I love this idea of writing books for the people you believe in.
My first major ghostwriting project was a non-fiction book for my mentor (and the man who would become my father-in-law). I believed in the book and I still do, even after I slaved at it for four months. Most of all, though, I believe in him.
Soon I will begin a book for another friend and mentor. He is the best public speaker I've ever seen, and I can't wait to help him build his platform. He's going to change the world.
And my father, who I love and admire, recently asked me to edit his long-shelfed novel.
What if we writers all spent our first years serving someone else's dream instead of our own? What if we wrote someone else's book (or books) first?
Part of my dream is to write books for all the people I admire and believe in. All the people I know who are, right now, changing the world.
Before that comes the questions: what if we writers acted like servants first, prodigies later?
PRACTICE
Practice communicating someone else's story.
Think of the one person you admire the most.
Spend fifteen minutes writing about how they are changing the world.
Joe Bunting is an author and the leader of The Write Practice community. He is also the author of the new book Crowdsourcing Paris, a real life adventure story set in France. It was a #1 New Release on Amazon. Follow him on Instagram (@jhbunting).
Want best-seller coaching? Book Joe here.
-
Joe Buntinghttps://thewritepractice.com/author/joe-bunting/
-
Joe Buntinghttps://thewritepractice.com/author/joe-bunting/
-
Joe Buntinghttps://thewritepractice.com/author/joe-bunting/
-
Joe Buntinghttps://thewritepractice.com/author/joe-bunting/
Terrific post, Joe. So glad you led me, if indirectly, to your blog.
What do you find most fulfilling? Ghost-writing, editing or authoring tales in the name of friends?
Hi August. Thank you. Your blog is fantastic, so I appreciate that very much.
Hmmm… tough question. I’m not sure. I prefer ghostwriting to editing because you have more ways to affect the final product. That being said, writing a book (as you know) is a long, painful ordeal. With editing you get to mold and create, without having to go through the birth pain. Writing can make you feel incredibly stupid.
Here’s what I like about being a ghostwriter, knowing that if I don’t write the book for someone, it’s not going to get written, and they won’t have the impact they could. It really is about service.
Thanks much, Joe, for your encouraging words and insight.
That last bit answered a question I thought of but hadn’t posted! 😉 Beautifully said.
Terrific post, Joe. So glad you led me, if indirectly, to your blog.
What do you find most fulfilling? Ghost-writing, editing or authoring tales in the name of friends?
Hi August. Thank you. Your blog is fantastic, so I appreciate that very much.
Hmmm… tough question. I’m not sure. I prefer ghostwriting to editing because you have more ways to affect the final product. That being said, writing a book (as you know) is a long, painful ordeal. With editing you get to mold and create, without having to go through the birth pain. Writing can make you feel incredibly stupid.
Here’s what I like about being a ghostwriter, knowing that if I don’t write the book for someone, it’s not going to get written, and they won’t have the impact they could. It really is about service.
Thanks much, Joe, for your encouraging words and insight.
That last bit answered a question I thought of but hadn’t posted! 😉 Beautifully said.
Thanks for the kind words, Joe. You’re a gift in so many ways.
Thanks Seth.
Thanks for the kind words, Joe. You’re a gift in so many ways.
Thanks Seth.
That is a great idea. I know some writers find it difficult to get started and then there is the inner critic that is standing, usually, dead in front of you. So, that type of exercise is a great way to build skill and confidence. The more you write the better you become and every word counts towards becoming better no matter what the words.
The blank page. It’s a scary thing.
That is a great idea. I know some writers find it difficult to get started and then there is the inner critic that is standing, usually, dead in front of you. So, that type of exercise is a great way to build skill and confidence. The more you write the better you become and every word counts towards becoming better no matter what the words.
The blank page. It’s a scary thing.
The blank page. It’s a scary thing.
This is a really beautiful idea, so simple, yet something I’ve never even considered before. It would be so beneficial for a ridiculous number of reasons – to your own skills (a non-pressure way of practicing/learning a vast range of tools), to the person and to the person’s family and friends. Love it!
Thanks Andy. You’re absolutely right. Writers can get a little too self focused sometimes. The best stories come from others.
Took the words right off my keyboard.
Never thought about this before, but what a simple way to connect with people and learn about ourselves in the process.
Awesome post.
Thanks so much, Denise.
This is a really beautiful idea, so simple, yet something I’ve never even considered before. It would be so beneficial for a ridiculous number of reasons – to your own skills (a non-pressure way of practicing/learning a vast range of tools), to the person and to the person’s family and friends. Love it!
Thanks Andy. You’re absolutely right. Writers can get a little too self focused sometimes. The best stories come from others.
Took the words right off my keyboard.
Never thought about this before, but what a simple way to connect with people and learn about ourselves in the process.
Awesome post.
Thanks so much, Denise.
I had to ghostwrite for someone’s multimedia project at one point. The process was interesting and the result quite different than what I usually work on but sadly the person ended up wasting my time and so I don’t feel like repeating the experience.
I had to ghostwrite for someone’s multimedia project at one point. The process was interesting and the result quite different than what I usually work on but sadly the person ended up wasting my time and so I don’t feel like repeating the experience.
They’re at it again.
“What is it dear Madam?”
She looked at the speaker. He was a gruff man. His slick black suit fit him well.
“Mr Suit,” she said. “Can I ask you something?”
He stiffened in his stance. She could see his eyes roam inside his sunglasses.
“Yes Madam,” he said. “Whatever I may know, I will answer.
They’re at it again.
She closed the beeping phone. It wasn’t a slider as she tapped the button up.
“These new phones,” she said as shaking her head. “Ah, every year they get more and more complicated.”
“14 year cycle Ma’am,” he said.
It beeped again. She opened it. They’re at it again.
She smiled at him. “That wasn’t the question.”
He stood silent.
She remained smiling. “Kids, People,” she said. “They’re all kids to me. Why are they like this?”
He remained silent.
“Twitter, Facebook, Read-it,” she said. “They’re all, ah, how do you say it?”
“Incedius?”
She chuckled. “That’s not a word, dear.”
He kept firm but she could see a flush creep up his neck.
“Maybe it is,” she said. She swiped the screen of her phone. “I don’t know how it is with kids these days. Mixing nouns with verbs.”
“It’s to be hip, Ma’dam,” he said. “Makes you seem part of the culture.”
She grinned a look down. “I try to use their words. Mimic them. They never liked me. My advisors told me, ah-”
The man raised his eyebrows along with it the sunglasses. He had very blue eyes.
“Ma’dam?”
“Nothing dear,” she said. “You know, I do really find one of them to be really funny. I mean not all are bad. Even the ones about me that aren’t too mean-spirited are kind of hilarious.”
“Hilarious,” he said.
She chuckled. “Of course.” She dropped her smile. “I wonder, how would I feel about myself.”
She heard him gulp.
“There’s a reason they hate me,” she said looking past him. “My advisors tell me it’s all part of the process.”
The man blinked. “But you’re winning, Ma’dam.”