Writers and Editors

and other forms of writing teamwork and ghosting
Organizations of or for ghostwriters
Tips and resources for ghostwriters and collaborators
Collaboration agreements
Credits--Who gets them, with what wording
Medical ghostwriting
Sarah Wernick's FAQ on collaboration

Credits--who gets them?

(If shared, who gets top billing, with what wording?)
"[T]he author of a book is the person who supplies the ideas, plan, theory, stories, etc. The person who helps the author arrange everything on paper in a marketable form is the writer. The person who makes sure the manuscript conforms to commercial standards is the editor. Individuals who bring material, research and/​or story ideas to the project are co-authors or collaborators."~ from an excellent article on the art, craft, and business, The Good Life of Ghostwriting (by Claudia Suzanne, WritersWeekly, 10-3-01).
• I Was a Cookbook Ghostwriter (Julia Moskin, NY Times Dining, 3-13-12). The working muse behind celebrity cookbooks. Among food ghostwriters, the "rank beginners might be thanked in the acknowledgments of a book; the next step is being credited on the title page; at the very top of the profession, their names appear on the book's cover. But getting up that pole can be a slippery business." After Gwenyth Paltrow denied working with a ghostwriter, food ghostwriter Sari Botton wrote this follow-up story, explaining how denial works: Ghosts Are Real, At Least In Publishing (Sari Botton, The Rumpus, 3-26-12, on why some celebrities may deny they use a ghostwriter--maybe, as she says, she's more of a "memoir midwife."
• Sharing the Credit by Meg Schneider and Barbara Doyen (NetPlaces.com). Will it be by Jane Jones and John Smith; John Smith with Jane Jones; John Smith as told to Jane Jones; or John Smith?
• Fascinating Story, but Who Wrote It? (Joanne Kaufman, Wall Street Journal, 12-1-09,about celebrity memoirists and their ghostwriters). When and why ghostwriters get credit, or not, who gets what credit on a co-authored book, in what order, what size type, and with what connecting words. And who cares?
• Hip-Hop's Ghostwriters (Adam Conner-Simons, Gelf Magazine, 8-14-07). Is it fair for big-shot rappers to pay up-and-comers for their lyrics, but then give them no songwriting credit?
• Film &TV Music Knowledgebase glossary . "Film Music definition of a film music ghostwriter: "A person who composes music for another composer but is not credited on the cue sheet or in the final product in any way. In a ghostwriting situation, the person hiring the ghostwriter takes credit for writing the music and the ghostwriter is usually not allowed to reveal to anyone that he/​she wrote the music or worked on the project in any way. Ghostwriting is one of the dirty little secrets of the film and television music business and is considered by most professional composers to be unethical."
• Did John F. Kennedy really write "Profiles in Courage"? (Cecil Adams, The Straight Dope, 11-7-03). Ted Sorenson certainly had a big hand in writing it.
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Organizations of or for ghostwriters

Some of these are new and I have no idea how helpful they are, or in what ways. Although I have done a lot of collaborating and ghostwriting, I am personally familiar only with APH and ASJA, both of which are helpful organizations.
You might want to check these organizations if you are looking for, or looking for gigs as, a ghostwriter or collaborator, (A ghostwriter is a collaborator who doesn't get a credit.)
• American Society of Journalists & Authors . ASJA is a society of freelance professional nonfiction writers, many of whom take on collaborative or ghostwriting projects.
* Association of Ghostwriters, a new organization for experienced and aspiring ghostwriters of books, articles, speeches, blogs and social media content, launched by Marcia Layton Turner. There's a blog about ghostwriting. Join for $99.
* Association of Personal Historians (APH). An organization of people who help others (not just celebrities) write their life or family story. Personal historians tend to be collaborators (as told to) more than ghost writers. Many personal histories are printed life stories (usually with many photos), some are oral histories (audio or video, with transcripts), some are video--as tributes, video biographies, documentaries, etc.), with an emphasis on storytelling and images. Most members do print, a few do audio interviews only, and a sizable percentage do video or multimedia. This is a relatively new field; the APH FAQs may be helpful.
• Ghostwriters Unite , the first conference of its type, held in Long Beach, CA, May 3-5, 2013 , organized by Claudia Suzanne. Originally envisioned as a chance for alumni of Susanne's ghostwriting classes. "But so many people got excited about the idea of getting together and talking about 'professionalizing' our field that it’s grown into a full-blown conference! We’ll be talking about setting fee standards and ethical boundaries and bylines and problem clients and working with agencies and publishing options and lots more."
*International Association of Professional Ghost Writers (newly founded by Mary Anne Hahn, when she could find no professional organization for ghostwriters)
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Resources for ghostwriters and collaborators

Answers to FAQ's (Wambtac Communications). Answers to all the key questions: What is ghostwriting? What's the difference between writing and ghostwriting? How does ghostwriting work? How long does it take to ghostwrite a book, and how much does it cost? If a ghostwriter writes my book for me, doesn't that mean it's not my book anymore? How do I know you’re not going to steal my material?

Answers to FAQs about Medical Ghostwriting (Project on Government Oversight, or POGO, 8-10-11). See also Medical ghostwriting, below.

The Art and Economics of Ghostwriting (bestselling ghostwriter/​collaborator Joni Rodgers, Daily Finance, 11-29-2010)."Obviously, baseline writing talent and solid knowledge of the craft are required for this job, but a good ghostwriter is also a good listener, meticulous researcher and all-purpose book nanny, with the ability to keep the client's secrets, build a bridge between the client and publisher, and completely set ego aside. Ghostwriting is a personality type as much as it is a skill set. Natural nurturers are in like Flynn; control freaks need not apply." Positive, enlightening story from a woman who's made a success of ghostwriting celebrity memoirs and other books.

Confessions of a Ghost (Ink.com). Anonymously, a bestselling ghostwriter explains the making of business books, and what you don't want to know about it.

Five Ways to Successfully Capture Your Author’s Voice (Jake Johnson, GhostwritePro 5-17-10)

Free Writing Collaboration Contract Forms for Authors and Screenwriters (James Conrad)

Ghosting: A Double Life by Jennie Erdal, her memoir of 15+ years ghosting and serving as an alter ego for an eccentric, egotistical, flamboyant, charming London publisher, Naim Attallah (Quartet Books). From the New Yorker review: "...she is discerning about her motives for ghosting—money, a compulsion to please, and a cloistered Scottish Presbyterian childhood that made the 'irony and absurdity' of her job seem not just tolerable but glamorous." Blake Morrison offers another perspective in his Guardian review.

A Ghost's Memoir: The Making of Alfred P. Sloan's My Years with General Motors by John McDonald (foreword by Dan Seligman). Library Journal: "Between 1954 and 1959, McDonald, an editor and writer at Fortune magazine, helped Alfred P. Sloan write his groundbreaking classic on business management, My Years with General Motors. After the book was completed and a deal was made for Doubleday to publish, the lawyers at General Motors took over and forced Sloan to suppress the book. On the surface, this is the riveting story of the process by which the book was written, the ruthlessness of the lawyers who blocked its publication, the lawsuit by McDonald, and the compromise that paved the way for its publication in 1964. At a deeper level, it gives the reader a basic understanding of what it takes to write a book, the need for independence in such projects, and the chilling effect that fear of governmental intervention can have on such endeavors..."

The Ghost of Miss Truman by Jon L. Breen (The Weekly Standard, on ghosted celebrity novels, Margaret Truman, and Donald Bain)

The Ghost of Polanski’s “The Ghost Writer” (part 1 of Joey's take on the shooting script for the movie, “The Ghost Writer," GhostWritePro, 5-28-10). Here's part 1. Partly it's about the movie script and partly it's about why people want books so much they hire a ghostwriter.

Ghostwriters, Creators, Cheats (Anuradha Swaminathan, WIPO). Novelist Alexandre Dumas (The Three Musketeers, The Count of Monte Cristo) used many "collaborators," one of whom, Auguste Maquet, took him to court for unpaid fees and to "recover his literary property as a co-author." An interesting piece.

Ghostwriters: They're Not Just for the Rich and Famous (Kerry Zukus, Publishing Basics 6-2-11)

A Ghostwriter Who Struggled to Accept Life in the Shadows. Stephen Miller (WSJ, 7-29-09) on Sanford Dody, ghostwriter of many celebrity memoirs. Dody's own memoir was Giving Up the Ghost (1980), out of print and available at Abe Books but not Amazon!

Ghostwriting - Who is that "difficult" client, how to manage situation (Jane Genova, Speechwriter-Ghostwriter). See also her account of losing everything at 60, and starting over as a freelance writer-entrepreneur (download a free PDF eBook): Geezerguts: making a buck, no matter what (Oy vey - All those [middle-aged] unemployed writers--her story of loss and comeback)

Ghosts Are Real, At Least In Publishing (Sari Botton, The Rumpus, 3-26-12). on why some celebrities may deny they use a ghostwriter. It's partly a question of semantics: "In my work I never simply interview a person and then write their book using a whole different collection of words than they did. Typically, I use many of the same words that came out of their mouths, although likely in a different order, and surrounded by other words. I also move whole pieces of their narratives around for purposes of better storytelling. I remove boring expository chunks, and try to draw more interesting anecdotes from my clients to replace those – anecdotes they wouldn’t have thought to include until I prompted them; anecdotes I still have to seriously rework and bring to life." Maybe, as she says, she's more of a "memoir midwife."

Ghost Stories (Lynn Andriani, Publishers Weekly, 5-26-06). Story about literary agent Madeleine Morel, who represents only ghostwriters, including several who write bestsellers, unacknowledged but paid.

Ghostwrite Pro (quips, tips and laments for ghosts...by ghosts Jake Johnson, Joey Robert Parks, and Ed Sweet). Some entries:
• How to Impress a Potential Client Before First Contact (Part I) and (Part II) (Joey)
• Sometimes the Best Question Isn't a Sentence (Joey on using photos and pictures to draw out a memoir client)
• The Ghost of Polanski’s “The Ghost Writer (Part I) and Part II. Thoughtful advice and realities for ghostwriters (or personal historians) helping people write their memoirs, played off scenes from the film "The Ghost Writer." (Joey)
• 6 Lessons from a New York Ghost (Nancy Shulins)
• Why the Future is Now for Ghostwriters and Freelance Writers (Jake)

Ghostwriting: Equal Parts Priest-Confessor, Therapist, Con-Artist, Artist (Victoria Costello, ASJA Monthly)

Ghostwriting fiction:
• Ghostwriting Fiction (Kerry Zukus)
• Ghostwriting Fiction (Joey Parks, GhostwritePro)
• Whodunit? Your favorite author may be just a brand name (Kerry Lengel, Arizona Republic, 4-13-07). Among (sometimes partially) ghostwritten novelists in the brand-name fiction industry, writes Lengel, are Tom Clancy, V.C. Andrews, James Patterson. And don't forget Carolyn Keene (Nancy Drew novels).
• In Their Own Words? Maybe (Julie Bosman, NY Times, 6-1-11). There is an understanding among publishers, editors and agents that ghostwriters are behind many novels by celebrities. Says Bob Gottlieb, “It’s a way to extend the footprint of the celebrity.”

Ghostwriting, Part I: The Ballad of Michael Gruber (who has long been the ghostwriter for Robert Tanenbaum, the trial lawyer turned NY Times Bestselling writer). See also Part II: Motivations and Agendas, and Part III: Why do it in the first place?. On Confessions of an Idiosyncratic Mind (Crime fiction, and more).

Ghost Writing by Barbara Feinman Todd ( The Writer's Chronicle, AWP, 9-02). A fascinating reflection on the role and dilemmas of the ghostwriter, by a woman who became a successful ghostwriter by accident, on a long (and $ tempting) detour from the path she meant to follow. A collaborator not given credit is a ghostwriter. Feinman Todd was ghostwriter on Hillary Clinton's It Takes a Village.

Ghostwriting--The Publishing Industry’s Best-Kept Secret! (transcript of Derek Daniels long interview with ghostwriter Bob Olson for OfSpirit.com). A plug for his services but a good description of the process.

Ghostwriting Tweeters:
• When Stars Twitter, a Ghost May Be Lurking (Noam Cohen, NY Times 3-9-06)."A need for constant updates has created a cottage industry that fans may not be aware of: Twitter ghostwriters."
• Stars Gain Control of Online Images (Jeremy Beiler, NY Times 5-8-11)
• Should Nonprofit Leaders Have Ghostwriters? (Peter Panepento, The Chronicle of Philanthropy 2-11-10)
• Guy Kawasaki Discloses Ghost Writers, Defuses Issue (Dave Fleet, 3-23-09, one of several blogs on this topic)
• The Specter Behind the Tweet – Ghost Writing, Authenticity, and Social Media (Tom Woolf, the PRagmatist, 10-31-10)

Stephanie Golden on what working with a collaborator entails, Should I hire a writer?, Is a collaboration like a marriage?, a key contract clause (the scope of work), and Why collaborations fail.

Goodbye Byline: Hello Big Bucks--The Writer's Guide to Making Money Ghostwriting and Coauthoring Books by Kelly James-Enger. Kelly self-published this book, print-on-demand, and reports on the experience in More Straight Talk (and Real Numbers) about POD Sales (on her Dollars and Deadlines blog). She comes to interesting conclusions.

The Good Life of Ghostwriting (Claudia Suzanne, WritersWeekly, 10-3-01). "Book industry insiders estimate that 50% or more of all traditionally published books in today's market are worked on by one or more ghost/​book doctor/​line editor. In the self-publishing world, the percentage is probably even higher - and all indications point to the situation just becoming more and more favorable for the ghost."

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Google Docs (one way of collaborating in the Cloud):
• Why Google Docs is a writer’s best friend: writing on the go, instant back-ups, advanced organization & tons of space
• Writing a book using Google Docs (Steven Daviss on how he and two co-authors collaborated on Shrink Rap: Three Psychiatrists Explain Their Work
• Don't Lose Your Google Docs Data (Tony Bradley, PCWorld, 5-25-11, writing about what happens if Google crashes and my data disappears?)
• Microsoft Office vs.Google Docs: A Web Apps Showdown (Ian Paul, PCWorld 7-13-09)
• Publish Google Docs To WordPress To Twitter & Facebook ETC
• Google Docs tour and demo

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Gotham Ghostwriters blog:
• Takeaway 1 from How to Get Into the Ghostwriting Game workshop (co-hosted with ASJA): Landing Your First Client
• Takeaway 2: Building a ghostwriting practice

A Great Ghost Story Robert Bruce Woodcox (ASJA Monthly, 2/​11, PDF, pp. 14-15). On ghostwriting memoirs for seniors (preferably affluent).

Michael Gruber, talking at Mysterious Galaxy bookstore (Brianstorms, 3-19-03). Gruber ghostwrote many thrillers for others before writing one under his own name.

How Much Should I Charge? (Writers and Editors, Pricing Strategies, How to Set Rates and Fees, and Other Survival Basics)

How to Be a Successful Ghostwriter (Kelly James-Enger, Writer's Digest, 6-7-11) When you collaborate with an expert, your work is done when the book is published. They do the marketing, which takes (unpaid) time! Kelly covers typical ghosting fees and terms to cover in your collaboration agreement.

How To Break Into Ghostwriting (Roz Morris, guest-blogging on Courage 2 Create, 6-29-11). "I brought out eleven novels, eight of them bestsellers–and not one of them had my name on."

How to Un-Bury the Book You’ve Got in You. Ghostwriter Kerry Zukus guest blogs on Sharisax Is Out There (a site about social media). “We ghosts often refer to ourselves as underpaid shrinks. We hear it all,” writes Zukus. And "While most ghosts come from the worlds of journalism or advertising, the single best calling card for a potential ghost is the proven ability to write a full-length book."

In Their Own Words? Maybe (Julie Bosman, NY Times, 6-1-11). There is an understanding among publishers, editors and agents that ghostwriters are behind many novels by celebrities. Says Bob Gottlieb, “It’s a way to extend the footprint of the celebrity.”

I Was a Cookbook Ghostwriter (Julia Moskin, NY Times, Dining, 3-13-12). "In most cases, the job of a ghostwriter is to produce a credible book from the thin air of a chef’s mind and menu — to cajole and probe, to elicit ideas and anecdotes by any means necessary. J. J. Goode, who wrote the just-released 'A Girl and Her Pig' with April Bloomfield, describes the process as '25 percent writing and 75 percent dating.' And although each project begins as a love affair, it rarely ends that way; disillusion is part of the job." Among food ghostwriters, the "rank beginners might be thanked in the acknowledgments of a book; the next step is being credited on the title page; at the very top of the profession, their names appear on the book’s cover. But getting up that pole can be a slippery business." After Gwenyth Paltrow denied working with a ghostwriter, food ghostwriter Sari Botton wrote this enlightening follow-up story: Ghosts Are Real, At Least In Publishing (The Rumpus, 3-26-12). "Maybe
'ghostwriting' is the wrong name for Turshen’s role. Maybe it’s the wrong label for this work, altogether, although I’m at a loss for a replacement that accurately describes taking raw verbal matter and transforming it first into rough jigsaw pieces, then smoothing and arranging those into a patchwork, and finally weaving it all into a seamless tapestry."

Lawsuits are two for the books (Alex Beam, Boston.com). What happens when a ghostwriting firm and a ghostwriter disagree on terms.

Like Mother, Like Child (Robin and Sam Henig, New York Times Magazine, 11-21-12, write about the pleasures and problems of parent-child collaboration, which in their case was mostly pleasure, on Twentysomething: Why Do Young Adults Seem Stuck?. Love this excerpt: “How does it feel to be in your mother’s shadow?” one interviewer asked Anna Lappé during the book tour for “Hope’s Edge.” To which she replied: “I’m not in my mother’s shadow. I’m in my mother’s light.”

Marketing Yourself via Ghostwriting (R.A. Burnham, Certification Magazine, about getting publicity through ghostwritten articles).

Medical ghostwriting (as collaboration)

Medical ghostwriting and ethical issues in medical publishing

Nailing the Voice in Ghostwriting and Collaboration (Doug Wagner, The Editorial Department). Apparently no longer available.

The Online Entrepreneur’s Complete Guide to Ghostwriting (Part 1) (in which ghostwriter Marcy Sheiner offers five reasons to hire a ghostwriter, and one good reason not to: It's not cheap!). In Part II she writes about who to hire and where to find someone who is qualified, and she briefly outlines the four main steps in the collaboration process. Her main point: "To Publish and Sell (or Give Away) This Book, You Do Not Have to Be The One To Write It!" (in other words: hire a ghostwriter). Another point with which I heartily agree: "You don’t make money on a book – you make opportunities to make money."

Polar Opposites Find Common Ground in Music. (Neda Ulaby, All Things Considered, 12-29-10, 5.5 minutes) For years, musical duos with a shared sensibility and strong opposing personalities have made hit after hit. Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, Dave Stewart and Annie Lennox, Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards — all of these teams have found a middle ground together. ""When chaos meets order, when anarchy meets discipline, it's always the yin and yang," says memoir collaborator David Ritz. "I think tension is the key."

Q&A with ghostwriting expert Claudia Suzannne (interviewed by Michelle V. Rafter, WordCount, 1-8-13).

Ed Robertson on ghostwriting (Valerie Connelly's 40-minute interview with Ed on Feb 19, 2008 on Calling All Authors talk show). This doesn't seem to be online anymore.

The Secret World of Ghost Writing (audio of David Kohn's frank interview on ABC Australia's TheBookShow)

** Strange Bedfellows: The Rewards and Pitfalls of Collaboration (transcript of excellent Authors Guild Foundation symposium, with panelists Nick Taylor, Lawrence Malkin, Laura Morton, Peter Petre, Sarah Wernick)

The Shadow Scholar ("Ed Dante," The Chronicle of Higher Education, 11-12-10). The man who writes your students' papers tells his story. Ghostwriter of academic papers and homework tells how he makes a living ($66,000 his best year) writing papers for a custom-essay company and describes the extent of student cheating he has observed. Long, fascinating, and disheartening article. The "paper mill" was covered more lightheartedly in The Term Paper Artist by Nick Mamatas (The Smart Set, Drexel University, 10-10=08). Nick was also interviewed by NPR (The Paper Market, On the Media, 11-28-10).

Six important lessons from a New York Ghost (New York writer Nancy Shulins ghostblogs on GhostWritePro, 4-9-10)

Strange Bedfellows: The Rewards and Pitfalls of Collaboration (Authors Guild symposium, 2004, How collaborative projects are born, with Nick Taylor, Lawrence Malkin, Laura Morton, Peter Petre, Sarah Wernick).

Top 10 Ghostwritten Books (Scott Larning, AbeBooks.com)

Top 3 Reasons I Ghostwrite for a Living (Joey Robert Parks, GhostwritePro, 5-20-10)

Whodunit? Your favorite author may be just a brand name (Kerry Lengel, Arizona Republic 4-13-07). Some brand-name novelists (e.g., Clive Cussler, Tom Clancy, James Patterson) franchise out their fiction; some are ghostwritten for after their death (e.g., V.C. Andrew, Robert Ludlum, Lawrence Sanders, Ian Fleming, and Carolyn Keene, author of the Nancy Drew novels)

How Andre Agassi and J. R. Moehringer Collaborated
Charles McGrath, in A Team, but Watch How You Put It (NY Times, 11-11-09) offers glimpses into the famous collaboration of famous tennis bad boy Andre Agassi and J.R. Moehringer in an "uncommonly well-written sports memoir." Moehringer, who worked from more than 1100 pages of transcripts, from 250 hours of interviews, describes a process that sounds partly like psychoanalysis and partly like Gilbert and Sullivan. He and Agassi dug through those many pages together to find themes.

Toward the end of a long interview with Terry Gross about his novel about Willie Sutton, the infamous bank robber, Moehringer talks at some length about his collaboration with Agassi on Open. For example: It "wasn't very different from writing my own memoir. When you're writing a memoir the trick, I think, is to treat yourself as a character — to distance yourself from yourself. You write about yourself in the first person, but you think about yourself in the third person. That's the only way you can gain any perspective, any clarity, and keep the dogs of narcissism at bay. And then when you're writing someone else's memoir, you do just the opposite. You try and inhabit their skin, and even though you're thinking third person, you're writing first person, so the processes are mirror images of each other, but they seem very simpatico."

The "first thing that we did," says Moehringer, "was we started a long really wonderful conversation about his life. It worked like therapy. I did - I sat in a straight back chair and Andre sat on a couch and I had a pad in my lap and he really, he dug deep, and together we found patterns and themes in his life. But it did get to the point where I was really worried that I might make some suggestion or render some analysis that would leave him, you know, helpless to Steph and the kids.

"So I started reading, like, Freud and Jung and giving myself this crash course in psychology. And - but he thought that was hysterical, but I was really worried that, I mean, he was digging so deep that I wouldn't be able to get him, you know, back to surface."

Janet Maslin, in her review of Open, writes that Agassi "uses his writing partner in the same way he uses his tennis support staff: as talented individuals in a universe where he, Mr. Agassi, is the one and only sun. (He said that he offered to put Mr. Moehringer’s name on the book, and that Mr. Moehringer declined.)" ((Agassi Basks in His Own Spotlight , NY Times, 11-8-09)
Moehringer established his life-writing credentials in 2005 with his own fine memoir, The Tender Bar, about growing up fatherless in pub-heavy Manhasset, New York, and finding eccentric role models at a pub, in a "dysfunctional but tightly knit community."

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Medical Ghostwriting
Medical ghostwriting is another kettle of fish altogether. Medical ghost writers are medical writers (or editors) who collaborate with scientists as unacknowledged collaborators or creators. EP, a colleague at ASJA, wrote recently, "The biggest distinction, in my view, is who pays for the work as well as the purpose of the editing--does the scientist or research organization pay for it or the pharmaceutical company? Is the purpose to make the data clear or to make the data look better than it really is?" Interesting discussions of the ethics and practical realities of medical writing include the following:
• Being the Ghost in the Machine: A Medical Ghostwriter's Personal View (Linda Logdberg, PLoS Medicine, 8-9-11). What she did, why she did it, and why she stopped doing it.
• Ghostwriting, RICO and Fraud on the Court? (Ed Silverman, Pharmalot blot 8-3-11). Two Toronto academics suggest pursuing class action lawsuits based on the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, or RICO, and filing claims of ‘fraud on the court’ against a drugmaker that uses ghostwritten articles in litigation. they base their argument on article published in PLoS Medicine: Legal Remedies for Medical Ghostwriting: Imposing Fraud Liability on Guest Authors of Ghostwritten Articles (by Simon Stern and Trudo Lemmens).
• Professor files complaint of scientific misconduct over allegation of ghostwriting by Bob Roehr (BMJ 2011; 343:d4458), filed 7-13-11.
• The murky world of academic ghostwriting (Julia Beluz, McLeans 5-6-11). Lawsuits are shedding light on the dubious relationship between medical researchers and pharmaceutical companies
• Answers to FAQs about Medical Ghostwriting (Project on Government Oversight, or POGO, 8-10-11).
• Only full access to trial data will show signs of ghostwriting, meeting hears BMJ 2011;342:doi:10.1136/​bmj.d2925 (5-10-11--subscription required). These articles are about an important meeting on medical ghostwriting held in Toronto, Spring 2011: The Ethics of Ghost Authorship in Biomedical Research: Concerns and Remedies
• How Scientific Literature Has Become Part of Big Pharma's Marketing Machine and How Being Nice Hurts Canada: 5 Questions with Ghostwriting Expert Trudo Lemmens (Paul Thacker, Project on Government Oversight (POGO), 6-22-11)
• Ghost Writing and Scientific Misconduct: What does this reflect? (Solomon R. Benatar, JCB Voice, also about the Toronto conference).
• How drug companies' PR tactics skew the presentation of medical research. Elliot Ross reveals the secret 'army of hidden scribes' paid by the drug companies to influence doctors (5-20-11)
• Give up the ghosts. "Funding agencies should make researchers reveal industry links." Nature 468. 732. (09 December 2010) doi:10.1038/​468732a
• What Should Be Done To Tackle Ghostwriting in the Medical Literature?. A debate about medical ghostwriting on PLoS Medicine, with Peter C. Gøtzsche, Jerome P. Kassirer, Karen L. Woolley, Elizabeth Wager, Adam Jacobs, Art Gertel, Cindy Hamilton. (2009) PLoS Med 6(2): e1000023. doi:10.1371/​journal.pmed.1000023)
• Publishing: A helping hand (Karen Kaplan, NatureJobs.com, orig. pub'd in Nature 12-1-10). Can the growing number of manuscript-editing services turn a mediocre paper into a publishable one? A plug for the legitimate editing of scientific papers, with sidebars on Opportunities in editing and How to choose a manuscript-editing service. You can also get the PDF version of the article.
• The Haunting of Medical Journals: How Ghostwriting Sold “HRT” (Adriane J. Fugh-Berman, PLoS Med 7(9): e1000335, 9-7-10). (Fugh-Berman examines documents unsealed in recent litigation to see how pharmaceutical companies promoted hormone therapy drugs, which included using medical writing companies to produce ghostwritten manuscripts and place them in medical journals). Read the response by Adam Jacobs of the European Medical Writers Association.
• How to handle authorship disputes: a guide for new researchers (Tim Albert and Elizabeth Wager), one of several guidelines published by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE)
• Medical Papers by Ghostwriters Pushed Therapy (Natasha Singer, NY Times, 8-4-2009). See also Medical ghostwriting and the role of the 'author' who acts as the sheet (Janet D. Stemwedel, Adventures in Ethics and Science blog, 8-21-09)
• New strategies to tackle medical ghostwriting are debated (Science News)
• Medical Journal Ghostwriting: Time to Do Something? (Shirley S. Wang, WSJ 9-18-09)
• "Ghosting Matilda", humorous verse, on the Health Care Renewal blog (9-25-09)
• Ghostwriting(Derek Lowe, In the Pipeline, a short entry followed by an intelligent discussion with readers)
• Ghost Management: How Much of the Medical Literature Is Shaped Behind the Scenes by the Pharmaceutical Industry? (Sergio Sismondo, PLoS Med 4(9): e286, 9-25-07)
• Good Publication Practice for Pharmaceutical Companies Guidelines (Envision Pharma, 2006)
• Ghostwriting and the Medical Writer (Cynthia Haggard, American Medical Writers Association, 12-05)
• Evidence in Vioxx Suits Shows Intervention by Merck Officials (Alex Berenson, NY Times, 4-24-05)
• Revealed: how drug firms 'hoodwink' medical journals (Antony Barnett, The Observer, 12-7-03). Pharmaceutical giants hire ghostwriters to produce articles - then put doctors' names on them
• AMWA code of ethics
• Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals (International Committee of Medical Journal Editors) and here's a long list of
Journals that have Requested Inclusion on the List of Publications that follow the ICMJE's Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals

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Collaboration agreements

* Book Collaboration Basics by Stephanie Golden. Be sure to read Key Contract Clause: Scope of Work and Why Collaborations Fail
*About Collaboration Contracts (Mary Embree, Independent Book Publishers Association, formerly PMA, from publisher's viewpoint)
*Collaboration agreement forms for authors and screenwriters (James A. Conrad)
* Good Fences: When and Why Co-Writers Should Have Collaboration Agreements (Mark Fowler, Rights of Writers, 1-29-11)
* Should we sign a contract?
*Collaboration Agreements in the Publishing Industry (Lloyd J. Jassin, Absolute Write)
* Writers Guild collaboration agreement (PDF)
* Free Writing Collaboration Contract Forms for Authors and Screenwriters (James Conrad)
*Key Contract Clause: Scope of Work (Stephanie Golden)
* Negotiating Collaboration Agreements: How to Avoid Common Business and Legal Mistakes (Lloyd J. Jassin, Copylaw.com)
* Songwriting. "Simply stated, a Collaboration Agreement is a mini-partnership agreement. The partnership assets are the songs covered by the agreement. The songwriters are the partners and the agreement details how the expenses and income related to the songs will be shared." ~ Kent Newsome, "The Art of the Deal (5-15-98, Suite 101.com)
*"[T]he author of a book is the person who supplies the ideas, plan, theory, stories, etc. The person who helps the author arrange everything on paper in a marketable form is the writer. The person who makes sure the manuscript conforms to commercial standards is the editor. Individuals who bring material, research and/​or story ideas to the project are co-authors or collaborators. ~ from an excellent article on the art, craft, and business, The Good Life of Ghostwriting (by Claudia Suzanne, WritersWeekly, 10-3-01).
• Dramatists Guild Bill of Rights . The Guild recommends that any production involving a dramatist incorporate a written agreement in which both theatres/​producers and writers acknowledge certain key rights with each other.
• How to Be a Successful Ghostwriter (Kelly James-Enger, Writer's Digest, 6-7-11) Kelly mentions typical ghosting fees and terms to cover in your collaboration agreement.
• Contract terms for book publishing (full section of links to everything from the Author's Guild's Improving Your Book Contract: Negotiation Tips for Nine Typical Clauses to 8 clauses an agent is likely to negotiate in a contract

* See also Sarah Wernick's Q&A further down on this page.

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Sarah Wernick's FAQ on Collaboration

What follows, adapted from the website of the late, wonderful Sarah Wernick, has migrated here by permission of Sarah's husband, Willie Lockeretz, on behalf of all the expert authors who ask, and the professional writers who are repeatedly asked, certain basic questions about writing a book and getting it published. Thank you, Sarah!

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You don't have to write a book all by yourself! Team up with someone whose expertise complements yours. You'll make the process more efficient and enjoyable – and boost the odds for success.

• Why work with a professional writer?
• How do I find a collaborator?
• What should I look for in a writer?
• Should we sign a contract?
• What are the usual financial arrangements?
• Who gets credit on the book jacket?
• Who holds copyright?
• How do collaborators write together?
• Other questions?

Updated January 1, 2007

Why work with a professional writer?

The answer is obvious if you know your prose can't do justice to your ideas. But what if your friends and colleagues admire your writing? Say you’ve written for trade magazines or technical journals. Maybe you’ve published an academic book or articles. Do you really need to work with a writer?

Maybe not. But realize that a popular book requires a different writing style. Also, commercial publishing involves expertise beyond word craft, such as knowing how to find an agent and how to present a book idea effectively in this competitive marketplace.

For example, when a strong writer works with an expert who doesn’t yet have an agent, she arranges for the two to meet with several agents who would be appropriate for their book. If she's selective about the experts she collaborates with – and can write strong book proposals – her books receive six-figure advances (as Sarah's did). Her experience and connections are also useful after the book is published, when the focus turns to marketing.

If you’d rather work on your own, start by learning about the profession. For a quick overview, have a look at So, You Want to Write a Book! Check out the links and read the recommended books; join a writers’ organization and attend classes and workshops. Gain experience as a commercial writer by submitting articles to popular publications.

All this probably sounds like a lot of work – and indeed it is. Do you have the time to develop a second profession as a writer? Is this the best use of your energies? If not, collaborating with a writer might make more sense.

[Back to Top] How do I find a collaborator?

If you're an expert with a high profile in your profession, a writer might find you. Sarah contacted Miriam Nelson of Tufts University after reading an article Miriam wrote for the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA); they subsequently collaborated on three books.

A writer might interview you for a magazine or newspaper article, and then ask if you’ve thought about writing a book. Peggy McCarthy, a patient advocate who was a source for two magazine articles Sarah wrote about lung cancer, later called Sarah with a book idea and they became coauthors.

Sometimes experts are contacted by someone in publishing – an agent, an editor, or a book packager – who sees a potential book idea in their work. Any of these people can recommend writers.

Another approach is to look for a writer yourself. Go to a bookstore and browse through books similar to the one you’d like to write. Look at the bylines and read the acknowledgments. Also check magazines and newspapers for popular articles on your subject. When you’ve gathered some names, plug them into Google or another search engine. Many writers have websites, so it's easy to find them and learn more about their work.

You can also find a collaborator through writers’ organizations. For example, the American Society of Journalists and Authors has a free referral service called Freelance Writer Search; job listings are publicized to a membership of over 1,200 published writers who have met the organization's standards of professional achievement.

[Back to Top] What should I look for in a writer?

Relevant experience is valuable in every profession, including writing. The ideal coauthor is someone with experience writing collaborative books on a subject similar to yours for the same target audience as your book. A writer with an excellent track record is not only more likely to do a good job, but will also be an asset when selling the project to a publisher.

Check references. Ask the writer if you can call experts with whom he or she has worked in the past.

Get together and talk about your project. Do the two of you communicate well? Does the writer ask intelligent questions? Understand your answers? Offer good suggestions? Personal compatibility counts too. Collaborators work closely over the time required to write a book.

[Back to Top] Should we sign a contract?
Definitely! As soon as you begin writing with someone, you are creating jointly owned property together. Having a written agreement is as important as it would be if you were building a house. Before you start working with a writer, both of you should sign a collaboration agreement. This is true even if you decide to write your book with a friend.

The collaboration agreement covers the following:

• Description of each person's responsibilities


• Monetary issues, including compensation and expenses


• Credit, copyright, and control


• Provisions for the unexpected and the unpleasant

For information on collaboration agreements, see the following books, all of which include other valuable information for writers:

• The Writer's Legal Companion: The Complete Handbook for the Working Writer, Third Edition, by Brad Bunnin and Peter Beren (Perseus, 1998)


• The Writer's Legal Guide: An Authors Guild Desk Reference, Third Edition, by Tad Crawford and Kay Murray (Allworth Press, 2002)


• Business and Legal Forms for Authors and Self-Publishers, Revised Edition, by Tad Crawford (Allworth Press, 2000). The book's model collaboration agreement is included in "About Collaboration Contracts," an article by Mary Embree.

Though model agreements can be helpful, it's prudent to have your contract reviewed by a literary attorney or agent before you sign it.

What are the usual financial arrangements?

The American Society of Journalists and Authors collects data on collaborative splits from its members. Their reports indicate that the single most common arrangement is for the writer and expert to split the advance and royalties 50-50. But these deals are negotiated individually. Variations in both directions are common.

Even with a 50-50 split, specifics differ. For example, the writer – who usually must live on the proceeds, while the expert normally has other professional income – might receive a greater share of the advance, while the expert collects first royalties to make up the difference.

In most cases the writer receives an up-front fee for writing the book proposal. Fees vary considerably: $3,000 is minimal; $5,000 to $10,000 is more typical – and writers with a strong track record may charge much more. Sometimes the fee is considered an advance against money earned from the book, but sometimes it's a separate payment. All financial arrangements should be spelled out in a written collaboration agreement before work begins.

Who gets credit on the book jacket?

Credit is determined by mutual agreement. When peers collaborate on a book, they may flip a coin to decide whose name comes first. An author like Sarah receives a “with” byline on the jackets of coauthored books, signaling that the expert is the lead author. The expert collaborator’s name is typically printed first and in larger type. Similarly, the description of the expert-author that's printed on the book jacket flap, is longer than the description of the writer and may include a photo, which the writer’s might not. All these details should be spelled out in your collaboration agreement.

Some experts prefer not to credit the writer. But most professional writers are proud of their books and would hesitate to collaborate with someone who was unwilling to acknowledge their work. Those who agree to be a ghost writer (a writer or collaborator with no credit) usually expect commensurately higher payment to assuage the pain of no credit.

Who holds copyright?

This too is negotiated. A solid professional writer normally shares copyright with his or her collaborators.

How do collaborators write together?

Coauthors work in many different ways. Sometimes the writer does all the writing; sometimes the expert produces the first draft and the writer polishes – and those are just two examples. Part of the challenge of collaborating is devising a congenial and effective process.

Some collaborators prefer to meet in person; others work via email or telephone. Often, there's a combination. For example, at the beginning of Sarah's collaboration with Rick Bradley, she traveled to Washington DC, where he works, for a two-day meeting to plan their book, Quick Fit. After that, telephone conferences and emails sufficed. In Sarah's experience, distance is not an obstacle to successful collaboration.

Other questions?

Have a look at Sarah Wernick’s chapter about collaborations in The ASJA Guide to Freelance Writing: A Professional Guide to the Business for Non-Fiction Writers of All Experience Levels, edited by Tim Harper for the American Society of Journalists and Authors (St. Martin's Press, 2003).