I’ve Written Six Crime Fiction Novels

I can't tell you which ones. I can share what I learned.

Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash

It’s true. I’ve written six crime fiction novels. Those novels currently have an average Amazon rating of 4.6 based on 20,000+ overall reviews. I’ve also outlined a dozen more for other series in production at the book packager I worked with.

What’s that you ask? Can I tell you what the titles are?

Nope. Because I ghostwrote them and signed an NDA to never ever reveal the titles. All I can tell you are the stats.

Did I set out to become a ghostwriter? No. I’ve since hung up my shroud to focus on other things. To be honest, I fell into a ghostwriting gig due to pure luck. A friend of mine was approached by a book packaging company to write a series of crime fiction novels. My friend was too busy to take on the extra work and recommended me for the role instead. Voilà! I was officially a ghostwriter.

Almost.

First I had to pass a writing test. This involved writing a short story (which I was paid for) based on a series of parameters set by the editor and a plot summary a mere paragraph long. After that, the editor and I collaborated on revisions and I was approved. That was when I received my first assignment.

As I said, I can’t reveal the title of that first book or any of the others that followed. I can’t give you the faux author name that graced the covers of my books. I can’t do a lot of things, thanks to that NDA. I can, though, share some things I learned about ghostwriting as a side gig.

Keep in mind, I only worked with one book packager. My statements below are based on that specific experience. Your results, should you choose to pursue this avenue or if you’ve also ghostwritten, may vary.

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What ghostwriters should consider before accepting a job

Your worth

Currently, the going rate for a ghostwriter creating full-length fiction is 9.0–11.5¢ per word or $55.00–110.00 per hour. This is according to the 2024 Editorial Rate chart compiled by the Editorial Freelance Association (EFA). A full-length novel in the mystery genre according to Nathan Bransford, a former literary agent at Curtis Brown Ltd, should come in between 75,000 to 90,000 words. If we just go by the lower estimates, a ghostwriter who drafts a 75,000 word crime novel should be paid $6,750 for their work. I negotiated a slightly higher rate for my jobs, but the bottom line is I was paid well during my ghostwriting adventure.

Unfortunately, there are many people out there who will take advantage of new or struggling writers. A quick search on Upwork shows job postings offering $1,000 for 40,000 words (so 2.5¢ per word) or $450 for 30,000 words (so 1.5¢ per word). For most people, writing so many quality words and morphing them into coherent, relevant sentences is not a quick process. It takes time, sometimes a lot, making the value of that 2.5¢ per word plummet.

Let’s break it down. I can write about 6,500 (up to 10,000 if I’m motivated with very few distractions) a week on part-time (20) hours. That’s roughly 6 weeks or 120 hours work for a 40,000 novel. If payment is only $1,000, ghostwriting that 40,000 word novel would earn me maybe a dollar over working a job earning the federal minimum wage. Considering that many ghostwriting jobs require you remain anonymous and you can’t even use the work in your portfolio, that’s no deal. Which brings me to the next thing you should know.