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How to Find a Ghostwriter: Where to Look and What to Check
By AuthorWings editorial team
11 min read
Short answer
To find a ghostwriter, ask authors you know, check the acknowledgments of books like yours, and search writer directories, agencies and marketplaces. Shortlist writers who have finished books in your genre, verify those books, read a sample, hold a video call, and sign a contract that sets out when the rights transfer to you before you pay anything.
Finding a ghostwriter comes down to what you check once you find one. Anyone can call themselves a ghostwriter, and much of a good writer’s work is confidential, so the usual proof of a published portfolio isn’t always there. This guide covers where to look, how to shortlist and verify writers, what to ask, the red flags to watch for, and a scorecard to compare up to three candidates. If you’d rather be matched with a writer, our book ghostwriting services do the search and vetting for you.
Decide what you need before you search
Know five things before you contact anyone, because a writer’s experience only matters if it fits your book:
- Genre and type. Novel, memoir, business book, self-help or children’s book. Writers usually specialize, so a strong fiction writer isn’t automatically right for a non-fiction book.
- Length. A range, such as 50,000 to 60,000 words.
- Goal. Sell the book, use it to win clients, pitch it to publishers, or leave it to your family.
- Deadline. A launch, an event or a season, with time for your reviews.
- Budget range. Writers price per word, per project or per hour, so a range helps you rule writers in or out quickly. Our rates by genre are published.
For a short book, our ebook brief builder turns these answers into a brief you can send to any writer.
Where to look for a ghostwriter
There are six good places to look, and each needs a different check.
| Where | How to search | Best for | What to check |
|---|---|---|---|
| Authors you know | Ask authors, speakers and business owners in your field who they worked with | A writer someone you trust has already tested | Whether their book is like yours in genre and length |
| Acknowledgments and “with” credits | Read the acknowledgments and covers of books like yours; some writers are thanked or credited “with” the author | Writers proven in your genre | That the writer still takes clients, and at your budget |
| Professional directories and associations | Search writer and editor associations that list members by genre | A wide pool, sorted by specialty | That listed books and clients are real; being listed doesn’t mean the association checked them |
| Literary agents and publishers | Ask your agent or editor, if you have one, once a book deal is in view | Books headed to a traditional publisher | Who pays the writer, and how credit and rights are split |
| Freelance marketplaces | Post a project or search profiles by genre | Short projects and smaller budgets | That you do the vetting and project management yourself |
| Ghostwriting agencies | Compare agencies that publish their prices, process and contract terms | Authors who want a matched writer and a backup if the writer can’t finish | Who actually writes, and whether you meet and approve the writer before writing starts |
Where the writer lives matters less than what they’ve written, because the work runs on video calls and email; our answer on whether a local writer matters explains why. For the protections each route usually gives you, see how the four ways to hire compare.
How to shortlist and verify a ghostwriter
Shortlist three writers, then check each one against these seven points:
- Finished books in your genre. Ask how many full-length books they’ve completed, not started.
- Books you can verify. Ask for titles you can buy, client references who agreed to be contacted, or a note from their publisher. Check that the books exist and match what the writer told you.
- Samples at your length. A writer who has written great articles hasn’t necessarily written a book.
- A process in writing. How they capture your voice, how many interview hours, when you approve an outline, and how many rounds of changes.
- Availability. When they can start and how many books they’re writing at once.
- Confidentiality. Whether they sign a confidentiality agreement (NDA) before work starts.
- Who actually writes. Whether any of the work is passed to another writer, and whether AI is used for drafting.
For a memoir or autobiography, our three questions for a life story add checks on recordings and what happens if the writer becomes unavailable.
Ghostwriter scorecard
Compare up to three writers. Check off each item that’s true, and the scorecard totals the good signs and flags the red ones.
Ghostwriter scorecard
Rename each writer, then check off what is true. Good signs count up; any red flag shows a warning. Nothing is saved or sent.
Good signs: finished books in your genre, at least one book or reference you verified, a sample from a full-length book, a process in writing, a start date that works and a clear workload, an NDA before work starts, and a clear answer on who writes and how AI is used. Red flags: they contacted you first with an offer, promised bestseller status or sales, asked for payment before a written contract, or couldn’t name a book or reference you can check.
Questions to ask on the first call
A first call, ideally on video, shows how a writer listens as well as what they’ve done. Ask:
- Which books like mine have you finished, and can I read one?
- Who can I talk to about working with you?
- How do you learn my voice, and how many hours of interviews do you plan?
- When do I see and approve an outline?
- How many rounds of changes are included?
- Will anyone else write, edit or research the book?
- Do you use AI tools, and for what?
- What happens if you can’t finish the book?
- How and when do the rights transfer to me?
- How are payments tied to stages of the work?
AI matters for more than voice: the US Copyright Office registers only human authorship, so text written by AI may not be protected. Our guide on AI and copyright rules covers what that means for your book.
How to judge a writing sample
A sample tells you about voice and structure, so read it the way your reader will:
- Does it sound like a person? The voice should be clear and consistent, with no filler.
- Is it organized? Chapters should move the reader forward, with a clear point or a scene that changes something.
- Does it fit your genre? A sample from a business book shows little about how a writer handles a novel.
- How much was the writer’s? Ask what the writer wrote and what the client or an editor changed.
Many writers can’t share client work, so they may offer published work under their own name or pages written for the purpose. A paid test, such as a few sample pages from your outline, is a fair way to see your voice on the page. Agree in writing that the rights in those pages pass to you, and have the writer sign an NDA before you share your outline. Asking for a free full chapter isn’t: it’s real work, and many professional writers decline.
Red flags when you look for a ghostwriter
Walk away, or get answers in writing, if a writer or company shows any of these signs. Writer Beware, the watchdog sponsored by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association, lists them for ghostwriting scams (page updated July 2026). Watch for a writer or company that:
- Contacts you first by email, message or social media with an offer to write your book.
- Promises a bestseller, sales or rankings. No honest writer can.
- Can’t be verified: staff without full names or histories, testimonials without book titles, or credit for well-known books it can’t prove, such as books published before the company existed.
- Pressures you with one-day sales, “special” discounts or constant upsells.
- Has details that don’t match, such as a claimed address that’s a mailbox, or the same website text under different company names.
- Uses a name that imitates a real publisher. Hachette and Penguin Random House both warn that they never charge authors a fee to consider a manuscript, and that their staff don’t contact authors from Gmail or other personal email addresses.
Also walk away if anyone wants the full fee up front, or asks for payment before you’ve read the full written contract.
Writer Beware notes that scam sites almost always sell ghostwriting alongside publishing packages. A bundle can be legitimate, so before you sign one, check whose name is on the bookstore accounts (such as Amazon KDP), the ISBN and the royalties; our guide to the vanity press shows what to look for. Our self-publishing guide lists the red flags before you pay any publishing company.
Check the contract before you pay
Once you’ve chosen a writer, read the full contract before any deposit. It should assign you all the rights in writing, say when they transfer, cover confidentiality and AI, and say what happens if the writer can’t finish. If the book matters to you commercially, have a publishing lawyer read the contract before you sign. Our contract checklist for an ebook applies to books of any length, and you can see the six clauses we sign before work starts.
When to get help
If you’d rather not run the search yourself, we match you with a writer instead. Writers are matched, not bid for: we assign the best available writer for your genre from top book talent worldwide. You sign one contract, then meet your writer and see their profile and sample writing, and you approve them after the first interview. A project manager is your single contact, and if the fit is wrong after the first interview, or your writer becomes unavailable, your contract gives you a new writer at no cost. You can see profiles of some of our specialists before you call.
Ghostwriting
Want a writer matched to your book?
Tell us about your book on a free call. We match you with a writer for your genre. Every word written by a human writer.
- Fiction, 20,000 words $6,600
- Non-fiction, 20,000 words $11,000
- Memoir, 20,000 words $13,600
Finding a ghostwriter: questions
How do I find a ghostwriter for a children’s book?
Look for a writer who has finished books for your reader’s age, such as picture books or chapter books, and ask how they work with the illustrator. Picture book text is written for the art, so the writer should plan pages and spreads. A children’s book ghostwriter with us writes spread-by-spread art notes for the illustrator, which you approve before any illustration begins, and the whole book is built for one age group set before writing starts.
Should I pay for a sample chapter?
Paying for a short test is fair, and it’s one way to see your voice on the page. Agree on the length, price and deadline in writing first, and get a signed note that assigns you the rights in those pages, so you can use them whichever writer you choose. Asking for a free full chapter isn’t fair to the writer, and many professional writers decline.
How can I check a ghostwriter’s books if their work is confidential?
Ask for client references who agreed to be contacted, books published under the writer’s own name, or titles where the writer is credited “with” the author. Then check that the books exist and match what the writer told you. A writer who can’t give any of these is hard to verify.
Can a literary agent or publisher find me a ghostwriter?
Sometimes. If you have a book deal or an agent, they may suggest writers they’ve worked with, and the writer may be paid a flat fee or a share of your advance and royalties, set out in a collaboration agreement. Without one, you’ll usually find and pay the writer yourself. Our guide to literary agents and getting published explains how deals work.
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AuthorWings editorial team
The AuthorWings editorial team writes and updates our guides for first-time authors. Every post is read and edited by a person on our team before it is published.
