term paper ghost writing

Ghostwriting in academic journals: How can we mitigate its impact on research integrity?

Research integrity

Well-intentioned open access journals that engage in best practices have been a boon to the research community. But the flipside is that the burgeoning field of open access journals has given rise to fake journals, also known as predatory, deceptive, fraudulent, clone, or pseudo-journals (Beall, Nature 2012). These journals are ones that do not engage in peer review and have minimal or little copy edits. In other words, they exist primarily to extract publication fees from authors.

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Contract cheating –engaging a third party like an essay mill or even a friend or family member to submit work as one’s own–is an unquestionable form of academic misconduct. We’ve established that engaging in contract cheating hampers learning. To that end, there are now laws and activism against contract cheating in various regions around the world.

In academic research, other terms synonymous with contract cheating are more widely used; these words are ghostwriting or ghost authorship .

Ghostwriting is a term used to describe academic research written by someone whose name is not acknowledged. The third party may be anyone who engages in this behavior, including individuals hired by private companies in the industry that may provide undisclosed influence on research.

Ghostwriting may entail taking credit for an entire article written by a third party, crediting “honorary” authors for work they did not do, or not crediting junior researchers for their participation. When authors are named without having participated in research or writing, they are called “honorary” authors or “guest” authors and this related form of behavior also qualifies as misconduct.

The most egregious forms of ghostwriting are articles completely written by an industry representative about research in which the stated authors have taken no part, or articles written by industry that provide selective research outcomes to promote products of which the researchers and acknowledged authors are unaware.

In the world of medical writing, the misconduct of ghostwriting is particularly pervasive, as pharmaceutical companies often collaborate with researchers to promote products and support regulatory requests; in fact, the term for legitimately doing so is called publication planning and strategy . But when these contributions aren’t acknowledged, research slides into misconduct. Researchers state that “We believe that critics are right to condemn the production of ghostwritten journal articles, a practice we believe to be unethical and dangerous” and while collaboration itself is not the problem, “the problem is the specific ways in which these collaborations are disguised, manipulated, and used as tools for marketing drugs” ( Moffatt & Elliott, 2007 ).

Studies have shown that ghostwriting and guest authorship are prevalent within research. A study published in Nature stated that 10.0% of participating scientists engaged in “inappropriately assigning authorship credit”; mid-career scientists’ numbers are even more troubling, with a 12.3% admission rate ( Martinson, Anderson, and de Vries, 2005 ). A more recent 2011 study found that “the prevalence of articles with honorary and ghost authors across three peer-reviewed journals was 14.3% and 0.9%, respectively” ( Dotson & Slaughter, 2011 ). And a 2002 study of Cochrane reviews revealed that an astounding 39% of articles had “honorary” authorship and 9% had “ghost authors” ( Mowatt, et al., 2002 ).

The above numbers may vary, but establish that ghostwriting is happening due to myriad pressure points.

Ghostwriting can be perceived as a way to increase economic opportunities. For medical writers employed by industry, it is a career opportunity. For academic researchers, collaboration with industry may be correlated to prestige and grant support. And “for industry sponsors, these practices are part of global publication strategies for product promotion,” by developing relationships with academics ( Bosch & Ross, 2012 ).

The nature of research, too, can lead to ambiguity. Collaboration is a core component of good citizenship within academia. Funding, too, is more often than not tied to related industries. But these working relationships can often blur boundaries.

Propagating a perception of collaboration has encouraged the practice of multiple authors on research articles. By adding co-authors to a paper, particularly names of more established academics, researchers provide more esteem to their work and increase their chances of being published in more prestigious journals and gaining a wider audience. In fact, “Part of the problem is that good names give papers credibility. A colleague once told me that in his country it was more important to know the authors than the methods of a research paper, as some professors lent their names to almost anything if they were well paid. I have seen single-authored meta-analyses on drugs presenting sophisticated analyses that went far beyond the capability of the author, without a word about who did the analyses (and presumably even wrote the paper). Similarly, many drug reviews are unlikely to have been written by the authors, as these professors probably have more important things to do than writing book-length drug reviews in sponsored supplements or peripheral journals that few would ever read and that have no impact factor,” according to 2009 research ( Gøtzsche, et al., 2009 ).

Such “honorary” or “guest” authorship has been linked to ghostwriting; academic dishonesty is a slippery slope.

Research supports the slippery slope theory. “It is this culture,” states 2010 research, “that pharmaceutical companies have tapped into, rather than inventing a new type of author. But by flattering academics into being guest authors, they have created, and then filled, a need for ghost authors to actually write the papers. The academics accepting the apparent honor of authorship thus provide cover – as accomplices or as dupes – for manipulative marketing practices” ( Barbour, 2010 ).

Finally, ghostwriting is a growing practice because it is often viewed as a slight, rather than as uncontested research misconduct. (Plagiarism, on the other hand, is an uncontested ethical failing). So in the face of economic and career rewards, the incentives to engage in ghostwriting outweighs the low risk of discipline.

When authors collaborate with industry and do not reveal this collaboration in clear ways, research loses integrity and thus erodes trust.

Transparency is a key component to research integrity. Knowing exactly who is writing the article and making clear any bias or influence is critical to accurate findings and research conclusions. According to medical writer Langdon-Neuner, “Articles ghost-written by medical writers engaged by pharmaceutical companies who have a vested interest in the content have caused concern after scandals revealed misleading content in some articles” ( Langdon-Neuner, 2008 )

Advertisements carry the name of the manufacturer whereas ghost-written articles do not reveal affiliation. Confusing the two results in medical decisions made by doctors and policy makers that affect health.

Scientific communication and scientific objectivity is a clear line that delineates research from marketing. This line must be upheld, according to Barton & Elliott, who state, “One approach to scientific objectivity holds that science is objective because of its procedures. According to this view, the foundation of scientific objectivity rests in the way scientists communicate and contest results. Helen Longino (2001) argues that scientific communities are objective insofar as their communication procedures are open and contestable. But ghostwritten papers conceal the interests of authors and sponsors in a way that makes it difficult to assess and contest the scientific data, which undermines the objectivity of science itself” (Moffatt & Elliott, 2007, p. 27 ).

Bosch and Ross go even further in saying that “ghostwriting and guest authorship are acts of research misconduct and deserve such widespread indignation because they entail maintaining secrecy, falsifying credentials, and fabricating the attribution of writing to another, representing an intentional and significant departure from accepted practices within the research community” ( Bosch & Ross, 2012 ).

When practitioners and policy makers make decisions for others based on research, that research needs to be transparent and accurate. The consequences of ghostwriting are widespread; by undermining the integrity of research, it removes critical data that influences how that data will then be used, whether it be policy decisions or a basis for further research.

First and foremost, raising awareness is the first step in preventing ghostwriting from occurring in research articles. #Pleasedontstealmywork in Denmark, for instance, documents instances of ghostwriting in order to make clear the prevalence of ghostwriting. When unknowing researchers understand that ghostwriting is a form of misconduct, they are dissuaded from engaging in dishonesty. And when those who knowingly engage in ghostwriting are under the spotlight, they are less likely to engage in research misconduct.

Journals can take part by requiring contributorship statements for publication . Additionally, they can ask authors to make clear any written contributions by private industry. It is not the participation with industry that makes ghostwriting unethical but the lack of transparency with partnerships. Acknowledging medical writers can clarify conflicts of interest–and make their contribution legitimate ( Yadav & Rawal, 2018 ).

From the initial steps of awareness and journal participation, institutional involvement helps enforce a culture of academic integrity around research. Encouraging universities to define ghostwriting as research misconduct is a way to impress the importance of authorship. Other institutional-level support involves forming a standing committee or task force to sanction ghostwriting ( Bosch & Ross, 2012 ).

Some suggestions are punitive, and go as far as making it standard practice that ghostwriters and guest authors be named as defendants in litigation against the pharmaceutical industry, per Moffatt and Elliott ( Moffatt & Elliott, 2007, p. 29 ). Certainly, this would be a deterrent. The lack of disciplinary measures to date has contributed to widespread ghostwriting. Plagiarism results in retractions and negative reputation; the same must happen when it comes to ghostwriting.

As with all academic integrity issues, we hope it doesn’t come to punishment and that such breaches are avoided through education. We hope that spotlighting ghostwriting helps spare unknowing participants of misconduct.

Your Ultimate Guide to Academic Ghostwriting

Two weeks until finals and Cassy is stressed out. Three exams and two papers are looming on the horizon. She remembers all too vividly how she spent hours crafting her term paper last semester, only to almost fail the class. Now she has not one but two papers to write, no idea how to go about it, and not enough time.

Searching online for term paper help, she comes across a ghostwriting ad . It promises term papers that are guaranteed to pass the course. This could be the answer to all her problems, but Cassy is worried. She has never cheated on a paper before and her professors were clear about their zero-tolerance policy for plagiarism and cheating .

It is difficult to estimate how many students use some form of academic ghostwriting for their assignments. Some agencies claim they have served thousands upon thousands of students. But what constitutes academic ghostwriting? Is ghostwriting in the same league as plagiarism? And what is the role of artificial intelligence in newer ghostwriting software?  

What is Ghostwriting? Different Ghostwriting Options – Agencies, Essay Mills, AI Why Do Students Use Ghostwriters? How Do Universities Safeguard Academic Integrity? Why Is Academic Ghostwriting Banned? What Are Some Legal Alternatives to Hiring a Ghostwriter?

What is Ghostwriting?

The most basic definition for a ghostwriter is someone who writes for someone else and who is not credited as the author. Often they create the whole material, a book, a paper, or an article, on their own. Sometimes the ghostwriter only writes certain parts of the material or reworks an author’s first draft.

As the name implies, ghostwriters work in the shadows. Typically, readers don’t know that the book they hold in their hands has been written by a ghostwriter. 

Not all ghostwriting is problematic. Celebrities commonly use ghostwriters in their autobiographies, musicians have songs written for them. Politicians have ghostwriters to write their speeches or other publications in their name, companies hire writers to create blog posts or articles and whitepapers. In these cases, ghostwriting is perfectly legal and an accepted business practice. 

Different Ghostwriting Options – Agencies, Essay Mills, AI

However, ghostwriting is not confined to celebrity memoirs, songs, and speeches. Students unwilling to write their own papers can turn to academic ghostwriting services such as dissertation writing agencies.

The current market is overflowing with ghostwriting agencies and essay mills that promise academic papers on every topic imaginable. Agencies and essay mills employ writers that create papers and dissertations. Prices and quality vary widely. 

Agencies usually assert that their dissertation writers are professionals and knowledgeable in their fields. However, customers have little chance of verifying these claims. 

Moreover, ghostwriters and writers working for essay mills are paid by the project. The quicker they finish, the more work they can take on. Writing a high-quality, well-researched paper takes time. Ghostwriters have no incentive to do time-intensive research. Therefore, there is no guarantee that their work is of a quality high enough to pass a course. 

Writing academic texts with AI (ChatGPT, YouChat...)

More recently artificial intelligence (AI) has emerged as a player in the ghostwriting field. If you are using Gmail, you have almost certainly experienced AI-generated texts as Gmail suggests words and even whole phrases as you type.  ChatGPT and  YouChat  write texts at your request.

AI writing tools create content and automate many aspects of the writing process such as structuring a text, coming up with headlines, and writing paragraphs. Since everything is automated, these services are usually cheaper than hiring a professional ghostwriter. However, AI writing tools draw from existing sources on the internet and repurpose them. It is possible that their essays could be flagged by plagiarism software . Moreover, Compilatio can tell the difference between a text written by a human being and an AI such as ChatGPT or YouChat, thanks to its AI detector .

Dissertation writing agencies and AI writing programs promise discretion and plagiarism-free content, but there is no guarantee that their essays and theses will meet the high standards of universities, that they are free of plagiarism, and uniquely produced. With countless ghostwriters, AI services, and thesis-buying agencies in existence, quality varies widely. 

Why Do Students Use Ghostwriters?

The reasons why students decide to buy an essay or thesis are diverse: some lack the time to write papers themselves due to family or work obligations or don’t know how to prioritise and organise their academic work, some did not receive enough support to know how to create original research and writing, some simply see this as a quick and easy way to obtain a degree .   

Frequently students lack confidence or the skills to write academic papers, whether they write in their native language or not. Afraid of failing and convinced that somebody else can turn in a better paper, they turn to ghostwriting agencies and essay mills.

How Do Universities Safeguard Academic Integrity?

Instructors have come up with strategies to minimise students cheating on their essays such as:

• teaching academic integrity and why it is important,
• running writing workshops to teach essay writing, 
• extending deadlines ,
• offering additional support to alleviate pressure,
• opting for in-person written exams , 
• using software to detect plagiarism ,
• assigning essays in stages , where students hand in outlines and drafts before their final paper.

In addition, instructors themselves have access to further training that equips them with tools to safeguard academic integrity such as Compilatio’s training modules on how to raise awareness of good academic conduct and detecting plagiarism. 

Why Is Academic Ghostwriting Banned?

Considered to be contractual cheating, buying a thesis, even buying a short term paper can have severe consequences. Whether written by a human or an AI, ghostwritten papers are a serious academic infraction that in the worst case can lead to expulsion. Degrees can even be revoked retroactively if it becomes clear that a student has cheated to obtain them. 

Hiring a ghostwriter falls under “ contract cheating”. The academic integrity expert Thomas Lancaster first coined the term in 2006: “Contract cheating describes the process through which students can have original work produced for them, which they can then submit as if this were their own work. Often this involves the payment of a fee and this can be facilitated using online auction sites.”

Academic integrity defines the rules that all members of an academic community abide by: 

• honesty, 
• correct citations, 
• not presenting other people’s work as your own, and 
• in general acting ethically in your research. 

When writing a term paper, students demonstrate that they have understood concepts, are able to engage with research respectfully, and write in an appropriate style. In other words, they display academic integrity. 

Plagiarism , the taking of another person’s writing or ideas without crediting them, is the most common academic infringement. The line between plagiarising another’s work and paraphrasing ideas can be quite blurred for students. Some students cheat by accident because they don’t understand what plagiarism is or how to write an original paper.  

Many universities and schools have a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to plagiarism and ghostwriting. Yet, despite the potentially serious consequence of contract cheating, students turn to essay mills, ghostwriters, and dissertation writing services. An estimated 15% of students have purchased papers and essays. 

Ultimately, all students – whether they wrote their assignments themselves, hired someone, or used AI – are subject to the same deadlines, assessment criteria, and grading systems. 

Using someone else to create papers is unfair to your peers . A world where grades can be bought ultimately cheapens and devalues education . In addition, students who pay others to write their essays also cheat themselves out of learning opportunities. 

While writing papers and theses can undoubtedly be a stressful process, it also provides a chance to reflect, think deeply, and create original work . Writing essays can help students hone their creativity and bring their voices and perspectives to a topic. Critical thinking, authenticity, and personal reflection are soft skills that will serve students beyond university. They are not easily taught. Rather, they are acquired through hard work and integrity. 

Some students report feeling remorse after buying an essay. Not only have they cheated their educators and peers , but they have also taken a learning opportunity away from themselves. They might also realise that they lack crucial workplace skills after graduating.

Moreover, instructors work with their students throughout the semester, have likely graded shorter writing assignments already, and know how students formulate thoughts in class. They usually have an idea of how they will perform in their final assignments. 

If a student hands in an essay that is at odds with their previous performance, instructors might get suspicious and start the process of reviewing the work for academic infringement. 

If students clearly understand what constitutes cheating and why it is problematic, if they feel supported and are allowed to work with realistic timelines and achievable workloads, the risk of them cheating decreases. 

What Are Some Legal Alternatives to Hiring a Ghostwriter?  

Students can fall back on various resources to help them write their academic assignments. Many universities have writing centres and free writing courses that help students with their essays and theses. Students can learn how to construct and write a paper, receive feedback on their writing, and might even find a writing group. 

In addition, students can also seek the help of a professional editor or can use an editing software to bring clarity to their writing. 

Compilatio Studium provides many resources to help students with their essays such as guidelines on academic integrity and citations, advice on student life, and methodological guides to help students create their best term paper possible. Some students are worried about plagiarising accidentally. Compilatio’s anti-plagiarism software makes self-checking easy and reliable so that students never have to worry about handing in a faulty paper. 

Using these resources and connecting with their peers, allows students to create original and insightful papers and theses and become part of the academic community. 

Cassy eventually decided to write her own papers after connecting with her writing centre and forming a study group. After many caffeine-fueled nights with her friends, she succeeded, feeling proud of herself and her work. 

The market that caters to students willing to cheat – from essay mills, theses writing agencies, ghostwriters, and AI writing tools – grows steadily. However, so do options for instructors to catch academic infringements.  

Worried about your term papers and tempted to give a ghostwriter a try? You have other options!

• Compilatio provides you with many resources such as a plagiarism checker and study tips to help you with your academic writing. 
• Create your free Compilatio Studium account and start working on your best essay yet!

Hire a Professional Ghost Writer for Your Academic Writing

Why choose gradecrest.

We not only promise a 24/7 support availability and timely delivery of all your papers. You also get a ton of other asuarances that our service comes with.

Satisfaction

Satisfaction guarantee.

Authenticity

100% original papers.

The grade or money back.

Confidentiality

We protect your privacy.

Our Experts will Geek your Essays and Homework

If you have read the likes of Stephen King and Joanne Rowling, then you have had firsthand experience with a professional ghostwriter. As a student, you can also solicit academic ghostwriting services from best educational writing websites like GradeCrest.

But just what is an academic ghostwriting service? Academic ghostwriting services are becoming a preference for many students. Mostly, students double studies and work, which leaves little or no time for them to write high-quality college papers, complete assignments, and attempt homework. But do the professors and instructors care enough to reduce the workload, No! 

So students find someone else, sort of an academic research assistant, who conducts research, gets scholarly sources, writes a decent piece of essay, research paper, and term paper, and consults with them the entire process. So, an academic ghostwriter works with a student, like a tutor-student relationship, to ensure that they get their ideas written on paper.

Can you hire a ghostwriter for a dissertation or thesis, yes you can. However, be ready to spend more time with them to get to the core of the paper written for you.

That said, you must carefully vet the ghostwriter you entrust with one of your essays or college papers.

Is Ghostwriting Plagiarism? Is Academic Ghostwriting Legal?

If you are tight on time and still need to catch up with the class, academic ghostwriting is entirely something you should consider. NB: Ghostwriting is never plagiarism neither are laws that make it illegal. Ghostwriters sell content and give rights to the person buying it. The same applies to academic ghostwriting service no Canadian, American, or UK law make academic ghostwriting illegal.  The mere attacks to academic ghostwriting are from people who do not appreciate the changing times. It is an issue with universities that do not understand the dynamics of how it works. Academic ghostwriting services help students get model papers or sample academic papers that they can use in completing theirs. Students have taken honor codes and cannot cheat by submitting such papers for credit. So, when they receive the papers with the sources, they can understand how to format papers in MLA, APA, Turabian, Chicago, ASA, or Harvard.

Academic ghostwriters are surrogate mothers that research the essays for students, write the essays, and submit the papers to the clients. As a college ghostwriting service, we encourage the clients to chip in ideas when the papers are yet to be or when they are being written. This way, we have our ghostwriters discuss the way forward with the students and come up with as many points as there is on a subject. Now, the same happens when handling either short deadlines or long-deadline college papers.

Get our ghostwriting service for formatting, editing, styling, proofreading, writing masters and Ph.D. theses and dissertation, writing dissertation chapters, and conducting research. We can also help you create PowerPoint presentations, posters, flyers, personal statements, MBAs and DBA papers, data analysis, and all types of essays.

Why Students Prefer Using Academic Ghost Writing Services

As stated above, students all over the world are entering a competitive space. Everyone wants to get an A-grade research paper, term paper, essays, discussion posts, and you name it. If you have ever read a negative blog on ghost academic writing and wondered if ghostwriting academic papers is illegal, we have something to keep you thinking.

If you were an architect and need to build a house, yet you do not have time, what would you do? You would definitely hire someone on command to draw the best design for you, right? That is the same way academic ghostwriting works. Students who are part-time professionals entrust ghostwriting experts with their academic work.

Here are some of the top reasons why you need our ghostwriting services:

• When writing different types of academic papers assigned in high-school, college, and university.
• If you need essays, admission essays, term papers, reports, lab reports, marketing plans, business plans, and coursework projects done as you do other personal stuff.
• When looking for professional paper assistance to get plagiarism-free and well-researched papers.
• You need a PowerPoint presentation done for you while you finalize preparing for your presentation or dissertation defense.

There are many reasons to get help from professional ghostwriting services. What matters is whether you get a reliable academic ghostwriting service like GradeCrest.

Profile of our Academic Ghost Writers for Hire

Academic ghostwriting services are common among bright students and professionals. Did you know that ghostwriting services can perfectly handle your essays and even book reports and reviews? Here is a bit of what our ghostwriters do:

• Help you generate topic ideas for your academic writing tasks such as essays, research papers, and term papers.
• Assist with drafting the outline and formulating the best structure of a paper.
• Selecting the best sources for your academic papers.
• Writing plagiarism-free papers for you.
• Editing and proofreading the college and university papers for you.
• Delivering your research paper orders on time.

But who are they:

• Holders of Masters and Ph.D. degrees from reputable universities.
• Native English Speaker.
• Understand academic writing processes.
• Privy to the different types of essays, research papers, and college papers.
• Understand how to format academic papers.
• Can write both long-form and short-form College and university papers.
• Has passed our rigorous internal tests and participates in professional writing development courses.
• Can write a high-grade paper with minimal to no mistake.
• Carefully handpicked and trained to become the best academic ghostwriter.

An F sounds like a poor grade to get you some slot in the corporate world. It can even cripple your GPA. When different tutors or professors assign you to work, you cannot land your hand in all of them. Therefore, it would be prudent to reach out to us for the best-ghostwriting services. Better yet, we have the best ghostwriters for academic ghostwriting with a guarantee of distinction-level papers.

How our Professional Academic Ghostwriting Service Works

No academic ghostwriting service has made it easier to order essays online. With our service, you can quickly pay for essays online. Here is the drill:

• Click on any order now button, which will redirect you to our order form.
• Fill as much information as you can about your college or university papers.
• Choose the academic level to help us match you up with the right academic ghostwriter. Graduate ghostwriting experts handle graduate-level papers as well as undergraduate level papers.
• Pay for the ghostwriting services you wish to receive. We have even made it easier as you can get discount codes to your emails and use them when paying. Besides, the calculator enables you to estimate how much money to pay for our academic ghostwriting services.
• We assign your papers to a qualified academic ghostwriter who creates a custom academic paper for you within the deadline.
• You can communicate with your ghostwriter as they work on your ghost story. Note that our ghostwritten essays are of high standards and are always delivered on time. Besides, we do not tolerate plagiarized papers. All our essays are non-plagiarized.
• If you get a paper and feel there is a need for some areas to be tweaked, our free-revisions policy covers you.
• And we have the best satisfaction guarantee in place.

Our papers are written from scratch. You can bet on us for high-quality college papers . Besides, if you are short of time, we can handle even essays due in 3 hours.

What Ghost Writing Services Do We Offer?

Academic ghostwriting has bud out to become a stable industry. Like what the sea anemone is to the clownfish, the academic ghostwriting industry is a mutual support system to the higher education system. In an article written by Julia Molinari  in the Guardian, academic proofreading is a common practice among students, and it is not illegal.

Only when novice writers write your research papers will you have a paper carefully peppered with inaccuracies and full of plagiarism. Otherwise, when you find academic writing as a complicated endeavour and get our academic ghostwriting services, you will be assured of professional handling your academic work.

The main differentiating factor between us and our competitors is that you converse with the client as they handle your work. Besides, we have a progressive delivery arrangement where you get periodic drafts to ensure your expert essay writer is on track.

Our ghostwriting help is affordable and does not cost you an arm and a leg. Moreover, we cover different subjects. Here is a sneak pick of what to expect from us.

Thesis and Dissertation Writing

We have in the past, prioritized on client satisfaction. We cherish graduate and MBA students who find worth in what we do. Our academic ghostwriting service serves as equally the best dissertation ghostwriting service . We have delivered world-class professional academic ghostwriting services to many clients.

A major reason why we remain on top is the competent team of well-educated and dedicated dissertation ghostwriters . Our dissertation writers can customize the dissertations to meet your requirements. 

With the expert dissertation ghostwriters in our tuff, we are always confident of meeting the strict university requirements.

We can help you write dissertation proposals and then proceed to write all the dissertation chapters for you. If you are looking for timely delivered and professionally written dissertations, GradeCrest is your happy haven. 

We also help with SPSS, STATA, and EXCEL in data analysis. We are simply the best dissertation ghostwriting service with experienced professional dissertation ghostwriters. You can always get help with your dissertation.  We are experts in helping with thesis writing.

Capstone Papers Research

In college and university, you will be required to write capstone projects. If you are a nursing student, completing a nursing capstone paper or project is a given. Well, writing a capstone paper, which comes in your last school year, can dampen your mood.

Our academic ghostwriting services give you an easy time with your capstone projects. Our professional capstone research paper writers can write a capstone project for you.

Our premium capstone ghostwriting service presents papers in a well-defined format for academic papers.

Our writers will present you with research from scratch, a good topic idea for your capstone project, and an outline for confirmation by your professor. Once confirmed, our academic ghostwriters put their expertise to work and produce the best papers for you. 

It matters not the level of academic you are, so long as you need someone to write your capstone project, our capstone writing service is assuredly the best.

Term Paper Writing

As your life in college advances, you will notice that you need to write term papers. And if they cannot meet Professor Raymond Hames’  standards of writing a term paper, you will need to hire a ghostwriter to help you with term paper ghostwriting.

Again, our academic ghostwriting service has become the first resort for a student seeking term paper help . Our term paper ghostwriting team can help you choose a good topic for your term paper, plan the paper, and write a high-quality term paper. 

Our expert term paper writers have all it takes to produce quality papers. So, if you are stuck with this type of paper, do not hesitate to get help.

Research Paper Help

Writing research papers is an intensive process. It spans from researching for scholarly sources, generating topic ideas, choosing the best titles, and writing a deeply-researched essay. Given its intense nature, students dread research paper writing, which is why they entrust writing research papers to research paper ghostwriting services.

With our ghostwriting service, you can buy research papers online. When you do so, our research paper experts will do everything from scratch within the specified deadlines. Ours is a leading and smart research paper writing service .

We only have experts in different subject matters and not rookie academic writers. We are waiting to assist you with any type of research paper.

Case Study Writing

Writing a case study is a prerequisite for students undertaking sociology, psychology, nursing, medicine and health, business and management, accounting, finance, and tourism, to mention a few. Case study writing can be a tedious process.

For instance, if asked to write a case study of Google LLC, Amazon, Apple, Keurig, or Carrefour. You have to go through the intensive process of analyzing the company annual and financial statements before coming with a PESTEL, SWOT analysis, Porters five force analysis, and a great case study.

Sometimes, it is a leadership case study, and you are not just good at research. In all these cases, our case study ghostwriting services might be a fortune in waiting for you. Our expert case study writers will analyze the case study for you. Each case study comes with a profound thesis statement that hooks the markers from the beginning to the end.

At Gradecrest you can get a case study writing services that produce quality, intelligent, smartly-written, and organized case studies.

Marketing and Business Plans Ghostwriting

Writing either a business plan or a marketing plan is no mean feat. You require to understand the right format of a business plan or a marketing plan to write the best. Sometimes you don’t know how to write a marketing plan to clearly outline a marketing strategy.

If this is the case contracting a marketing plan ghostwriter will be an inevitable step. Our extensive marketing plan writing help service can benefit both students and organizations. The same applies to our business plan writing service.

Maybe you have an idea but do not know how to write an excellent business plan; we can spark your entrepreneurial journey and ambitions by writing the best business plan. Our marketing and business plan ghostwriting service is the gold standard in the industry.

Reasons to Trust GradeCrest Ghostwriting Services

Our ghostwritten papers have found fame among college and university students. Within our team, we have administrators, support, and technical staff who work day and night to ensure you succeed in your education.  Professionally, we are always leading in the academic writing world due to diligence, persistence, and expertise. Here are a few benefits of our low-cost academic ghostwriting services.

• Everything is written from scratch. All the papers processed and bought on our website are written from scratch. With the latest plagiarism-detection tools, we can smell and smoke out plagiarized papers. And once we do, responsible writers are banished from our fraternity. Such level of strictness has made us a topnotch ghostwriting service preferred by students.
• Deadlines are met. Out of 10 papers, 9 are always submitted on time. The 1 is room for error and depends on the cooperation between the client and the writer. We have a last-minute service to cater to writing short notice deadlines. As part of the details you fill, we require the deadline to ensure that the writers deliver the paper early enough for proofreading and editing.
• Round the clock assistance . GradeCrest is open 24/7 and 365 days annually. When you want last-minute editing on the paper , our support can get a writer for the same. Whether it is just a few pages or inquiry of a long paper like a thesis or a dissertation, you can always consult with us for free.
• No complexity scares us off. We have both technical and non-technical writers. Even when your project is extremely challenging, we will get the best writer for it. Our ghostwriting specialists accept any academic challenge. Bring it on!
• Affordable Pricing. Ghostwriting papers at our website is cheap. We consider the fact that as a student you have a tight budget. But with us on your case, the majority of the students agree we have the low-cost academic writing help services.
• Safety and Confidentiality. When you pay for academic ghostwriting services, you are safely secured. We only use trusted merchants to receive payments. We never disclose your data to any third party. See our privacy policy.  Besides, once you order, your paper can never be re-sold or reproduced to another client.

Try the Most Creative Academic Writing Company

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Ghostwriting in biomedicine: a review of the published literature

Affiliations.

• 1 Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY, USA.
• 2 Syneos Health, Morrisville, NC, USA.
• 3 Amgen Inc., Thousand Oaks, CA, USA.
• 4 Janssen Global Services LLC, Raritan, NJ, USA.
• PMID: 30986084
• DOI: 10.1080/03007995.2019.1608101

Introduction: The systematic review of biomedical ghostwriting has proven challenging due to problems in consistency and in study design. Moreover, authorship guidelines established by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) may have inadvertently created opportunities to potentiate ghostwriting. Given continued interest in ghostwriting by the International Society of Medical Publication Professionals (ISMPP) and other organizations, we undertook an analysis of ghostwriting in the biomedical literature. Methods: We searched PubMed (search terms: ghost writ*, ghostwrit*, ghost writer, ghostwriter, ghostwriting and ghost writing). Results, including abstracts, were reviewed for relevance (relationship to ghostwriting in biomedical journals) to aid in removal of inapplicable work and duplicate publications. After review, we consolidated expert opinions for publication professionals. Results: Overlap was poor across search terms; of 181 unique papers identified, most (112/181) were opinion pieces. An increasing number of papers are using the term "ghostwriting" to describe genetics as well as diverse phenomena of misattributed authorship, including "ghost authorship". Eight primary studies and 1 systematic review of ghostwriting incidence were identified, reporting prevalence ranging from <1% to 91%, in varied settings using differing methods and definitions of ghostwriting. Suggestions for avoiding ghostwriting include early consensus building and better definitions of authorship among manuscript teams. Discussion: The prevalence and definition of ghostwriting remain unclear. Increased transparency and auditable authorship practices that align with specific guidelines may aid in the avoidance of ghostwriting. In addition, MeSH or clearer indexing terms may be helpful to separate usages of ghostwriting in scientific settings (e.g. genetic research) versus biomedical publishing.

Keywords: Ghost writing; authorship; ghostwriting; publication ethics; transparency.

Publication types

• Biomedical Research*
• Medical Writing*
• Publications

• International edition
• Australia edition
• Europe edition

Academic ghostwriting: to what extent is it haunting higher education?

I f you Google "academic proofreading," you will see a list of sites offering to "proof" your work. What they are also offering, however, is to write your assignments for you. How do I know this? There are two main reasons.

The first is that I occasionally assess ghost texts: I teach English for Academic Purposes (EAP). Where I work , students don't sit traditional exams. Instead, they write research papers and at the end of the process (which we scaffold), they sit a viva voce exam to extend and defend their research. Both the paper and the viva are assessed. This, we believe, provides several opportunities to get to know the writers and their texts. In the end, we are reasonably confident that final papers are genuine.

Now and then, however, a student will submit a piece of beautifully polished and referenced work that is clearly at odds with evidence from our day-to-day interactions. It is usually sufficiently and artfully peppered with inaccuracies to be attributable to a novice writer, but we know it is not the student's work. When a piece of work is plagiarised, we can usually prove it – but in cases where the student has paid someone else to write the piece, we can't.

Paid by the grade

The second reason is that, in a fit of professional curiosity, I recently sent my CV to, and was interviewed by, a "proofreading" agency. Proofreading prices range roughly from £16 for a 2,000-word essay to £600 for a doctoral thesis, though most sites don't give prices. It wasn't until my interview, however, that I was asked if I would actually write essays and told that I would be paid according to whether the essay got a first or second. When I asked how much, the response was vague, but if the story about Saif Gaddafi's use of the writing services of a PhD student is anything to go by, ghostwriting pays well! Much of what I was told also chimes with this ghostwriter .

I do not have statistics on the extent to which ghost writers haunt higher education. What I do know is that there are several agencies offering the service and that obtaining a degree really matters to the UK's 2.5 million students (their parents and sponsors), half a million of whom are from overseas, according to the Higher Education Statistics Agency .

Academic writing is complex

Such pressure can contribute to inequitable levels of competition. Could you produce lengthy academic assignments without having benefited from a traditional academic background or without English as your first language? Academic discourse is highly complex, inherently cultural and discipline-specific. It requires extensive reading and is also rapidly evolving. In the same situation, I too might be tempted to ask for help, plagiarise or drop out.

However, since all students – including those who write for themselves – are subject to the same assignments, deadlines and assessment criteria, it is unfair for universities to collude tacitly with ghostwriting.

Name and shame?

I am not advocating a culture of penalties where students are named and shamed, as happens in plagiarism cases: I can understand why some students do it. But since ghostwriting isn't illegal (yet), what can universities do to maintain high academic standards?

A typical response is to extend deadlines, run workshops and set up writing centres. Re-instating the written exam might help, but that too has drawbacks.

I would endorse a profoundly different attitude to academic writing, one that recognises its role in the development of responsible academic individuals and communities. I would like academic writing to become more integrated, not outsourced to market forces or bolted on as a response to last-minute deadlines.

There are some universities with an integrated writing culture. These include Warwick University, which runs an MSc in chemistry with scientific writing , and Coventry University, which offers an MA on academic writing theory and practice . At Nottingham, we take this approach in our EAP programmes . But how do other programmes integrate a culture of writing within their disciplines? And to what extent might nurturing such a culture reduce the need for ghostwriters and foster more pride in developing our writing selves?

Julia Molinari is a PhD researcher and EAP tutor at Nottingham University – follow her on Twitter @serenissimaj

Join the Higher Education Network for more comment, analysis and job opportunities , direct to your inbox. Follow us on Twitter @gdnhighered .

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What Is Ghostwriting and What Does a Ghostwriter Do?

• by @amy.mcgregor

Everything you need to know about ghostwriting and a few tips if you're interested in becoming a ghostwriter yourself

If ghostwriting conjures up haunting visions of phantoms armed with pen and paper, fear not! There’s nothing scary about it. Ghostwriting is simply the term used to describe any text that is written by one person, but officially published under the name of another. In other words, the real author is invisible, or a “ghost”, whose name won't appear next to the piece of writing in question.

As a profession, it is surprisingly diverse. Wherever there is a need to create high-quality written material, there may be a ghostwriter behind the scenes, whether it’s literary or journalistic works, autobiographies, speeches, or memoirs. In fact, ghostwriting also occurs in other creative fields, such as music. One example is Mozart, who was famously hired to ghostwrite music for wealthy patrons.

Why do we need ghostwriters?

There are many different reasons why you may need to hire a ghostwriter. The most obvious one is to achieve a higher standard of writing than you alone are able to produce.

Perhaps the most common example of this comes in the form of celebrity autobiographies. While a celebrity may be extremely talented in their own line of work, be it acting, dancing, or singing, they're not necessarily born writers and may find it a challenge putting their thoughts onto paper. They may turn to the aid of a professional writer to tell their story, while still keeping their own name on the book cover for marketing and publishing purposes. A skilled ghostwriter will be able to adapt their voice to whoever they are writing for, as well as know how to write what sells.

Another reason is time. Imagine, for example, that you're the busy CEO of a company or even a politician. With such a packed agenda, it’s unlikely you’ll have the time to write all your own material such as speeches, press releases, or other official correspondence, so you may hire a person or team of people to do it for you.

Even authors do it...

Believe it or not, even authors hire ghostwriters. This may be because they have a great idea, but need help developing the plot because they are still relatively inexperienced writers themselves, or due to time restrictions. Ghostwriters are often skilled and talented authors in their own right, so will be able to give valuable input and expert opinion as well as bring the discipline needed for such a large-scale project.

Are you interested in becoming a ghostwriter?

If you are a talented writer and thinking about becoming a ghostwriter, here are some useful points you may want to consider before deciding if it's the right profession for you:

Taking credit for your work While some patrons are happy to mention their collaboration with another writer, you must be prepared to accept that you will not be able to take the credit for most - if not all - of your work, no matter how many hours you have spent on it or how proud you are of the outcome.

Finding your area As writing is such a varied discipline, it is unlikely you will be skilled in every single field, so narrowing it down to the areas you have experience in is a key consideration. For example, if you're not a published author yourself, it’s unlikely that you will be commissioned to ghostwrite a novel. Instead, choose an area where you already have plenty of examples to build an impressive portfolio and reach out to network with potential clients.

Payment As a general rule, the more experience you have, the more money you are likely to make, especially if you have worked on some high-profile pieces. But no matter how big or small your commission, you should always do your research to find out how much you should be charging as well as make sure that there is some kind of written contract in place specifying what you are expected to deliver and how much you will be paid for it. (Remember: you are not getting any credit for this work, so there must be a financial reward.)

Self-discipline Any freelance creative is expected to meet their client’s expectations in terms of timing and quality, and ghostwriting is no different. You will be hired because you have the skill and expertise in a given area, but do you have the self-discipline and stamina to stick to an agreed timeline and meet your deadlines? Bear in mind that some projects, such as a novel, may take years to complete.

A business mindset To be a successful ghostwriter, you need to think and act with a business mindset . This means dedicating time to building a network of contacts who will help you get your next gig, researching the kind of prices you should be charging, managing project timelines, and marketing yourself and your skills in the right way to the right people.

If you are interested in pursuing a career as a ghostwriter, it takes time and effort to perfect your craft, establish yourself in the field and gain a reputation in the world of ghostwriting, but there are lucrative projects out there and opportunities to make a successful career in the field if you are ready for the challenge.

You may also like: - 7 Online Writing Courses for Crafting Great Stories From Scratch - 7 Free Online Tutorials to Help You Reinvent Your Creative Career - 10 Essential Online Creative Writing Courses for 2021 - Memoir Writing: Write a Personal Story for a Universal Audience , a course by Courtney Maum - Creative Writing for Beginners: Bringing Your Story to Life , a course by Shaun Levin

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• Published: 26 January 2011

Treat ghostwriting as misconduct

• Xavier Bosch 1  

Nature volume  469 ,  page 472 ( 2011 ) Cite this article

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Research-funding agencies such as the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) still have no policies in place to prevent either ghostwriting or guestwriting, despite the importance of authorship in career advancement ( Nature 468 , 732; 2010).

Ghostwriting is the unacknowledged authoring of scientific papers by industry, and guestwriting includes authors who have made little contribution to the work: both affront academic principles.

Cases involving NIH-funded researchers might, the agency confusingly suggests, be regarded as plagiarism and so could be subject to federal regulations on research ( http://go.nature.com/i5bnzo ). The University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine's authorship policies also equate ghostwriting with plagiarism. However, neither ghost nor guest plagiarize anyone, and the putative 'victim' — the company — simply invites researchers to publish work under their own names (T. D. Anekwe Bioethics 24 , 267–272; 2010).

The 2009 Danish law on scientific dishonesty regards misappropriation of authorship as research misconduct, defining it as 'false credit given to the author or authors, misrepresentation of title or workplace' (see http://go.nature.com/rj9slh and http://go.nature.com/kqzgsc ).

The US Office for Research Integrity and others, such as the UK Research Integrity Office and the European Network of Research Integrity Offices, should follow the Danish example by introducing and enforcing regulatory policies on ghost- and guestwriting. Like fabrication and falsification, guest- and ghostwriting should be treated as research misconduct, not plagiarism.

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Bosch, X. Treat ghostwriting as misconduct. Nature 469 , 472 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/469472c

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Published : 26 January 2011

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Comparative analysis of institutional policy definitions of plagiarism: a pan-canadian university study.

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Ghostwriters in the scientific world

Sankalp yadav.

1 General Duty Medical Officer-II, Department of Medicine & TB, Chest Clinic Moti Nagar, New Delhi, India

Gautam Rawal

2 Associate Consultant, Department, of Respiratory Intensive Care, Max Super Specialty Hospital, New Delhi, India

The scientific world is facing a constant problem of ghostwriters. These ghostwriters are often attached to the medical publishing houses and are involved in writing an article for a pharmaceutical company which may, in turn, use the name of an established or a famous scientist as an author to the article. Often, such articles are published in well-known journals and are circulating widely. Many a time the adverse effects are overlooked in such papers. This will result in a corrupt practice of prescribing a drug which is not scientifically useful or may have life-threatening side effects. In this present article, the authors discuss this evil practice of ghostwriting in the context of the present day scientific publishing.

Introduction

The scientific writing is an important part of the skill and career development [ 1 ]. The scientific world is full of medical journal publishing articles that lay the foundation of the future practice of medicine. However, in the context of this, there is a continuing problem of ghostwriting [ 2 ]. The term ghost authorship means that an individual who contributed substantially to a manuscript is not named in the byline or acknowledgments [ 2 , 3 ]. The ghostwriters came after the development of professional medical writers in the late 20 th century [ 4 ]. There are thousands of such medical/ghost writers around the globe [ 4 ]. The international organizations like the International Committee for Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) do not even acknowledge their existence [ 4 ]. As per the European Medical Writers Association (EMWA), the ghostwriter is the one who prepares a manuscript for an author, but the writer is not given an authorship [ 5 ]. The whole concept of ghostwriting could have been based on the need for the conversion of the raw data to an intelligible document [ 4 ]. However, it has been abused to a greater extent and even established biomedical journals are not spared [ 4 , 6 ]. A study reported that even the Cochrane Reviews has 39% of authors who do not qualify to be the real authors and do not match the authorship guidelines set by the ICJME and of this 11% were ghost authors [ 7 , 8 ]. In this paper the authors, highlight the issues associated with ghostwriting.

The authors searched the term “ghost author”, “ghostwriter” and “ghost authorship” on Google and read the scholarly articles. Besides, a similar search was made on the PubMed to study the gravity of this problem looming large in the scientific world. A detailed overview of this malpractice and possible solutions are suggested in this paper.

The extent of ghostwriting is very wide. The ghostwritten industry-sponsored articles are a common unethical practice and continue to plague biomedical journals which publish industry-sponsored research [ 9 - 12 ]. Healy reported that the major amount of pharmaceutical articles was ghostwritten [ 13 ]. Flanagin et al. 1998, reported that a substantial proportion of articles (up to 11%) in six peer-reviewed medical journals demonstrate evidence of ghost authors [ 14 ]. Stretton 2014, in her paper, reported the details of six cross-sectional surveys in which the prevalence of possible ghostwriting varied from 0.9% to 24.1% [ 12 , 14 - 18 ]. Also, four cross-sectional survey publications reported the prevalence of ghostwriting/author varied from 0.7% to 70% of publications or authors [ 12 ]. As per the recent studies in the British Journal of Psychiatry and the JAMA, around 11% to 50% of the articles on pharmaceuticals that appear in the major biomedical journals may actually be ghostwritten [ 19 , 20 ]. In a detailed study Gøtzsche et al 2007, reported the extent to be around 75% [ 21 ].

Why ghostwriting ? The extent of ghostwriting is very large [ 22 ]. The majority of the scientific data that becomes available due to a large number of researches going in the various fields needs to be converted into a presentable scientific document [ 23 ]. One way to do so is by the use of professional medical writers who ethically help the researchers to bring the raw data into an intelligible document [ 23 ]. The other is by Medical Education and Communications Company or MECC, that includes a number of professional experts in the field of scientific writing and editing [ 23 , 24 ]. These MECC is industry funded and is paid to write articles in favor of the products of the company [ 24 ]. However, if the legitimate services of medical writing agencies or independent writers are used for the vested interest in order to write something for a product or drug overlooking the adverse effects then this constitutes the ghostwriting [ 23 ]. Many times the ghostwriters are funded by the big pharmaceutical companies [ 24 ]. The main principle for this practice is that the pharmaceutical companies fund the ghostwriters to prepare the manuscript which is forwarded to an established scientist in the field who may or may not be allowed to make changes and in turn, is sent to a reputed journal for publication [ 24 ]. The expert scientist is sometimes not even aware of the funding for this malpractice [ 22 ]. These industry-funded ghostwritten articles are aimed to bring the positive side of the drug and many a time overlooking the adverse effects of the drug [ 24 ]. The reputed journals are often chosen, as this brings credibility to the scientific data in the paper [ 22 ]. The higher the repute of the journal bigger will be its audience and higher will be the number of citations, thus adding weight to the actual paper [ 22 ]. The manuscript published is circulated all over the world and in this way the pharmaceutical companies make huge profits from the sales of the drug recommended by an expert in a reputed journal [ 24 ]. It has been well reported in the medical literature that the ghostwriters have been paid huge funds [ 22 , 25 ].

Some famous examples : The grave problem of ghostwriting is evident by really famous examples like the marketing of drugs Fen-Phen, SSRIs, Neurontin, Zoloft, Redux, Vioxx, etc [ 22 , 25 , 26 ]. The manuscripts which were published on these drugs were ghostwritten and the side-effects were totally ignored [ 22 ]. The ghostwritten papers were in large quantities, thus ensuring a favorable outcome in support of the investigational drug even if the efficacy of the drug is reviewed by a meta-analysis [ 22 ]. The actual problem with the whole process of ghostwriting is grave because of non-transparency in the data presented [ 13 ]. Resulting in serious ramifications on the public health [ 24 ]. The ghostwriting has been also considered as an institutionalized plagiarism [ 22 ]. However, there are guidelines which recommend that anybody involved in the plagiarism should be subjected to strict disciplinary action [ 22 ]. These punishments could even involve the retraction of the paper [ 1 ]. But only a small number of all the retracted articles are ever annulled due to plagiarism [ 1 ]. The EMWA recommends that the authors of the biomedical papers should be in full control of the papers even if the same is written by an expert medical writer [ 5 ]. The role of medical writers should be clearly defined and mentioned either as an author in a review paper (if a substantial contribution is there and willingness to share responsibility is present) or in the acknowledgements or the contributors' section [ 5 , 27 - 30 ]. The interaction between the professional writers and the real authors of a manuscript should be clearly defined using the GATE principles based on the Guarantee, Advice, Transparency, and Expertise as defined elsewhere [ 23 , 28 ]. But the huge amount of funds involved in the ghostwriting and the same provided to the experts just for the sake of taking their name for a biased research, usually funded by a big industry is resulting in dubious data being published in reputed journals thereby putting the public health in jeopardy [ 24 ]. The importance of ethical authorship and good publication practices is extremely important [ 31 ]. The malpractice of ghostwriting is not only present in the pharmaceutical articles, but the same is present in academia as well [ 31 ]. The journals and the medical publishing houses have to take radical steps to curb this problem of ghostwriting [ 23 ]. The industries that fund these will never control it [ 22 ]. The peer-reviewed data are an important part of making health care paradigms and thus the false information will lead to serious consequences on the public health [ 2 ]. The impact could be devastating, especially in the developing countries with low expenditure on health and where the per capita income is low and where the problem of corruption is very big [ 32 , 33 ].

The good aspects of professional medical writing : There is a small but clear line of demarcation between a professional medical writer and a ghostwriter [ 23 ]. Although the ghostwriting is having serious impacts on the science, there are some good points in favor of an ethical medical writer, if appropriately acknowledged [ 19 ]. First, an assisted scientific writing brings the results of the research to the public which, if left to senior clinicians would never be reported due to their busy schedule [ 23 , 19 ]. Also, it has been observed that the senior clinicians may not be familiar with the details of the literature to produce a timely and comprehensive text [ 23 , 28 ]. Secondly, the overall paper quality will be superior due to professional writing as the medical writers are the specialist in writing a manuscript [ 23 , 19 ]. Third, based on the scientific data the adverse drug reactions could well be reported comprehensively in an industry-sponsored research [ 19 , 34 ]. Fourth, that some professional writing agencies may disclose the conflicts of interest more clearly [ 19 ]. Fifth, the clinicians, especially from developing countries have a huge burden of clinical works in addition to the research work and thus the services of professional medical writers will help with the publication of their work and thus will be made available to the general public [ 23 ]. This is also supported by the fact that every year the reputed journals return several important manuscripts for revision or even reject them due to poor writing styles, poor organization of the content and even poor English and grammar [ 23 , 35 , 36 ]. Sixth, the professional writers bring clarity to the articles as if the same may be lacking, then the actual idea that the authors want to communicate may be lost [ 23 , 37 , 38 ]. The professional medical writers are legitimate contributors to the article [ 39 , 40 ]. They are a blessing while ghostwriters are intellectually dishonest, unethical and a curse [ 41 ].

To control this problem, a group of medical writers developed the EMWA [ 42 ]. The purpose of EMWA is to identify the issues with the malpractice of ghostwriting in scientific literature and also to suggest the ways to curb it [ 42 ]. The ghostwriting can be controlled if the stakeholders like journals, authors, medical writing agencies and the agencies involved in supervising the publications work in unison [ 23 , 43 ]. At any stage of the peer review if any, involvement of ghostwriter is suspected by the reviewers then the same should be reported to the editors [ 23 ]. The editors must ensure that a contributorship statement is submitted by the authors [ 23 ]. The section for instruction to authors should include guidance for authorship and acknowledgement [ 23 ]. The ICJME has published important criteria for authorship and also the World Association of Medical Editors (WAME) developed a specific policy on ghostwriting [ 41 , 44 ]. Besides, the function of the medical writer in preparing biomedical journal manuscripts is of interest to task forces convened by American Medical Writers Association (AMWA) and EMWA and has resulted in articles of guidelines for medical writers in preparing the scientific documents [ 4 ]. Even after the presence of guidelines, it is very difficult to identify any involvement of an industry in the preparation of any manuscript. Also, if the industry has funded the research and has hired the writing agency then the published paper may become more authentic if the raw data on which the paper is based is also made available to the scientific community for an unbiased analysis and interpretation [ 45 ]. The ghostwriting has really gone to the roots of scientific research and efforts to control it are imperative.

What is known about this topic

• Ghostwriting is prevalent in scientific literature and is underreported;
• Large publication houses are also affected;
• Reputed researchers are the target.

What this study adds

• The extent of ghostwriting is between 0.9%-75%;
• A substantial amount of scientific papers are ghostwritten, policy changes need to include strategies to reduce ghost authorship, in order to curb the overall extent of ghostwriting;
• Emphasis on the development of guidelines similar to those developed by European Medical Writers Association (EMWA), throughout the world to control the malpractice of ghostwriting in scientific literature.

Competing interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

Authors’ contributions

All the authors have read and agreed to the final manuscript.

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Last updated on Feb 20, 2023

What is a Ghostwriter? An Insider’s Guide to Secret Co-Authors

A ghostwriter is a professional hired to write something credited to someone else. From celebrity memoirs and speeches to query letters and blog posts, a ghostwriter can either complete an entire project solo or work collaboratively with the text's credited author. And, much like ghosts, these writers will avoid being discovered.

In this post, we'll dust off our Ouija board to learn more about ghostwriters — what they do and how they can help you.

They work on projects credited to other people

Ghostwriters are not to be confused with authors who choose to publish their work anonymously, authors who use pen names , or co-writer teams where both authors are credited. As the name implies, ghostwriters work away from the spotlight to bring other people's ideas to life.

If you've been struggling to write a book, a blog post, or anything else involving words, your solution might be to hire a ghostwriter — someone who has the writing chops to turn your book ideas into reality but who prefers to work in the shadows. 

Typically, readers don't know a ghostwriter's involvement in a writing project. This may sound suspicious, but it's actually a pretty transparent business once you bust the myth:

• Party A brings the ideas and the knowledge; and
• Party B transforms it all on the page without taking credit for the final product. 

Curious about a ghostwriting career?💡Check out our guide to becoming a ghostwriter , complete with insights from professionals. 

There’s nothing shady about ghostwriters

It might seem strange that ghostwriters don’t take any credit for their work and you might worry that they’ll resent you, but rest assured: contracted ghostwriters are perfectly content with their jobs. Ghostwriting collaborations are as rewarding for the ghostwriter as they are for the person hiring them, and they've helped countless people fulfill publishing goals they could previously only dream of.

Ghostwriters complete clients' assignments and are compensated fairly for their work — just like any other freelance writer. The fact that they don't receive public credit does not mean they are financially exploited. 

In fact, they often make more money than other types of freelancers, and they get to work with all sorts of exciting clients, learning a lot of new things along the way. Many ghostwriters also publish under their own names, so ghostwriting doesn't deprive them of a credited writing career.

Want more insight into how ghostwriters feel about their career? Check out Barry Napier’s account of ghostwriting for a living .

Hiring a ghostwriter is a perfectly reasonable choice if you have insights to share with the world but not the skills to translate them into words. As long as you're bringing the ingredients to the table, there's no harm in having someone else assemble them into an appetizing experience. 

MEET GHOSTWRITERS

Find a ghost you can trust

Your mission? A fantastic book. Find the perfect writer to complete it on Reedsy.

They bring other people’s stories to life

Ghostwriters bring other people's stories to the page in both fiction and nonfiction. They are versatile, the chameleons of the writing world, and can effortlessly switch between styles and genres. 

Ghostwriters are perhaps best known for writing memoirs and other autobiographical texts. No one knows your life story better than you, but you may lack the know-how to tie it all together in a way that is easy to follow and that the average reader will appreciate. Enter the ghostwriter, who can synthesize all your memories and anecdotes into a moving autobiography or entertaining memoir  with a little distance from the topic!

The best-known iteration of this is the celebrity memoir, often commissioned by publishers who understand the appeal of a household name. For example, not-so-anonymous ghost J.R. Moehringer helped Phil Knight tell his story about how he founded Nike in Shoe Dog , and he's the pen behind Prince Harry’s memoir, Spare . 

But a ghostwritten memoir isn't solely the reserve of celebs — anyone who's lived a full and interesting life can benefit from a nonfiction ghostwriter, especially if you've always wanted to write a memoir but have never had the time.

Ghostwriters can help your business

Being seen as an expert in one's field is a significant asset, and perhaps the best way to achieve this is by publishing a relevant book. But running a successful business doesn't necessarily mean you can articulate how you've done it — that's where the ghostwriter comes in. 

This type of nonfiction is often self-published and used as a point of authority for entrepreneurs . In addition to creating content for a book, the ghostwriter may also help shape the branding and tone of the client's other marketing materials (website, social media, etc.) to ensure consistency across all platforms.

What will it cost you to hire a ghostwriter?

Or synthesize your ideas into a book proposal.

Ghostwriters are also invaluable partners for putting together a book proposal .

Proposal writing is an art form all of its own and can be tricky, especially if you're a debut author submitting for the first time. So if you're confident in your writing skills but not your proposal-penning, you can hire a ghostwriter with a history of working with publishers — someone who knows precisely what acquiring editors want to see. 

Does this sound like you? If so, learn more about how a ghostwriter can help you nail your book proposal .

Ghostwriters can contribute to book series

To keep up with demand, publishers of popular series can hire multiple ghostwriters to churn out books under a single author's name. This is especially common with well-known children's series such as Nancy Drew , Animorphs , and The Baby-Sitters Club , probably because young readers devour them so fast!

Similarly, publishers also hire ghostwriters to continue an established author's legacy. For example, have you ever wondered how Robert Ludlum, author of the Jason Bourne series, has managed to write 32 books since his death in 2001? 🤔 Publishers frequently do this when a deceased author leaves behind piles of unpublished drafts and ideas.

You might not be at that level of publishing success yet, but if you just want to keep up a high rate of writing output while publishing a series, you too can consider bringing in reinforcements in the form of a ghostwriter. Any ghostwriter worth their salt will know how to meet you where you are in style and voice, ensuring that your work stays consistent over time.

If you want to find out more, check out our list of popular novels you never knew were ghostwritten !

BONUS TIP: if you're a blogger looking to turn your blog into a book , a ghostwriter will ensure you don't lose that voice your readers fell in love with. They will adapt to your brand like a chameleon.

They can write short-form content for you, too

Besides turning your blog into a long-form book, ghostwriters can also help you pen the content for your blog or any other short-form content that you may be too busy to write yourself or want to make sure to get just right.

Blog writers

One growing source of work for ghostwriters is the blogosphere. Have you ever browsed a public figure's blog and wondered if they wrote all the content themselves? If they're prominent, there's a good chance they didn't. Instead, they'll have a few dedicated ghostwriters who write content on their behalf. These ghostwriters will research, plan, and churn out numerous posts on subjects that appeal to that figure's audience, a model used by many businesses to run corporate blogs.

This is probably the most common type of short-form ghostwriting because people don't always label it as such! Many bloggers and business owners outsource their posts to freelance writers but may think of it more as uncredited guest blogging than bona fide ghostwriting.

Speechwriters

Another arena where ghostwriters excel is in speech writing. Ghostwriters are a godsend for anyone lacking the time or skill to craft a memorable speech. Nowadays, it's a given that something like a presidential speech will be mostly another person's work. But you don't have to be the POTUS to turn to a ghost for your next public speaking opportunity: some people even hire them to ghostwrite their wedding speeches !

If you're sold on what ghostwriters can do for you, check out the next part of this guide, which will show you how to find a ghost that suits you and your story.

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Gathering of the Ghosts – January 22, 2024

What Is Ghostwriting—And What Does It Mean Today?

• By Gotham Ghostwriters

To kick off the Ghostwriting Confidential 2021 series, our groups thought it made sense to start with the first question we typically get from new contacts: What does “ghostwriting” mean? And then to explore how it can lead to your success. 

With this post, we will define ghostwriting by covering the history and evolution of collaborative creation, the brief foray away from that approach to sole creative endeavors, and the current swing back to collaboration that’s proving to be a boon for writers and readers alike. Finally, we’ll introduce you to the wide array of benefits authors gain by working with a professional writing partner.

What Is a Ghostwriter?

There’s a narrow understanding of what ghostwriting is among laypeople, and then there’s the broader reality of what it actually is.

The common definition of ghostwriting is the act of one person writing in the name of another person, group, company, or institution without receiving a byline or public credit. But more often than not, ghostwriting is a customized form of collaboration, covering a range of relationships and services tied to the authors’ needs, objectives, and work style.

And today, it is becoming more and more common for these editorial partners to receive public recognition—and even cover-credit for their work in the form of “and John Smith” or “with Jane Brown.” 

Although the common definition is still prevalent, it is changing as people become more exposed to the wide spectrum of roles that ghostwriters play. For example, the author and the ghost might share writing responsibilities, or the ghost might work on certain components, such as writing the stories and case studies or shaping the narrative of a novel or memoir, with the author supplying the original concepts and research. Ghosts also can coach authors to develop a concept and organizational structure, identify their target audience, capture their authentic voice, manage the project, conduct interviews with outside sources, and find pertinent research studies. And ghostwriters can serve as developmental editors, helping authors to shape their work at the earliest stages of production, and as line editors and book doctors, polishing, revising, and revamping manuscripts that need improvement before being published. 

The division of labor varies from one collaboration to another, based on whatever makes the most sense for the success of the project. That’s why we think of ghostwriter as an umbrella term for creative collaborations on many types of projects, including books, speeches, white papers, articles, websites, blogs, podcasts—essentially any type of written content our clients want to co-create with us. 

Ghostwriting Is One of the Oldest Professions

While the general public’s awareness of ghostwriting is a relatively recent development, ghostwriting and collaborative storytelling have been around for as long as the written word. Perhaps the most widely known example is the Bible. Both testaments were written by committee, hundreds of years after the events occurred—in the ancient world, the concept of owning intellectual property didn’t exist. For thousands of years, stories were told collectively, especially in oral storytelling. Thus, the oldest known “texts” aren’t attributed to a single author, but rather are the accumulated reflections and contributions of entire cultures.

It wasn’t until the Age of Enlightenment that individuals began being credited as the sole creators of stories and other artistic endeavors, particularly books and later films. Auteurs (French for “authors”) were held in high esteem for single-handedly producing stories and attaching their names to them. In relatively short order, this notion of a book needing to have a sole source took root, not only in literary circles but in the imagination of readers. 

The rise of the auteur in the 18th and 19th centuries didn’t kill off the practice of collaborative storytelling or the use of ghosts—it just drove our predecessors deeper undercover. Indeed, it’s widely believed that this period is when the common stigma around ghostwriting was born. One of the most telling examples of this is the work and life of Samuel Johnson , the famed English writer and public intellectual. Johnson started his career as what was then known as a “hack” writer—a poorly paid writer for hire. At the height of his fame, he reportedly used a ghost of his own for some of his essays, which he slyly acknowledged by signing them with the anonymous letter T. Johnson later disavowed this practice out of a sense of honor/shame. And after Johnson’s death, his acolyte and biographer James Boswell—who many wrongly confuse as Johnson’s ghostwriter—took that disdain a step further by comparing ghostwriting to selling one’s own birthright. 

The Evolution of Ghostwriting:  From Stigma to Standard Practice and on to Status

Ever since Johnson’s days, many an esteemed writer who has dabbled in ghostwriting has grappled with this sellout stigma. Notably among them were the coterie of great American novelists such as William Faulkner, F. Scott Fitzgerald, James Agee, and Aldous Huxley who each went out to Hollywood after the talkies became a thing to make a buck as a screenwriter/rewriter. This self-inflicted sense of hackery recently earned a co-starring role in the 2021 Oscar-nominated movie “Mank” about the legendary screenwriter Herman Mankiewicz, who aspired to be a man of letters and a New York dramatist but had to settle for being the Academy Award-winning author of “Citizen Kane.”

The darker taboo around ghostwriting applies not to the ghost but to the author—that claiming someone else’s words as your own is a form of cheating and/or an act of dishonesty. Yet, anyone who’s been part of a creative endeavor in the arts—from a playwright who incorporates notes from a director and the actors to a writers’ room for a network television show to comedians who use punch-up writers—knows that the premise that there’s a single author responsible for every story is the real fraud.

This holds just as true for the creation of books. Set aside the term “ghostwriter”— countless works of fiction and non-fiction alike that we hold dear were shaped, reshaped, and even rewritten by anonymous editors. Just look at the work of Maxwell Perkins , a giant within publishing circles whose substantial revisions to classics such as Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby and Thomas Wolfe’s Look Homeward, Angel are widely credited for their success. Each book’s vision and story were the author’s, but the text was the product of a collaboration. That’s exactly what the best ghostwriters and collaborative writers do: help their authors find and express the best version of their vision.

The contributions of ghostwriters have become increasingly known and appreciated—at least within elite circles—with the rise of celebrity culture. Ask most Hollywood talent agents, top PR executives, brand-name CEOs, and political leaders, and not only will they tell you what a ghostwriter does, but also the value they deliver. Jack Welch and Lee Iacocca became household names in the 1980s partly because of their blockbuster bestselling autobiographies, which they could not have written without supremely talented writers such as our friends Bill Novak and Catherine Whitney. Donald Trump likely would not have been president without Tony Schwartz, Trump’s ghost on his brand-defining book, Art of the Deal .

What truly and fully brought ghosting out of the shadows, and in turn helped drive a stake through the heart of the stigma, was the ubiquity and transparency of the Internet. In short order, everything and everyone was caught in the Web—there were no secrets anymore. Not only did we know that Barack Obama didn’t write his own speeches, his young speechwriter Jon Favreau became a celebrity in his own right. What became known then became normal, and as such accepted. Some CEOs and celebrities may write their own books, but most don’t—and most readers now know and accept that. 

The Internet has also made the nuts and bolts of collaboration—the actual sharing of artistic creation—much easier through an array of new technologies and platforms. Songwriters can trade tracks and recordings in an instant. Apps such as Google docs allow writers to easily share drafts and collaborate in real time, from anywhere in the world. Other technologies allow authors to share their working texts with their followers and quickly crowdsource notes and ideas for improvements.

As we noted in the introduction to this series, though, the Internet’s most transformative effect on the ghostwriting field has been on the demand side. Self-publishing used to be derided as merely for “vanity” projects. Now, it’s driving the content marketplace—from established ungated platforms such as Medium and LinkedIn to fast-growing newsletter services like Substack to the rise of elite, full-service hybrid book publishers that enable thought leaders to get their books to market on their own terms and timetable. This has turned ghostwriting from a luxury into more and more of a necessity.

The fact is, leaders, influencers, and those inspired to tell their stories or share new thoughts and discoveries tend to be busy people who work long hours to accomplish big goals. They have extensive expertise in their fields, but rarely have the time or the writing skills to, for example, produce on their own a series of thought-leadership articles or a deep-dive book.

And why should they have to do it by themselves? All things considered, choosing not to collaborate with a professional writer is deciding to give yourself a disadvantage right out of the gate. 

Today, working with a ghost is rightly seen by the business, advocacy, and communication leaders our groups partner with as an asset, as the quality of collaborative projects is higher than when authors go it alone, and that leads to greater success. On the flip side, a growing number of accomplished authors are reaching out to us to pursue collaborations because they’ve recognized they can make a lucrative income serving as a co-author or ghost for public figures and experts who can’t write the story themselves, or don’t want to.

Benefits of Collaborating with a Pro Ghost

If you’ve read hundreds of great books, it may seem like a logical leap to actually write one, but that’s not usually how things work out, particularly for first-time authors. Writing a book from scratch can be intimidating, and if it’s your first book, it can be overwhelming and downright scary. So it’s no surprise that a lot of new authors are coming to us for help. They see the wisdom in working with a professional who not only is a skilled writer but also has extensive experience collaborating with authors and understands the trepidation and trust issues authors naturally have. 

With a ghost by your side, the lofty aspiration—or intimidating prospect—of writing a book that meets your goals and makes you proud is not only achievable but also fascinating and enjoyable. With Gotham and United Ghostwriters, authors can sleep well at night because they know they’re in good hands. 

A Ghostwriter Can Help You if: 

• Your new philosophy or approach is so effective that your colleagues keep saying, “You should write a book.” But who has time when you’re leading the charge 24/7? 
• You have a personal story to share that can help others, but you have no idea how to put it down in words. 
• You’re keynoting an upcoming conference and are determined to inspire the audience to take action to improve their business, but writing in a “void” doesn’t elicit your best thoughts or your most creative ideas. 
• You’ve come up with a blockbuster idea for a novel but don’t have the right skill sets to bring it to life. 
• There’s content you want to produce, but you adhere to the business adage, “Only do what only you can do”—and writing isn’t on that list. 
• You want to strengthen your own writing skills by collaborating with a pro. 

Collaborating with a ghostwriter allows you to share your vision in a way that’s true to you. It’s your story, your brilliance, your originality. We simply help bring it to life on the page.

If you value high-quality writing and are seeking a partner you can trust with your ideas and stories, contact us to schedule a free phone consultation. We’ll be back to you within 24 hours.

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• December 29, 2023

The Ultimate Ghostwriting Guide: Everything You Need to Know

This easy-to-read ghostwriting guide explains everything about how ghostwriting works, why the right writer matters, and much more.

Table of contents

We’re working on a few books this year and have fielded questions on how ghostwriting works.

Whether you need help finishing a book, want it to sound just like you, or are just curious about ghostwriting, this complete guide has you covered.

Ghostwriting definitions and limitations

What exactly is ghostwriting how is a ghostwriter different from a co-writer, editor, or writing coach.

Ghostwriting is when someone writes your book for you, and you get the credit. It’s different from co-writing, where you and the writer share the credit. 

Editing is when someone improves writing you’ve already done. A writing coach helps you write the book yourself, offering guidance and advice. 

It’s important to know what you need. Sometimes a potential client thinks they just need an editor when really, they need ghostwriting services to help them write from the start. 

Others might think they need a ghostwriter but really just want guidance to write their own book. 

There are also different types of freelance writing professionals. For example, a memoir ghostwriter probably won’t specialize in academic ghostwriting jobs.

Similarly, a freelance writer might lean more toward blog content marketing and struggle with non fiction book writing.

To simplify things:

• If you just want help polishing your writing, get an editor.
• If you want guidance as you write, get a writing coach instead.
• If you want someone to write the book for you, hire a ghostwriter.

Can a ghostwriter help complete a manuscript that has been stalled for a long time?

If you’ve hit a wall with your manuscript, a quality ghostwriter can jump in and help get things moving again. They’ll bring fresh eyes to your work and can offer new ideas or perspectives you might not have considered. 

A common hiccup is when you’re too close to the project and can’t see what’s missing or what could be improved. A skilled ghostwriter helps to bridge that gap, but you’ll need to be open to their suggestions to move past the standstill.

What qualifications should a ghostwriter have to write a biography or business book?

Good ghostwriting is less about formal education and more about the writer’s ability to extract and structure your story. We’ve worked with expert ghostwriters who were previously journalists, teachers, coaches, consultants, and speakers. 

Sometimes, people think any freelance writer can write their book, but it’s best when the writer knows about your world, whether it’s your life story or your business journey.

If you’re a business expert, your ghostwriter should ideally understand your industry’s business terms and ideas. They should ask you the right questions to get the details they need to write your book. 

How does a ghostwriter capture your voice in the writing?

To write in your voice, a skilled ghost learns how you talk and what matters to you. They listen to your stories and take notes.

Sometimes, writers might get it wrong at first, writing in a way that doesn’t sound like you. It’s a process of shaping their writing style until it matches yours. 

As a client, you’ll need to read their work and tell them what sounds right and what doesn’t. They’ll rewrite parts until it feels like your voice is on the page.

Are there any genres or topics ghostwriters typically don’t work on?

Most ghostwriters are pretty flexible, but some might not write about certain topics, like highly technical subjects they’re not familiar with or genres they’re not comfortable with, like religion or erotica. 

It’s best to be upfront about your book’s topic to match with a ghostwriter who’s a good fit.

Ghostwriting tools

What software tools are essential for managing a ghostwriting project.

Ghostwriting is less about software and more about processes and content creation. You might not handle any software, but it’s good to know how it helps. 

Your ghost will use tools for organizing the project, such as:

• Word processors with comment and track changes features (we use Google Docs)
• Collaboration software to stay in touch and share ideas (we use email and Slack)
• Project management software to keep timelines in check (we use Asana)

You don’t need all the bells and whistles — just the ones that make writing and reviewing your book easier.

It’s important these tools work well because technical issues can lead to lost drafts or missed messages. 

Regular check-ins and clear discussions can help prevent these issues. We recommend a once-monthly call between you and your ghost to align.

Is plagiarism detection software used in the ghostwriting process?

It’s important your book is all original. Plagiarism software checks that the words in your book aren’t the same as someone else’s. 

A small mix-up could happen — like a common phrase getting flagged as plagiarism. Your professional writer should know how to fix any issues without changing your message.

Can’t I just use AI to write my book?

Using AI to write your book might seem like a quick and easy solution, but it has its limits. AI can help with content creation based on what you feed it, but it doesn’t have personal experiences or emotions. 

Your book isn’t just a collection of facts or stories. It’s your voice, experiences, and unique perspective. AI can’t capture that. Also, AI might miss the nuances of your story or get details wrong. 

Nothing beats the personal touch and understanding a human ghostwriter brings to your project. They’ll work with you to make sure your book feels real and genuine, something AI just can’t do yet.

Ghostwriting process

How does a ghostwriter structure the workflow of a new writing project.

Your ghostwriter will map out the whole project before starting. They’ll set up deadlines for each part of the book and check in with you to make sure everything’s on track. 

This plan is flexible, though. Sometimes, things take longer than expected, or new ideas come up that you want to include. 

The key is to keep communication open so you both know what’s happening and can adjust the plan as needed. 

As a ghostwriting agency, we have templates and tools to lay out your book’s structure. These help organize everything from the main ideas to the details.

What are the standard frameworks or methods used in ghostwriting a non-fiction book?

When you’re writing a non-fiction book, it helps to have a clear plan. Ghostwriters usually start with an outline to put all your thoughts in order. 

These could be the steps in your business’s success or the key moments in your life. Your ghostwriter will pick a structure that fits your story, like in the order things happened or grouped by themes. 

Sometimes, the first plan doesn’t cover everything, and you might need to add more details or change things around. That’s normal — it’s part of making sure your book covers all the important points.

Confidentiality and legal considerations

How is client confidentiality maintained in the ghostwriting process.

Your stories and ideas are private, and a ghostwriter keeps it that way. They agree not to tell anyone anything not agreed, or that they wrote it. 

If there are parts of your story that are sensitive or private, you can talk about how to handle them in the book.

It’s about finding a balance between being honest and protecting the privacy of you or others involved in your story.

What are the legal rights and obligations involved in a ghostwriting agreement?

In a ghostwriting agreement, you keep all the rights to your book, and the ghostwriter promises to keep your work private. 

The agreement says what the ghostwriter will do, how much you’ll pay, and when the work should be done. 

Sometimes, misunderstandings happen if the agreement isn’t clear. It’s important to read the ghostwriting contract carefully and make sure you agree on everything before the writing starts. 

What’s the standard policy on credits and acknowledgments?

Typically, a ghostwriter doesn’t get credit for writing the book — that’s what makes them a ghost. 

The client typically remains the sole credited author. But if you want to thank your ghost in the acknowledgments, that’s okay. 

Some ghostwriters prefer to stay completely in the background, though, so talk about it and agree on what works for both of you.

How are disputes or disagreements resolved during the ghostwriting process?

If there’s a disagreement, the first step is to talk about it and try to find a solution that works for all parties. 

Most problems on a ghostwriting job can be solved with good communication and compromise. 

If you really can’t agree, refer back to your contract to see what it says about resolving disputes.

You might opt to get a mediator or arbitrator before getting lawyers involved. 

The goal is to work things out in a fair and professional way.

Collaboration, alignment, and feedback

What kind of input and collaboration will be needed from me.

Your insights, feedback, and approval are crucial at every step.

Your ghostwriter might ask you to review parts of the book, give them more details on certain topics, or help them understand your perspective better. 

It’s a team effort, so your active involvement is important. They shouldn’t overload you, but rather guide you on where and how you can provide the most helpful input.

How are research and interviews handled in the ghostwriting process?

For your book, your potential ghostwriter will need to gather lots of information. They’ll likely do interviews with you, where you can share your stories and insights. 

They might also look into other sources or talk to other people to make sure they get all the facts right. 

But it’s your story, so what you say is key. Sometimes, research can lead ghostwriting projects in different directions, so it’s important to regularly check that it’s all still aligned with your vision.

How do you resolve issues around alignment or creative differences?

Creative differences are part of the writing process. A professional ghostwriter will listen to your ideas and try to understand your vision for the book. 

If there’s a difference in opinion, they’ll discuss it with you to reach a solution that honors your story while keeping the writing strong. 

Sometimes, there’s a temptation to stick only to what you know, but a good ghostwriter can help you consider options that could enhance your book or memoir. 

It’s a dance of give and take, with the goal of creating a book you’re proud of.

How does the feedback process work?

You’ll talk to your ghostwriter to give feedback, or leave comments in the drafts they send you. They’ll take your comments and make changes to the book. 

Sometimes, what you say might not get through right away, and things might need a few tries before they’re just right. 

Clear and direct feedback helps sort this out faster. It’s all about working together to refine and polish your story.

What happens if I’m not satisfied with the final manuscript?

If you’re not happy with the final draft, you and your ghostwriter can discuss what’s not working for you and make revisions. 

If you both can’t get it right even after several tries, a fair solution might involve adjusting the final payment for the ghostwriting service or parting ways amicably.

Ghostwriting costs and timelines

What is the typical timeline for completing a ghostwritten book.

The time it takes to finish your book can vary — usually around six months to a year. It depends on how complex your story is and how much research is needed. 

Sometimes things can slow down, like if there are delays in getting information or if you need more time to review drafts. 

It’s okay for schedules to shift a bit, as long as you keep the lines of communication open and work together to keep the project moving forward.

How much does ghostwriting cost and how is that determined?

Pricing for ghostwriting services vary widely depending on who you ask.

Some ghostwriters charge a standard rate of $1-$2 per word. Others have a flat base rate of $30,000 or more. Still others mandate a minimum word count, depending on the genre.

The ghostwriting fee depends on the project’s timelines, your ghost’s writing skill, your story’s complexity, any required privacy, the legalities of it all, and more.

A new ghost may charge a more favorable fee, while a successful ghostwriter can command millions. Different business models and genres demand different pricing structures.

At Column, we talk about this at the beginning and agree on a price that fits the scope of your ghostwriting project. 

Sometimes, the project changes a lot along the way, and the cost might need to be adjusted. But we’ll always discuss this with you first — no surprises.

Publication and promotion

Can a ghostwriter assist in publishing the completed work.

While ghostwriters largley focus on writing, some can help you figure out how to publish your book and point you in the right direction. 

They know about the different ways to get your book out there, like self-publishing or finding a publisher. 

Some ghostwriters can help you create a book proposal or pitch to send to publishers or agents. 

They can’t promise a publisher will accept your book, but a good proposal gives you a fighting chance. 

Marketing a book takes effort and often a separate budget, so it’s good to plan for this early on.

How are book cover design and formatting for publication handled?

Designing the cover and formatting the book for publication are usually done after the writing is finished. 

Your book should look professional and easy to read, whether it’s an e-book or a printed copy.

Your ghostwriter can give you advice on finding a good designer and formatter, or can sometimes handle it for you as part of their services. At Column, we handle this in-house.

Wrapping up

Ghostwriting is all about teamwork and flexibility, turning your thoughts into a great book with quality content.

The perfect ghostwriter can make your story shine and connect with readers, all while keeping it true to what you want to say.

If you’re thinking about making your book a reality, use the tips and advice in this ghostwriting guide to help you get started.

And if you’re curious about different types of ghostwriting, check out our LinkedIn ghostwriting blog post.

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Academic Ghostwriting by ACAD WRITE

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What Is Ghostwriting? Everything You Need to Know

POSTED ON Nov 1, 2023

Written by P.J McNulty

Of all the types of writing work out there, ghostwriting definitely has the coolest name. There’s just something glamorous and slightly mysterious and edgy about the term ghostwriter. What is ghostwriting? And what is ghostwriting used for?

Ghostwriting is something almost everyone has heard of, but not everyone understands what ghostwriting is. In this introductory guide, we’ll explore exactly what ghostwriting is, the reasons why people use ghostwriters, and the pros and cons to this type of work.

This blog on ghostwriting will cover:

What is ghostwriting: ghostwriting meaning explained.

What is ghostwriting? Ghostwriting is a form of writing where someone writes in the style and voice of another person whose name is attached to the work. The ghostwriter produces the written content for the project but their own author name is never mentioned. Instead, the writing is presented as if it is coming from the person they are writing for.

Sometimes, people are open about using ghostwriters and mention that they have, often in the acknowledgments page or other section of their book. Other times, there is no mention of a ghostwriter being used and readers are left to assume that the person has produced the writing themselves.

Many people think ghostwriting is what happens when you simply write under another person’s name. But ghostwriting is more complicated than that. To give ghostwriting meaning, it requires the ghostwriter to adopt their client’s voice and to get inside their head and see things from their perspective.

Now that you know the basic concept of what ghostwriting is and what it entails, let’s delve deeper and see exactly what ghostwriting is used for.

Why do people use ghostwriters?

There are many reasons why someone might employ the services of a ghostwriter . However, they typically boil down to two major factors:

• They lack sufficient skill to write a particular project
• Or they lack sufficient time to write the project

Of course, ghostwriting may be needed due to a combination of the above factors, rather than just one or the other.

One prominent reason for using ghostwriters is when experts in their particular field have ideas to share but fear they lack the skills needed to do them justice. Ghostwriting is what is called for in this case.

Because there is no one-size-fits-all approach to working with a ghostwriter, the role of the client can be hands-on or hands-off.

In a more hands-on situation, the person whose name will be attached to the work will have a high level of involvement in the creation process.

They might supply detailed information for the ghostwriter to work with, such as notes, recordings, interviews, or other source materials.

They might suggest changes as the writing is being carried out and will be very particular when it comes to revisions.

Ghostwriting can also be a totally hands-off situation from the client’s perspective. In such a situation, they supply minimal levels of instruction at the start of the project, such as “write me a book about _____”, and the ghostwriter is then left to get on with the work according to their own judgment and discretion. 

What kind of books are ghostwritten?

Almost any type of book can be produced by a ghostwriter, no matter if it's fiction vs nonfiction . 

However, there are some types of book that are more commonly associated with ghostwriting than others.

One of the most prominent types of ghostwritten book is the autobiography or memoir of a famous person. The best celebrity memoirs are often written by ghostwriters because the celebrities lack the time, skill, or inclination to write their own book but still want to share their stories.

Some famous examples include Prince Harry’s memoir and Donald Trump’s infamous Art of The Deal .

Although nonfiction books such as those mentioned above are some of the most common candidates to be ghostwritten, there are also instances where fiction is produced by a ghostwriter.

Typically, fiction ghostwriting occurs in one of two scenarios.

The first relates to entrepreneurial self-publishers, also known as authorpreneurs . These are people who identify a profitable niche of fiction that seems to be selling well.

In order to release a far greater volume of books than they could on their own, they hire ghostwriters and supply them with material such as outlines and background info as well as a style guide. This allows far more books to be released, resulting in greater revenue for the authorpreneur.

The second common scenario relating to fiction ghostwriting is when a famous writer wishes to capitalize on their brand recognition without having to write an entire book themselves. Some of the most famous examples include James Patterson and Tom Clancy.

Overall direction is supplied by the famous author and the ghostwriter’s output is checked to ensure it has the right voice. However, the famous author is not the one actually producing the work. 

Some people frown upon the use of ghostwriters in fiction, but there’s nothing wrong with it in truth. Ultimately, readers care about a high-quality book that satisfies their expectations. The specific fingers that typed out the words is less important.

  What are the pros of being a ghostwriter?

Perhaps you find the idea of becoming a ghostwriter appealing and want to try it out for yourself.

While there’s definitely a wide range of ghostwriting work available, it’s important to have a realistic notion of the process and what it entails. This ensures you don’t go into it blind or with an unrealistic notion of what being a ghostwriter entails.

Some of the main pros to being a ghostwriter include:

• The ability to write without the self-judgment that comes with having your name attached to the work.
• The chance to write in different styles , voices, and genres that you never otherwise would if you stuck to projects published under your own name. 
• The wide range of ghostwriting work available, in both the fiction and nonfiction realms.
• Typically higher rates of pay than if you carried out a similar project under your own name.

There’s no denying there are plenty of pros associated with being a ghostwriter. However, before you make the decision to give it a go, consider the downsides as well and weigh them up against the advantages to have a balanced perspective. 

Does becoming a ghostwriter have drawbacks?

As mentioned, ghostwriting has its drawbacks. Some of the most common downsides to ghostwriting work include:

• A loss of creative control
• The inability to write in your own voice
• No chance to build your career and platform in your own name
• The necessity of a great relationship with your client

No type of writing is perfect and ghostwriting is no exception.

To understand what ghostwriting is like, you should speak to real ghostwriters and get a feel for what their experiences have been.

Finally, nothing beats trying it out for yourself. Why not commit to a small ghostwriting project and get hands-on experience to see if it’s the type of work you enjoy?

Should you use a ghostwriter for your next book?

Let’s end by considering one final question – is it a good idea to employ the services of a ghostwriter for your next book?

If you’re writing your first book, we highly recommend writing it yourself. There’s nothing like the experience of writing a book for yourself and enjoying the satisfaction of the end product. 

However, if you’re approaching self-publishing more from a business perspective, you could consider working with a ghostwriter. A prime example would be if you’ve identified a fiction niche you believe to be profitable but don’t have any real interest in writing it yourself. In that case, ghostwriting is what is called for.

Just make sure to do your homework and hire a ghostwriter with a good reputation. Ideally, they will have a track record of positive results related to projects similar to the one you have in mind. Just because someone has succeeded at ghostwriting in one area doesn’t mean they will in another.

So, there you have it. Hopefully by now you have a thorough understanding of what ghostwriting is and what ghostwriting is used for.

Whether you want to try your hand at ghostwriting, or hire a ghostwriter for your next project, we wish you every success.

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NEWS... BUT NOT AS YOU KNOW IT

Author Sophie Kinsella, 54, diagnosed with ‘aggressive’ brain cancer

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Sophie Kinsella has revealed that she was diagnosed with glioblastoma, an ‘aggressive’ form of brain cancer .

The author, most known for penning the Shopaholic series, shared her health news in a statement on social media , explaining that she learned of her illness at the end of 2022.

The 54-year-old explained that she initially wanted to keep the news private while her family adapted to their ‘new normal’.

‘To my dead readers and followers, I’ve waited a long time to share with you a health update and I’ve been waiting for the strength to do so,’ she began a lengthy statement.

‘At the end of 2022 I was diagnosed with glioblastoma, a form of aggressive brain cancer. I did not share this before because I wanted to make sure that my children were able to hear and process the news in privacy and adapt to “our new normal”.

‘I have been under the care of the excellent team at University College Hospital in London and have had successful surgery and subsequent radiotherapy and chemotherapy, which is still ongoing.

To my dear readers and followers. I’ve wanted for a long time to share with you a health update and I’ve been waiting for the strength to do so.💛 pic.twitter.com/WJc5LF48rC — Sophie Kinsella (@KinsellaSophie) April 17, 2024

‘At the moment all is stable and I am feeling generally very well, though I get very tired and my memory is even worse than it was before!’

She continued: ‘I am so grateful to my family and close friends who have been an incredible support to me, and to the wonderful doctors and nurses who have treated me. I am also so grateful to my readers for your constant support.

‘The wonderful response to the Burnout has really buoyed me up, during a difficult time.

‘To everyone who is suffering from cancer in any form I send love and best wishes, as well as to those who support them. It can feel very lonely and scary to have a tough diagnosis, and the support and care of those around you means more than words can say.’

Sophia concluded the message: ‘I’ll be in touch soon, and in the meanwhile, greetings from sunny London.’

Alongside the statement, she added: ‘To my dear readers and followers. I’ve wanted for a long time to share with you a health update and I’ve been waiting for the strength to do so.’

Fans were quick to share their love and support with the writer in the comments below, hoping for a quick recovery.

Gina Louise Young replied: ‘Aww, so sorry to read this. What a shock for you all. Love and support Sophie. Best wishes through the treatments. I’m currently reading The Undomestic Goddess (I read this every year as it’s brilliant).

‘The Burnout is fabulous just like you. Please take care.’

Victoria Scott penned: ‘Oh goodness. Sending healing vibes and lots of support to you and your family.’

‘Just wanted to wish you all the very best, Sophie, and to thank you for being courageous enough to speak about about this x [sic],’ F Eckersall shared.

Claire Hennessy agreed: ‘So, so sorry to hear this & very glad you are being well cared for. I hope things continue to be stable & that you’re supported through this.’

According to the Mayo Clinic, Glioblastoma is a type of cancer that starts as a growth of cells in the brain or spinal cord, and can grow quickly to destroy healthy tissue.

Although it can occur at any age, Glioblastoma tends to occur more often in older adults.

Symptoms include headaches that keep getting worse, nausea and vomiting, blurred or double vision, and seizures.

Sophie wrote her first novel, The Tennis Party, at the age of 24 and published it two years later under her real name, Madeleine Sophie Wickham.

Following this, she went on to release Swimming Pool Sunday, Cocktails for Three, Sleeping Arrangements and The Gatecrasher, before anonymously submitting a book under a pen name made up of her middle name and her mother’s maiden name.

She is best known for penning the Shopaholic novel series, releasing the Secret Dreamworld of a Shopaholic – aka Confessions of a Shopaholic – in 2000, following financial journalist Becky Bloomwood who struggles to keep a lid on her own finances, thanks to her love of all things shopping.

This was adapted into a hit Hollywood film in 2009, with Isla Fisher taking on the main role of Becky, alongside Hugh Dancy, John Goodman, John Lithgow, Joan Cusack and Krysten Ritter.

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As well as the series, she has also authored Can You Keep a Secret? , I’ve Got Your Number, the Undomestic Goddess and released the Burnout last year.

Macmillan cancer support

If you or someone you care about has been diagnosed with cancer, Macmillan can offer support and information.

You can contact their helpline on 0808 808 00 00 (7 days a week from 8am to 8pm), use their webchat service , or visit their site for more information.

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