I got a fairly anonymous email the other day in response to one of my stories on another site, asking if I would be interested in a ghost writing opportunity.
I did a quick search of ghost writing scams online, and most of the warnings seem to be directed at those looking for ghost writers, and ending up with inexperienced writers to write their story. Although others mentioned dodgy agents trying to get content for free, and not paying the writers.
Half a dozen short stories on an erotica site or two certainly doesn't make me qualified to take on such a project. Although, I have to admit that I wouldn't mind having a shot for shits and giggles. But having said that, I'm definitely not going to be a party to someone paying a small fortune to have the likes of me penning their story.
Has anyone else received a similar invitation? And what are your thoughts on this sort of thing?
My latest story is a racy little piece about what happens when someone cute from work invites you over to watch Netflix and Chill. Yeah, not for erotica. But I was asked. I said no. All the stress and no recognition? Not for me.
I poked around into this a little further, and it turns out that it's an e-publisher in New Jersey, specialising in niche erotica. They're offering $50 for exclusive rights to at least 5,000 words on a specific subject, with no back end.
It sounds pretty grim, but there's opportunity for a better deal if I can produce high quality work. Kind of a try out arrangement.
The first project is a werewolf romance, with BBW, reluctance and breeding themes, written in female first person. Not one to back down from a challenge, I'm going to give it a go. Worst case, it's a couple of weeks wasted...
I'll let you know how it works out. Wish me luck.
My latest story is a racy little piece about what happens when someone cute from work invites you over to watch Netflix and Chill. I've ghost written two stories here and co written two more. While Co writing is really fun, Ghost writing left me feeling empty. Not being able to claim my own work was and is difficult. I'd never do it again, and certainly note for a measly fifty bucks
I ghost wrote several times before I got published and a few times afterwards. I prefer writing with my own name on what I write but I don't regret the ghost writing. I felt the compensation was more than fair and will likely do it again.
Yes ... I wore a white sheet for the event
I was asked, but they wanted to kill me in order for me to do it, so I said no. But in all seriousness, yes I have been asked. It didn't quite sit right with me, so I declined.
I've been asked to do a few bits of ghost writing in my time. One that I turned down recently was made by the owner of one of these subscription websites run by a rather enterprising young woman who seemed to be allergic to clothes. Particularly underwear. It would have involved me writing short stories of 400-600 words three times a week about her 'adventures'. She was willing to pay $3 per story!!
You have to decide what's important to you and place a value on your time. Good luck!!
For those of you who are interested, I finished my first job and can now call myself a professional ghost writer, if not an author.
Any concerns I had early on about the legitimacy of the whole thing were quickly put to bed. The publisher was available throughout to provide useful feedback, paid me immediately, and got it edited and up on Amazon within the week. They seemed pleased with what I submitted and offered me more work with a better deal.
I found it quite a challenge writing somebody else’s story. It wasn’t something I ever would have written on my own, and I had a lot of trouble getting into it in the beginning. Truth be told, it was a real chore. The thing that turned me around though was making the characters my own and creating the world around them. I think that’s the secret: find something in it that you can make yours. While the second premise I’ve been given is a little more prescriptive, I’ve already claimed the characters and am looking forward to running them through the maze.
As for the glory and recognition, I don’t really care. It’s actually something I want to protect myself from. Case in point, the pseudonym behind the donkey. I know what I’ve written, and so too do the people close to me. My goal in all this is to hopefully one day make a living from writing preferably my own stories, but happily someone else’s.
It’s been a worthwhile experience so far, not only teaching me something about my own writing, but also giving me a bit of an insight into what’s commercially viable. I’m going to stick with it for the time being. There’s still heaps more to learn.
My latest story is a racy little piece about what happens when someone cute from work invites you over to watch Netflix and Chill. Yes, and I have. For a couple people actually. Even when I didn't just try to skate my way through it, I still find it to be my best work. It seemed off, and stale. I guess I just need my credibility for my work.
