Nine Tips for Ghostwriting Success No. 3 No Sleepovers

No Sleepovers

Never spend the night at the client’s home.  Some of your clients may be wealthy and have big houses or even mansions. Some may even have a guesthouse or two on the property. They will argue that it’ll save them time and money if you stay in their house overnight after a work session. Don’t do it. If you have an overnight engagement, stay in a hotel. Say it’s your policy. Pay for the hotel out of your own pocket if it comes down to that (it never will). A ghostwriter’s independence is key to professional success. 

Ghosts always need an exit plan.

Simply put, ghostwriters need to maintain independent, professional relationships with the client. That’s impossible to do if they are seen as guests.  The 2010 movie Ghost Writer offers an extreme version of the pitfalls of sleeping over in the client’s home.  (Sleeping with the client’s wife is also discouraged.)

Tip number 3 is about the danger of blurring boundaries.  Houseguests incur one set of mutual obligations; professionals another. Ghostwriters do their best work when they stay firmly on the professional side of the line.