on all the success! That's so awesome. FWIW, I often get requests from teens through Reedsy and they do have a parental consent policy - I know that's simply a need for them to cover themselves legally. Which is very frustrating for you, I'm sure! But soon enough, you'll be 18 and able to offer ghostwriting services on that platform. (Um, I see no need for you to wait until you're thirty...that's ridiculous!)
I've never tried Fiverr, but in general I've heard it's okay for lots of small, lower paying jobs...tougher for the higher paying stuff. But you know what? It's a start, and you're going to get those testimonials (PLEASE don't forget that step! It really is super important to show future clients that your past clients loved working with you!)
I firmly believe that skilled creatives should get paid fairly for their work, so I'm not going to tell you to be happy with low pay or "do it for the exposure" (a phrase I can't stand). But I will say this: I started my freelance career writing 1,000 word blog posts for $5. The more I built up a portfolio of published writing and solid client testimonials, the easier it was to charge a higher rate, and the more requests I started to get. It can feel like a slog, but you'll get there.
Did you watch part 3 of this series? I cover more ways to get the word out about your services there, but the short of it is - build a platform (a website and your preferred social media) with lots of samples of your writing. The more a client can see you as a person with a passion for storytelling, the more likely they are to hire you.
@@MichelleSchustermanAuthor this was so helpful, thank you! Yes, I just watched part 3. I hope you'll do more videos on ghostwriting soon! As for the parental consent requirement that you mentioned, does that mean that my parents would just need to sign a waiver or something like that? If that's a possibility, they'd be 100% onboard. The woman I talked to didn't make that seem like an option.
@@justcarynn3227 I've got two more planned in this series - I'm hoping to put them out by the end of May! As for parental consent - I'm sorry, I meant the potential clients who reach out to hire an editor or ghostwriter. I honestly don't know Reedsy's policy on the age for professionals and whether parental consent would work - perhaps try contacting someone at service@reedsy.com to ask? My fingers are crossed for you!!
Happy Channel Anniversary!
Awww thank you!!! :D
I love that you added options for anonymity. 😅 (in terms of "I don't want my image out there") So I'm glad that's not a deal maker/breaker.
But on that note, you mention talking with your clients on the phone. Would the ability to do that make or break anything? Because, for me at least, that's something extremely difficult when it comes to auditory processing. (Taking an hour to decipher that a deep voiced person said what turned out to be a standard greeting is not ideal, considering other words usually follow that. 😅) Because yeah, I understand text and email are things, but I also know a lot of people who who don't want to bother writing or typing or taking the time to clarify something ambiguous through text. So would it be considered unreasonable to say calling is off the table?
Absolutely - I know a LOT of people don't want their image out there and for very valid reasons! FWIW, I don't think not being able to have a phone conversation would mean you couldn't get these types of jobs. Aside from my first client, only one has ever requested a Zoom chat, and that first year I didn't have TH-cam or any videos on my site. So clearly people are still willing to hire! But with some clients it's definitely going to help if they can hear you. And you know, you make a good point about people not wanting to type - a potential client might have great reasons for preferring a phone chat to email correspondence. In that case, I think it's just a matter of finding the right client-ghostwriter match. Everyone works a little bit differently, and this is a partnership!
What if you're an unpublished writer? I'm not published but I have found ghostwriting jobs in the past (mainly on upwork although I don't really like that platform). Do you have any advice on that?
Oh totally! Lots of ghostwriters do it without writing their own books. The key is writing samples and being able to show credentials. It's tough, because sometimes there are DNAs involved in ghostwriting, but the more testimonials and samples you can collect to show potential clients, the better!
@@MichelleSchustermanAuthor By credentials, do you mean like a creative writing degree? I'm doing an MA in Creative Writing but I feel like it often doesn't really count...
How do you link to books you’ve ghostwritten if it’s supposed to be confidential?
Only took three days and three attempts to actually get to watch the whole video. 😅
Do you think you might end up raising your rates if you hit the bestseller list with some of your ghost-written projects?
I have SO many half-watched or barely started videos in my history/watch later section! LOL
I wouldn't say no for sure, but I don't think I would. I can't publicly say what books I've ghostwritten, so I wouldn't be able to prove it! And if one of my own books took off and I was getting royalties or generally earning more there, I would probably do less ghostwriting work altogether.
Yeah, that's perfectly fair. And I'm certainly rooting for your personal projects to take off. You're working pretty hard on them!