Everyone Has a Story to Tell

You may not like to hear this, but I’m one of those people who really enjoys their job. To be honest, it barely feels like a J-O-B. It just feels… natural, and at times even a bit magical, too.

As far back as I can remember, I’ve always been curious about other people; how they think, what values and beliefs they have—and what key events shaped them into who they are. And in my line of work—ghostwriting—I often get to know human beings on a profound level.

I’m a former journalist, so the step into ghostwriting seemed quite natural while watching the media landscape take a serious turn for the worse. More about that in a separate article (or not). But it’s my journalistic training and experience that form the basis for my ghostwriting process. I use both structured and dynamic interviews in order to get the story from my client.

Many people ask about the process of writing a book for someone, and it really isn’t that complicated. Interview, write, edit. Repeat. The key is to establish a good, warm yet professional rapport with your client. The challenging aspects may be to find the right angle to the story, and to capture the client’s voice. When they read it, they should feel like they wrote it. This can take some time and requires a good deal of empathy and listening skills. But it’s never been a problem for me.

In my initial talks with a prospective client, I usually tell them that I’ll be something of a hybrid between a reporter interviewing them, their therapist, their new best friend, and sometimes—believe it or not—their worst enemy. You see, when you start digging into the past, you may come across behaviors and events that you’re less than proud of. But at least, now you’re dealing with them! And don’t shoot the ghostwriter! I’m merely going off what you tell me.

We're all human, after all. It’s important to not be judgmental. And many clients have told me that the ghostwriting process was the most cathartic experience of their life.

I’ve been fortunate to have worked with an extremely diverse set of clients. From IT and finance people to mercenaries to pro athletes to housewives to intelligence operatives to billionaire industrialists… In essence, everyone—regardless of their walk of life—has a story worth being told. I’m not picky when it comes to whom I work with—except for certain factors that would impact my own security or clash with personal ethics. I charge for my time and rarely, if ever, take any form of royalty position or similar in a client’s work.

A month or so ago, I was at a dinner in Los Angeles with a former hedge fund manager who’s now enjoying his early retirement. He asked me:

“So, Jonas, who’s your dream client?”

He started throwing out names. All famous and powerful individuals. I pondered the question for a moment, then I replied:

“Think of me as a builder. It doesn’t matter whether I’m building a home for Oprah, or Elon, or Jack or Jill from down the street. What I care about is the construction. I must build it right.”

And that’s pretty much my view on writing in general. No matter how gifted you are, it’s a craft. You hammer away at the keyboard and some form of edifice starts taking shape. You keep going, but notice a crooked corner or a leaky roof, so you go back and you fix it. Sometimes the entire blueprint changes when you’re halfway done. Maybe there are a lot of additions. But it’s nothing that can’t be fixed with enough time and a bit of hard work.