by Ellie Maas Davis

Ghostwriting is a very common practice with busy professionals, celebrities and speakers. If you knew how many bestselling books were actually ghostwritten, it might surprise you. If you’re considering publishing and just don’t have the time to write and still want to have the book written in “your voice” hiring a ghostwriter may be your answer. So what are the top 10 reasons to hire a ghostwriter?

1. You’re a professional who needs a manuscript.
Everyone changes the oil in their car; they take it to the shop, pay $29.95, then read Cosmo and drink bad coffee while they wait. But, in fact, no one changes the oil to his or her car. They don’t climb up underneath, remove the plug, drain it out into a pan and put in new oil. Getting a ghostwriter is like getting an oil change– you’re hiring someone who can perform the necessary services efficiently and professionally. It’s not that changing the oil is complicated; it requires special tools, attention to important details, and the efficiencies of a service provider who does this all the time. Most of writing a book is journeyman work; Book Express is the mechanic to fine-tune your genius.

2. You’re too busy to write a book.
Designed specifically for the busy entrepreneur, business owner, or speakers, Book Express offers you convenience, speed, and high quality; because what senior businessperson can take off two months to create a book on management theories? Give us fifteen hours in interviews and we’ll give you what the competition doesn’t have — the chance to add “best-selling author” to their credentials. Because when a customer has a decision to make between you and the other guy –our money is on the one who wrote the book.

3. You can’t see the forest for the trees.
It’s often difficult to write on topics we’re most familiar. The Book Express process offers authors perspective; we look at things from the reader’s point of view. So whether you think you might miss something — or get caught up in over-explaining each and every minute detail, we help authors think like readers. Our ghostwriters, with only a lay knowledge of your subject will ask the questions of a lay reader, which opens the potential of your book to a much wider audience.

4. You need contacts and experience.
If you’re an established celebrity, you probably have an agent and publicist who help “brand” and promote you. Someone who is coming from the outside the publishing world might have no idea where to start, but if you want to give your shtick star power it’s up to you to create a foothold and make a name for yourself. Your first book may be the tip of the iceberg. With finesse, Book Express helps you get the first one under your belt—and begin creating your own niche market. Much like getting a master’s or investing in golf lessons—it’s about going the extra mile to secure your potential.

5. English isn’t your first language.
There’s a lot to be said for the English language, but planet Earth is a very large place. For authors from the Middle East, the Far East, and Africa—all of whom speak English beautifully—it’s useful to have our ghostwriter’s fluency, articulacy, and persuasiveness. As a process, Book Express allows non-English-speaking authors the best of both worlds; they’re able to maintain their personal style, as well as engage American and European audiences.

6. You’re not the sole author.
It happens that an organization, group, or team wants a united front—and a book. So if your vision offers more than one viewpoint or different areas of expertise, ghosting may be the best route. Joint efforts can be tricky, but with Book Express, our ghostwriters are able to interview any number of contributors and then integrate the information in a relevant and exciting book. So whether you’re trying to organize ten “guest” authors or two—ghosting is a smart way to go.

7. You tend to procrastinate.
How many years have you planned to write a book? How long have your notes and book outline been in your bottom drawer? Book Express keeps you accountable. It works. We’ve never missed a pub date, but then we’ve been known to prod. Our ghostwriters set deadlines, but the great part is that besides the initial interviews and developmental outline stage, we can get done what we need to get done is one eight-hour day—and then the rest is up to us. So quit making excuses. If you know you want to write a book—let us write it.

8. You’re more of an idea person.
And that’s great. It’s people like you who change the face of business and how workforces are managed. We dig that, but we’re here to help you shape and share your knowledge and areas of expertise. When it comes to the Book Express process we know pretty quickly whether or not there’s enough information for an entire manuscript and whether it’s really as original as you think. This allows you to head back to the drawing board for your next big idea.

9. You don’t know how or where to begin.
That’s the beauty of Book Express. We know what to do and how to do it. We specifically focus on developing your book concept and its marketability. We help you understand how to brand your idea—and yourself. From the outline we derive from your developmental interviews, you don’t have to worry about organization or what the next step is because we make it for you. Follow us—we know the way.

10. You need that little extra nudge.
How many times has someone told you that you should write a book? Do you have something to say? Do you know a better way to live, pray, diet, entertain, herd cattle, or take family photos? Do you know something no one else does? Do you owe it to your fans, your profession, or your fellow citizens? Do you owe it to yourself? What’s holding you back? Book Express is able to either confirm or deny that little voice in the back of your mind. Maybe it’s nothing—but maybe it is. Our ghostwriters want to hear all about it.

So, no matter what your reason or your motivation—whether you’re too busy to write a book, not sure how to organize your topic, or even whether your concept is marketable, Book Express is a great place to start.

Contact us at Author’s Boutique for more information on our ghostwriting services and partnership with Pressque.

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Original version of this article published at Pressque.com.

Educated at Southern Methodist University, the University of Kansas, and the University of Witswatersrand in Johannesburg, Ellie Maas Davis has written extensively on the environment and issues of human rights. She is the owner of Pressque, a publishing consultation firm located in downtown Charleston that offers editing, ghostwriting, and marketing services to authors and publishers.

She is a founding board member of the Lowcountry Initiative for the Literary Arts, a former curator and host of Charleston’s longest running weekly literary series, Monday Night Blues, and serves as a mentor to senior writing students at Charleston County School of the Arts. Published in a number of anthologies and journals, she is the author of The Humours of Folly, See Charleston in a Day, 100, over a dozen ghostwritten works of fiction and nonfiction, and often reviews books for The Post and Courier. When she’s not living somewhere else, she makes her home on Daniel Island with her family.

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