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/lit/ - Literature

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20411037 No.20411037 [Reply] [Original]

Can I hire someone to turn my ideas into a book? I have all the characters, setting, story arcs, main plot, ending, etc all figured out, but I’m not that great at actually turning those ideas into words. Is it possible to hire someone to actually write the story for me?

>> No.20411244

Bump

>> No.20411277

>>20411037
Yeah, they're called ghostwriters. You can find them on freelance websites like upwork and fiverr.

>> No.20411501

>>20411277
If I used them would that make me a “fraud”?

>> No.20411509

>>20411501
Pretty sure some of the most popular genre fiction authors use ghostwriters. If you have the money, why not?

>> No.20411612

>>20411501
It would make you a "nigger"

>> No.20411627

>>20411501
yes. it is also understandable that you have never read a book either, you might want to start there before wasting 300 bucks.

>> No.20411629

>>20411501
Of course not. You'll only be a fraud if you present yourself as the writer of the work. Just say 'based on an idea by Anon' in tiny print on the cover and you're golden.

>> No.20411632

>>20411037
gpt3, give it paragraphs of your shitty writing and tell it to rewrite it in the style and prose of some famous author or your choosing

>> No.20411640

>>20411629
>You'll only be a fraud if you present yourself as the writer of the work
Isn't the point of ghostwriters that they don't get credit?

>> No.20411661

>>20411277
Don't do this. I did the same thing 16 years ago. I spent years fleshing out the world and history of the characters. But then I hired a fat neckbeard of a ghostwriter and he vanished with my ideas and a few months later he published them as his own and I have no way to prove there was any wrong doing, and now he's a millionaire with TV and movie offers. Too bad I only had two books worth of material and the guy has trouble coming up with ideas for the third book. And as soon as he releases the third everyone will know what's up because the story won't be as good. And even after all that I can forgive him but he turned my character into a fucking cuck feminist and my female love interest into a non-virgin whore. fuck him

>> No.20411812

>>20411629
Do I get money from it? Or does it all go to the actual guy who writes it?

>> No.20411824

>>20411627
No way it only costs 300 bucks to hire a ghost writer. I make that shit in one night. I have over 50k saved up so money isn’t too much of a issue

>> No.20411842

>>20411501
Who cares?

>> No.20411847

>>20411842
I care

>> No.20411857

>>20411661
mfw you wrote game of thrones

>> No.20411863

>>20411501
Alexandre Dumas used a ghostwriter for The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte-Cristo (among other works) and he's rarely seen as a fraud.

>> No.20411866

>>20411824
If they can write worth a damn shouldn't they easily be earning more writing their own stuff? Not talking about high brow stuff but just bargain bin genre fiction and romance novels. All of the most popular shitty isekai trash are written by people with high school degrees

>> No.20411870

>>20411661
>>20411857
haha

>> No.20411932

>>20411863
So how does it work exactly? Does the cover just say “based on the ideas of anon” and it says it’s officially written by the ghost writer? Even if I came up with all the ideas I just needed help putting it into words? Also who gets the profit? Is it 50/50?

>> No.20411937

>>20411932
“A collaboration between ghostwriter and anon.”

>> No.20411963

>>20411937
What about profits?

>> No.20412298

>>20411857
I think he's talking about the kingkiller chronicles

>> No.20412311

>>20411812
>>20411963
Stipulated in the contract between you and the ghostwriter

>> No.20412384

>>20412311
For example, one could specify that the ghostwriter was doing it as a "work for hire," which would mean that the copyright vests entirely in the employer rather than in the contracted ghostwriter.

>> No.20412527

>>20412311
>>20412384
Noted, thanks

>> No.20412616

>>20411037
AI will soon do this. Just wait for GPT 4. The writer of the near future is just going to be a bot's idea guy.

>> No.20413679

>>20411037
Stupid frogposter

>> No.20413764

>>20411037
Trick question, you don't actually have it all figured out. You just have some nice ideas, as soon as you begin actually writing and editing it you'll start seeing cracks in everything you've thought up that you either address or ignore to your own peril.

>> No.20413801

>>20411277
>Anon's work, as seen through the filter of an Indian laborer
I'd read it.

>> No.20413995

>>20413764
Can’t wait to prove you wrong

>> No.20414225

>>20411037
>Can I hire someone to turn my ideas into a book?
Yes, but...

>I have all the characters, setting, story arcs, main plot, ending, etc all figured out, but I’m not that great at actually turning those ideas into words.

The way you phrase this is ominous. You're saying an outline just gets "turned into" a book. That suggests to me you are greatly underestimating the proportion of the total work the actual writing represents. Here's how the work involved in writing a novel breaks down:

Coming up with the cool overall idea:
0.001%

Coming up with some rough ideas for characters:
0.01%

Coming up with a bunch of plot arcs that fit together and get you from start to finish:
0.1%

Actually writing words on the page which don't suck but instead bring the ideas and characters to life:
99.889%

If you'd said "Can I hire someone to write a novel using the notes I've made?" I would be more confident you appreciate how far you are from your goal.

That said, as I mentioned initially, sure, just go to one of the websites that do that sort of thing. Or post the ideas here (with a secure trip so you can verify ownership, if you're that worried about people stealing them, which they won't) and ask anons to write a first page (or first chapter). If you get one you like, you've found your man.

It might help if you have some idea of the sort of style you want. If you can say, I want it like Terry Pratchett but a bit darker, or like Stephen King but better, people will know what to go for.


As far as stuff like profits goes, if you're the one paying, you call the shots. You can just say, I'm paying a flat fee and the ghostwriter relinquishes all further rights to the material, or you can offer a percentage.

The chances of the book actually making any money are so vanishingly small that almost anyone serious will want a flat fee and happily waive all further rights to the material.

Then when it makes a billion dollars, the laugh will be on him! Go for it.

>> No.20414478

>>20414225
>The chances of the book actually making any money are so vanishingly small
So what’s the point then

>> No.20414612

>>20414478
Fucking arthoes who read your stuff

>> No.20414669

>>20414478
So you only decided to have ideas on the basis of their tangibility to earn you money? Time to start thinking about sucking cock

>> No.20415143

>>20414478
t. man who has extremely blatantly never read a book
I completely guarantee that your idea absolutely fucking sucks donkey cock