COULD YOU USE A MENTOR?

Writing my first legacy memoir, A Life Well Lived, was like feeling my way through a dark cave. I had faith in my writing abilities but no guidance, no road map—and worst of all, no one to ask! I’m glad I stuck with it, though, because it’s turned out to be a great career.

What made it worthwhile? Just imagine a job where you can:

• Offer a meaningful service
• Earn a great income
• Spend your days writing
• Nurture highly personal professional relationships
• Know you’re helping families know themselves
• Enjoy deep appreciation and respect
• Learn about life
• Research interesting topics
• Be your own boss
• Set your own hours
• Work from home
• Say “I’m a ghostwriter!”

It might be the “ghost” in the ghostwriting that brings an air of mystique—some might even call confusion—to the profession. What exactly is a ghostwriter, and how do they do what they do anyway? So if you’re drawn to the idea of legacy ghostwriting but can’t fully envision how it works, you’re not alone.

Like many worthwhile endeavors, becoming a legacy ghostwriter is a process. It’s not a defined path, like law school, which is a plus for we creative types. You can charge through the launch stage at break-neck speed or take your time as you rearrange your life around a new and enriching career.

I used the latter style, keeping my day job while I ghostwrote a few legacy memoirs on the side and developed the basis of gaining clients. I stubbed my toe a few times but I sure did learn a lot. Basically, the streamlined version of my path went as follows:

STEP ONE: Wrote a prototype

For me, I didn’t ghostwrite my first legacy memoir with the intention of making it a career, but that is definitely the first step for anyone who hasn’t already gone through that process. I’m grateful my first author was someone I trusted and I knew believed in me. There were times when all we could do was laugh. A huge bonus was that she had a great story and, being family, a story I cared about.

A very important part of writing the prototype was telling every person I knew, and some I didn’t know, about what I was doing as I was doing it. I announced that this would be my new career. I told my family, ALL of my friends, neighbors, people I met at parties, my hair-cutter person, even my mailman, and of course my dog. I figured my first paying job would bubble up from there. I was right.

STEP TWO: Turned myself into an SME

Three friends hired me, so I’d ghostwritten four short legacy memoirs by the time I pitched my services to my first “stranger” client-author. I got the job, but to say I was an inarticulate hot mess would be an understatment.

A repeat performance was out of the question. At this point I knew two things—I wanted more paying work, and I had to improve my presentation skills. I chose three avenues that would accomplish both:

A. Public speaking
B. Workshops
C. Writers’ groups

A, B, and C have a common denominator, and that’s content. That reality meant I had to write about my subject. And, being a writer, I knew there was no better way to turn myself into a Subject Matter Expert than by writing about my subject! I wrote my speeches, developed my workshop cirriculum, and created prompts for my groups. And through the writing and the presentations, I found the language and, more importantly, the confidence to present to potential client-authors. The more I dug into my subject, the more I interacted with others about my subject, the more I practiced my subject, the more expert I became.

STEP THREE: Scattered my breadcrumbs

I stayed at Step Two for years, as many legacy ghostwriters do. Living just outside a metropolitan area, I found local clients I could meet with in person. But after a few years I wanted to expand my base and stop fighting my way into the city. That’s when I learned about inbound marketing.

Outbound marketing is going out and finding clients, as I had been. Inbound marketing is more the magnetic approach—you draw your clients to you by leaving breadcrumbs where they might look for your services and/or knowledge. That means creating a presence through websites, social media, podcasts, youtube, pinterest, and the like. I’ve found that using Skype, Zoom, or any other online video chat works just great.

STEP FOUR: Patted myself on the back

I love love love my job. The launch was slow, mostly because I made so many missteps, but I’m here to say it was 100 percent worth it. I spend most of my work time thinking deep thoughts and connecting with amazing people, who pay me well for my unique skill set. The nice things is, I can see the demand growing over the last ten years as the Baby Boomers age and more people become aware of what legacy memoirs are all about.

I WISH I COULD HAVE: Sought guidance!

I really could have used some help as I was getting started. It was hard not having a mentor, someone who’d done this before and who could show me the way. Some reassurance would have been nice, too.

If you’d like a partner, someone who’s walked the path and knows the pitfalls, you might consider one of the packages below. I’d love to share what I’ve learned and ease your journey. I know I can save you a lot of time—and a lot of grief.

Good luck!

LIFT-OFF!—Ongoing one-on-one career coaching sessions to guide you through the process of starting your business. Choose one:

  • $75 an hour

  • Four one-hour sessions withing two months, with one follow-up email each. Investment: $405

  • Eight one-hour sessions within four months, with one follow-up email each. Investment: $765

WRITE WITH YOU—Career coaching plus writing guidance as you ghostwrite someone else’s memoir. Choose one:

  • $85 per hour

  • Manuscript critique of 5,000 words (approx 20 pages) for structure, voice, flow, and clarity, with comments and two one-hour follow-up sessions by phone, Skype, or Zoom and two follow-up emails. Investment: $615

UNITED FRONT—Six-month partnership to take you through the early stages of your business and ghostwriting a legacy memoir, including writing guidance and editorial review. Includes all of the following:

  • Four 60-minute calls per month

  • Unlimited email for feedback and challenges

  • 5,000 words (about 20 pages) of manuscript critique per month

    Investment: $840 per month