Huzzah! I'm a very happy ghost! The first draft of the novel is now complete, nearly two weeks ahead of schedule. Having blasted through the final action-packed chapters, I now find myself with no more story left to tell. However, if you think I'm ready to kick back with a stiff drink, think again. My … Continue reading Ghostwriter Diaries 16

Regular readers of these ghostwriter diaries may recall how, a few weeks ago, a minor crisis involving a broken washing machine resulted in my most productive day to date. Well, thanks to yet another domestic disaster, I've surpassed my record. All right, it was hardly a disaster, just a carbon monoxide alarm triggering an unlikely … Continue reading Ghostwriter Diaries 15

Well, that's the second big milestone reached. At around 6:30am today, I wrote the final words of Chapter 25, completing Act II of the fantasy novel I'm ghostwriting. My deadline to submit this middle chunk of the book is Monday morning, so I have the weekend to review it. I don't have time to do … Continue reading Ghostwriter Diaries 14

Years ago, Gloria Estefan advised me that the rhythm was gonna get me. I think she may have been broadcasting the same message to several million other people at the same time, but I can't be sure. Well, you know what? Just as Gloria promised, the rhythm has indeed got me. In the early days … Continue reading Ghostwriter Diaries 13

Having completed phase one of my ghostwriting assignment (the first twelve chapters of the novel), I'm now deep into phase two. However, my timescale is so tight, and my editors are so efficient, that I've just received a complete set of notes on phase one. Getting feedback as you go along is a good thing. … Continue reading Ghostwriter Diaries 12

This week I hit the first major road block in my ghostwriting journey. Real life, as it often does, took my carefully-crafted schedule and twisted it into something resembling a monster pretzel. I won't bore you with the details, but let's just say the broken washing machine and flooded kitchen didn't help. Actually, there wasn't … Continue reading Ghostwriter Diaries 11

Yahoo! I just reached the first major milestone in my ghostwriting odyssey. I've completed the first part of the three-part novel, and submitted the first draft manuscript to my client. Total count of this first submission is around 27,500 words. That's a little longer than agreed, but long is good because it gives the editorial … Continue reading Ghostwriter Diaries 10

Okay. Here's what not to do when you're ghostwriting. When you find yourself lying awake at 4:05am, mentally juggling characters, plots and the relentless tolling bell of the word count schedule, don't get out of bed, crawl downstairs, make yourself a strong coffee, fire up the laptop and start writing at white heat. Yes, you … Continue reading Ghostwriter Diaries 09

I've reached the end of week two of my schedule. I'm six chapters in, and just shy of 16,000 words. The last chapter threw me a curve ball by running on half as long again as any of the others, and therefore taking longer than anticipated to compose. I've no idea if that's because I've … Continue reading Ghostwriter Diaries 08