We started the year with a bang — or, more precisely, with the Gathering of the Ghosts, with nearly 200 ghosts convening for a day of conversation, education, and celebration of our evolving and expanding profession. The forum was intended to bring the profession ‘out of the shadows,’ and this included the presentation of the inaugural Andy Awards, the only literary prize to celebrate outstanding nonfiction collaboration between author and writer.
A huge focus this year was on generating and sharing invaluable insights about ghostwriting with would-be authors as well as ghostwriters, journalists, and other editorial collaborators. To wit, we hosted a series of webinars for aspiring novelists and anyone looking to get a book deal, and published findings from the first ghostwriter compensation survey in conjunction with the American Society of Journalists and Authors.
The fall saw the release of the first-ever, large-scale Business Book ROI Study, which we published in October with our partners at Amplify Publishing Group, Thought Leadership Leverage, and Smith Publicity.
Prospective authors all ask the same question: what kind of return on my investment can I expect from this project? Where before we could only offer anecdotal evidence, we now have actual data — and it’s impressive.
Most heartening, from where we sit, is the data showing how working with a seasoned ghostwriter drives ROI as well as author satisfaction with the entire publishing experience. We presented a few key highlights, including:
- 96 percent of authors were satisfied with ghostwriters’ performance
- Median ghostwritten books generated FIVE TIMES the revenue and FOUR TIMES the profit of other books
- Authors who collaborated with a ghostwriter generated $80K+ from speaking, consulting, courses, and sales
We are especially gratified by the findings that connect ghostwriting to greater revenues, and the broader implications for those executives, entrepreneurs, and innovators who see the virtue in working with an accomplished writer to grow their personal brand.
Give these slides, prepared by Business Book ROI Study author Josh Bernoff, a quick look to see for yourself:
Finally, this week’s Wall Street Journal coverage of Gotham’s service to the field is the ideal (Santa’s) cap to a wonderful year!
