How to Be a Gracious Ghost
Boo! As a corporate communications specialist, you will probably be asked to ghostwrite many times in your life. There are tricks to this trade to make you very successful.First of all, DO NOT use this as an opportunity to boost your own ego. It's just a job. Don't go telling everyone in the organization, "Hey, so-and-so didn't write it. I did." In reality, no one really cares. And you've broken that important trust between ghostwriter and ghost-hirer.
How to be a good ghost? A few pointers:
- Listen to your subject. He or she has a particular cadence in their speech. You need to pick that rhythm up when you write. Again, this isn't about how you would write the piece if it had your byline, but how your subject would write it.
- Don't recycle. If you wrote a great piece for a CEO down the street and want to use it again, not a good idea. Assume a new "voice" for each of your ghostwriting clients.
- Always try to meet the needs of the person who will sign your work. Be very specific when sitting down to discuss the piece – ask what he or she wants to get across. Again, it's not your time to editorialize.
- Expect revisions. Any CEO worth their salt will make changes to what you've written. Think of what you do as providing a "jumping off point" for him or her to embellish.
- Great ghostwriting takes time. You won't get it perfect directly out of the shoot. You need to establish a relationship with your "author." He or she must gain your trust. After all, they're the ones who sign their names to the piece…and pay you.
- If you don't get it right, perhaps another writer is better suited. Mike Myers doesn't get every imitation right. The same is true for writers. Some just suit their subjects better. Good ghosts just know when they hit their subjects "dead-on." (excuse the pun)
