Ghostwriting – Facts and Fictions

Posted on April 3 2020 by Mark Graham

Tuah. an inspiring short novel, is a collaboration between Jeyda Bolukbasi and Mark Graham Communications

Fact: You have a book inside you, but time and circumstances have kept you from getting started.

Fact: Hiring a ghostwriter may very well be the best solution for you.

Fact: Hiring a ghostwriter saves you time and provides you with a professional skill that few people have. Which means you are applying their talents to your project while you focus your time on your own expertise. 

Fact: Most people who start a book do not finish it. This is another distinct advantage in hiring the right ghostwriter.

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Ghostwriting: Art or Business

Posted on February 25 2020 by Mark Graham

The Eyes of the Moose – collaboration with David Ranking Johnson and Mark Graham Communications

Writing is, of course, an essential in our world, first and foremost. We write emails galore, text even more, journal for fun and introspection.  We write lists that guide our days.  We leave notes for our kids.  We leave ourselves notes to inspire, motivate, or just to remind us of whatever it is we need to be reminded of.  We keep our calendars. We scribble entries in our diaries. We scribble on stickies, on napkins, on legal pads.

Writing verges closer to art when we try our hands at more expansive things like poetry and prose, short stories and essays, plays and novels, memoirs and biographies, self-help books and books of inspiration. At some point, with practice and self-discipline, and more practice, maybe we actually cross over into that illusive plane where writing does become art. It’s a wonderful goal. Just the pursuit alone is worth the effort.

Ghostwriting may be a business first, because ghostwriting is essential plying a trade, but it is not a business to pursue if you haven’t pursued the often-illusive art of writing. Most accomplished ghostwriters are highly published in their own right, and that is often used as a benchmark for the art of writing. No, a published author is not automatically an artist, but a published author is generally travelling the path of pushing his or her craft in the direction of artistry. Again, it’s about the goal. It’s about the pursuit.

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Writing a Novel? Finding the Right Ghostwriter is Critical

Posted on January 28 2020 by Mark Graham

Twin Flames is a collaboration between Charles Quinn and Mark Graham Communications

Finding exactly the right ghostwriter or professional editor for your novel is like choosing the right tree for exactly the right spot in your yard.  It’s a critical decision.  Once you commit to a ghostwriter and he or she commits to you, there’s no looking back.

Our years of experience at Mark Graham Communications have shown us several things. The more you have finalized the plot of your story before you commit to writing, the further down the road you will be; the better developed your cast of characters, the more memorable they will be; the more committed you and your ghostwriter are to the voice, tone, and style you decide on, the more you’ll be able to dive in head first without second guessing yourself.

As a ghostwriter, there are four key elements that we want to consider up front.

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Content Editing Your Manuscript

Posted on December 10 2019 by Mark Graham

The Rigel Affair is a collaboration with I. M. Hedrick and Mark Graham Communications

Content editing is the art of working on the language of someone’s manuscript and enhancing, where appropriate, everything from the storyline of a novel and the details of a memoir to the presentation in a business book and the style components of the self-help book.

A talented content editor is much rarer than you might think, because he or she must raise the presentation of a manuscript while honoring the voice that the author has created. Content editing can focus on very specific style elements, such as changing the voice of a piece from passive voice to active voice where appropriate, to more aggressive responses, such as adding descriptive passages where clearly needed in a biography or filling obvious holes in action scenes of a suspense novel.

Content editing is an art form in many ways.  To heavy of a hand and the editor threatens to overwhelm the essence of a piece and mask the heart and soul of author’s original intent; to light of a hand and the editor may fail to take the material in question to its highest level of presentation, which, of course, is the ultimate goal.

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Write the Business Book You’ve Always Wanted to Write

Posted on November 26 2019 by Mark Graham

The Aware Leader – collaboration with Richard Metheny and Mark Graham Communications

If you’re reading this, then you’ve very likely thought about writing a business book. A well-written business book serves a multitude of purposes.  Let’s explore them.

  1. Establishes Your Credibility.

You’re good at what you do. You’ve put time, energy and hard work into your field of expertise. When you talk, people listen. You’ve earned a level of trust because you know what it takes to be successful. Do the world a favor and put that expertise down on paper. Do yourself a favor and enhance your credibility in the eyes of your peers, your industry, and your team.

  1. Builds Your Confidence.

True, you need to have a good amount of confidence to write a book, but when you actually see your ideas, concepts and principles coming to life on the page, you gain a new kind of confidence, as in, “If I can write a book, there’s not much I can’t do.”

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To Hire a Ghostwriter – That is the Question

Posted on October 22 2019 by Mark Graham
This intense and suspenseful read, written by King Hurly and Mark Graham Communications will keep you on the edge of your seat from cover-to-cover.

This suspenseful read was written by King Hurley and Mark Graham Communications.

If you’ve got a book in you that is dying to come out, hiring a ghostwriter may very well be the ideal solution for you. Whether it’s a novel, biography, business book, or self-help book that’s percolating inside you, here are the key points to consider.

  1. Hire a ghostwriter with serious publishing credentials.

You want to hire someone who has written and published book-length material and done so successful.  You really do not want to trust your book to someone just getting started in the writing world. You want someone experienced in the art of writing and savvy about identifying your audience and giving them a readable, enjoyable product.

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Ghostwriting and the Beauty of Words

Posted on September 13 2019 by Mark Graham
This page-turning historical fiction was written by Kirk Raeber, Mario Acevedo and Mark Graham Communications.

This page-turning historical fiction was written by Kirk Raeber, Mario Acevedo and Mark Graham Communications.

If you’re reading this, you’re most likely a lover of words, much as I am. The right word or combination of words can be beautiful, emotional, inspiring, heartbreaking.  Words can also be wasteful and meaningless.  But all words count.  All words have power.  The power to move us. The power to bore us.

Too often, we may not spend as much time as we might thinking about the words we are speaking or writing.  Just allowing words to spew out of our mouths can be wasteful on many levels.  Writing just to fill the page is mostly a waste of time and energy.  Nonetheless, an obsession with words and their magic is a special thing and worth investing considerable thought and energy.

You may wonder about the correlation between ghostwriting and the beauty of words, but it is very clear to anyone who has done it at a high level.  The best ghostwriters use their own words and their own phrasing to put forth an idea or story shared with them by a client and to do so with a respect for those words, even a love of those words. The best ghostwriters do not go through the motions of bringing a client’s story or message to life, but rather commit themselves to combining the best possible words in pursuit of a special book, special article, or  whatever special thing is writing.

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Ghostwriting and the Indie Publishing Mind Set

Posted on August 21 2019 by Mark Graham
Wow Moments

This engaging how-to business book on customer interaction is a collaboration between Mark Kent and Mark Graham Communications

The minutes you hire a ghostwriter, you proclaim yourself an entrepreneur. The minute you hire the right ghostwriter, you become both businessperson and entrepreneur. Whether you’ve chosen to write a business book to expound upon your proprietary view of the industry you’re in, a memoir to celebrate a special, meaningful part of your life, or a work of fiction to launch a life-long dream of being a novelist, you want to be just as diligent and thoughtful about the process as you would if you were opening a restaurant or starting a tech company.

Yes, of course, there is something wonderful about the art of writing and creating and putting pen to paper. And yes, you want to celebrate that totally. Know, however, that this is about a team.

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Ghostwriting a Novel is like Planting a Tree

Posted on August 1 2019 by Mark Graham

Let’s say you have a wonderful idea for a novel. Let’s say you don’t have the time or experience necessary to bring this novel to life. How then do you find exactly the right ghostwriter or professional editor to collaborate on such an important venture?
I like to think of it as choosing the right tree for exactly the right spot in your yard. It’s a critical decision. A pear tree needs lots of sun and plenty of breathing room, for example. A sunrise maple is probably a better choice than a sugar maple for a backyard in the city.

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When you’re thinking about selecting a writing partner, the more you have a handle on the plot of your story, the more you’ll be able to communicate this to the ghostwriter of your choice.
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A Drop of Rain – collaboration with Heather Smith callahan and Mark Graham Communications

The better developed your cast of characters, the more memorable you and your team will be able to make them, though you also want a collaborator who stimulates your imagination when it comes to both plot and characters. That’s what a good team does. The more open you are to the voice, tone, and style of your book, the better, however, the person you are working with also has to have an open mind and respect your viewpoint.
A tree is a personal thing. You will be living with it in your backyard for many years, assuming you give it the care it deserves.
Your book is equally, if not more, personal. It will take anywhere from six months to two years to complete, and you want a partnership with your ghostwriter that thrives on the interaction this process will take.

Consider these four key elements when you’re thinking about the novel you want to author:

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Book Design and Ghostwriting

Posted on June 18 2019 by Mark Graham
image of the Aftershock book cover

This motivational book was a collaboration with Kelli Poles and Mark Graham Communications

You may be asking yourself how there can be a connection between ghostwriting and book design.  The truth is, the two are tied together in very obvious ways. Or at least they should be.

With all of our ghostwriting clients, every conversation includes some mention of where the final product will end up.  We don’t just hand over a finished manuscript and say, “Good luck.”  We want the finished manuscript to be published just as badly as our clients do.  There are two ways to go. Indie publishing (or independent publishing; also called self-publishing) and mainstream publishing. We talk about these two vehicles all the way through the process.  Yes, this may seem on the surface to be putting the cart before the horse, but we are planning for the publishing process throughout the writing process, whether the project is a novel, biography, business book, or book of health and inspiration.

In preparation, we introduce a client to our book designer and book design team very early in the process, even as the first draft of the book is coming together.  If a client chooses to independently publish their book and take charge of the publishing process, we want them to be thinking about their book cover – such an important decision – early on and to be aware of the interior layout process. We want to be sharing the different printing and ebook options available to them. Mostly, we want them to know that they are not alone in this process.

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