3.  It’s the Money, Stupid

“No man but a blockhead wrote except for money,” said Dr. Johnson.  One of the agreeable aspects of a ghostwriting gig is that there is little pretense about money.  From the ghostwriter’s perspective, it’s not about “art”, getting credit, leaving a legacy, or any of the other reasons authors trot out to justify their need to add one more book to the library.  Ghostwriters are in it for the fee (frequently to support themselves while they write their own novels or screenplays). 

That means get as much cash upfront as possible, not because you need the money—which you do—but because it’s good for the project.  The more skin the principal has in the pot, the more likely he or she will want to play out the hand.  Developing a book is a tedious, drawn-out affair.  There will be many points where the principal will be tempted to drop the whole thing.  A significant buy-in discourages the principal from walking away when the going gets tough, which if you’re doing your job right, it frequently will.  A sizable down payment protects both the project and the ghostwriter. 

If the principal balks at giving you a sizable check upfront, just walk away and don’t look back. 

What about royalties?  In lieu of a fee, many principals will offer ghostwriters some or even all of the anticipated royalty revenue stream. Don’t do it.   Negotiate the best fee you can and leave the royalties to the principal.  Some will argue that sharing the royalties aligns the interests of the principal and ghost.  But I prefer a clean, time-limited arrangement that concerns matters over which I have control.  Royalties are outside the ghostwriter’s control.  Sharing revenues locks the ghostwriter and the principal into a permanent relationship.  Of course, if a percentage of the royalties are offered in addition to the fee, take them.  If the principal is really interested in aligning objectives, a definite performance bonus linked to specific deliverables works better than indefinite royalties.

Same thing with credit.  If the principal is willing to share the credit, accept it graciously and say thank you.  Some principals try to negotiate a smaller fee for a bigger credit. Just say no. 

Now, a word about expenses.

The conventional advice for ghostwriters is to negotiate a fee plus expenses.  There’s a better way:  Unless the project involves significant international travel, bundle the expenses (including domestic travel) into the writing fee.  The benefits for both the ghostwriter and the principal are compelling.  For the ghostwriter, this arrangement avoids the tedious work of submitting expense reports, energy that can be better spent writing.  The principal also benefits by having a totally predictable project cost.  It eliminates the need to write periodic reimbursement checks.  For the writer, given that expenses are frontloaded, the advantage of prepayment is obvious.  If the ghostwriter estimates well, he or she will almost always come out ahead.