I have gotten many heartbreaking letters over the years from clients asking me to fix botched manuscripts written by (or on behalf of) ghostwriting companies. (As I stated earlier, I am not claiming all companies are responsible for such shoddy work, but as of this writing, I have not yet seen one that I could put my trust in.) Below is a letter, used by permission, that sums up what has become a common complaint.
Dear Mr. Hammett:
I saw your ghostwriting website and believe you might be able to help me. I recently had a prominent ghostwriting company write my science fiction novel. I paid them a lot of money and was assured I would be given high quality work that would stand a good chance at getting published.
What I received was a manuscript that was written by a combination of two authors. The story had no discernible plot, and the characterization of the main characters was nonexistent. The manuscript was a total mess. I asked the company what they would do about it, and they asked me for more money to fix the problems. I asked them about the guarantee I received that I would get a quality manuscript, and they replied that they had delivered a manuscript in accordance with the contract I signed.
Can you help fix this mess? Can you rewrite my story.
(Name withheld by request)
People who don't understand publishing or ghostwriting are easy prey for companies that give potential clients a slick sales pitch and pressure people to sign a contract ASAP. The companies deal in volume, and most people are simply "account numbers" handed over to unqualified writers. The man above certainly didn't get one of those "bestselling authors" promised by virtually all of these companies.
As I said, the above problem has been brought to my attention year after year. Are the companies ever sued? Sure, but the contracts are never really examined by most clients, who don't realize that the company is holding all the cards and have lawyers--the proverbial sharks--on retainer. No one is going to spend $50K in legal fees to get back their $30K in ghostwriting fees.
I always advise people to seek independent writers, but that's still problematic. As this blog will show, most independent writers and editors are also totally unqualified and produce work that is mediocre at best. Usually the work is riddled with grammatical errors and awkward phrasing. As far as content is concerned, the manuscripts are poorly organized and executed.
~William Hammett
Contact wmhammett@aol.com
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