Ghostwriting & Editing Services

AFS Wordstead offers cost-effective ghost writing and editing services built on solid expertise in fiction, nonfiction and business.

Feel the difference. As an independent ghostwriter/editor, I adhere to the industry's highest standards and maintain ironclad confidentiality in every aspect of the client relationship. Plus, all credit goes to you. After all, you are the author and I'm the writer—kind of like your "pen."

WHAT I DO

I offer solid writing experience and just the resources (linguistic, cultural, research, etc.) you will need for publishing success. Working with me is a guarantee of original composition of the first order and impeccable presentation. There is no danger of hitting copyright or plagiarism snags. You are always in control and have the final say in everything that goes into your copy. This, after all, is your work and you are the author.

Following is the full range of services I offer clients in North America, Europe, Africa, the Far East and the Middle East:

• Ghost writing and rewriting.
  
• Line & content editing (for style, mechanics of style, organization, grammar, etc); copyediting; translation.
  
• Articles for print or destined for Web publication (including article directories, blogs, etc.).
  
• Copywriting, business-to-business and business-to-client editorial support, including business letters, speech, copy and web writing.
  
• Scripting and book-to-screen adaptations.
  
• Critiquing and evaluation (with a 10- to 15-page report).
  
• Manuscript synopsis and critiquing.
  
• Web/blog writing.
  
• Press releases designed to create a buzz.

WHAT I WON’T DO

I NEVER ghost write works intended for professional peer review or academic grading. However, I do edit them, since editing in these two categories is an institutionally accepted practice.

Take It to the Next Level

 Expert consultation. You may be the most talented person in your field, but if you don’t have the time or proper skills to write effective content, you won’t be able to propel your project forward. At some point you need to hire an “expert eye” whose objectivity you can rely on.

 

 Simple process. Unfamiliar with current writing, editing or publishing practices? You will find my step-by-step process of writer-author collaboration simple and supremely flexible. Over the years, I’ve developed it with a mind to enable my clients to express their ideas and give me their honest feedback at every stage of my work.

 

 Rewarding experience. I will provide you with uninterrupted, personal service until we achieve what you came here for. Some clients who seek my writing expertise tell me that having their story ghosted by someone is almost as satisfying as penning it themselves. I want to make sure you enjoy this, perhaps your first consultation experience.

People Like Yourself

My clients are housewives and business leaders, nurses and bomb victims, marketers and professionals, doctors and politicians, police officers and ex-cons, army and special-forces guys. They have a visceral need to:

• Tell their life story or some unusual episode in their life.
• Recount their business/professional experience.
• Promote their goods/services.
• Narrate an irresistible tale they happened to make up.

I've had the privilege to work with them all.

Why am I so gushing about my clients? Because those folks are passionate about their subjects. They are hopeful, ambitious, abused, faithful or just incurably romantic. Something moves them inside. And their lived experience makes my task so much easier as a writer. It doesn't matter if they can't string two sentences together—my fortune is to be able to tell what they couldn't on their own.

Ripe For Business

I also serve business people. So, if you’re in the business of making money for yourself or for others and need a versatile, creative writer or copywriter to help you communicate your message, you’ve come to the right place.

I have worked for clients who are into business startups, management techniques, self-improvement/self–help coaching, or consultation. They’re in constant need of books or other types of content, often to complement their professional activities. I’ve worked with senior officers in large corporations seeking to create custom-made tools to train their staff. I have racked my brains with astute but headstrong entrepreneurs who couldn’t write a sales letter if their life depended on it…and frankly, I loved every minute of it!

• Are you dying to tell others about the great idea you have about how to start a business or run it?
• Are you looking for the right business profile or a profile for personal use?
• Do you own or wish to create a web site or blog? What new product or service descriptions do you need?
• Do you need fresh content for your web or blog? Or articles to help you optimize your marketing performance?
• Why not teach other people how to improve their personal finances?
• How about sharing your self-help/-improvement secret with thousands of readers? How has your secret worked for you? What were the challenges?
• What are your ideas on employee management? On organizational leadership?

Why not sound like—and not just "be"—an authority? For that, every kind of business communication you author has to be crystal clear and streamlined to perfection. You may have a knack for business, but without proper copywriting skills or the time to capture creative ideas on paper, hiring a business writer or editor may be your next best move.

I have long experience with large- and small-cap businesses, and I will use it to make everything I create for you deliver your message smoothly and efficiently.

What I Offer You

At some point you need to make a choice: either cut corners with some amateur or fly-by-night ghost writing service with the lowest possible bid, or plan for success.

I realize how much your project means to you, but also that you don't have an unlimited budget. Therefore, I will design the project that best fits your goals, cost expectations...and yes, personality. Only a dyed-in-the-wool writing professional can pull this off!

The process only looks intimidating if you've never hired a professional writer before. It's really quite simple. Let me give you a quick overview before laying out the steps that lead to your finished work.

1. OVERVIEW OF THE PROCESS
GHOSTWRITING clients hire me to create their material from scratch based on notes, diary, research, or perhaps a rough draft they want completely rewritten. They often come to me with almost no notion of how they want their “story” told. So, we start chatting. I ask them:

– Why do you want to create this book or marketing copy?
– What would you really like to say to your readers?
– What do you hope to achieve by it?

Once we agree on a firm set of ideas and sign a writer-author agreement, I will work on a rough outline, do the preliminary legwork (which may include initial research), and prepare the first submission for you to examine. (See details below.)

EDITING is similar, except that I would need an outline or summary and a sample of your work to be able to give you an accurate estimate of the cost. After we sign our contract, l will get to work, incorporating all changes directly into your text. You don’t have to worry about working through complicated instructions. If I notice major flaws that require action that is not properly part of an editing job, I will notify you. You see, I need client approval before altering important features of your concept, plot, structure, theme, characters, etc.

And I will not abandon you after the end of our contract term. Some writers will do just that. Their interest in the same client lasts only as long as the project is in the pipeline. While I don't represent authors, I am willing to advise you in any way I can, within reasonable limits. I do it only as a courtesy, because I want you to succeed. The only thing I can't do is charge you for this service, since I am not an agent by profession and don't pretend to be.

Even the best authors need editors. That’s why so many of them, both good and bad, ask me to work on content they’ve labored at but still can’t finish properly.

Despite their frustration, my clients say there’s something oddly therapeutic about writing. Tell me about it! I write for a living. Their main regret is not having hired a writing expert to get them sooner to the finish line.

So, let’s get your project moving!

2. FROM START TO FINISH

When you contact me, the first thing I need to do is determine how I could provide you with the highest quality of writing service possible. Not every project is promising, and I’ll be very honest with you about your project’s prospects, which you need to understand before investing your hard-earned money.

All projects are divided in two or three parts, indicating our submission and payment schedules.

Step #1: Before we even begin working together, I will carefully consider the potential of your project relative to your goals, at no extra cost to you. I’ll give you my candid opinion, because this is in both our interests.

Step #2: I will send you a proposal containing a course of action, total estimated fee, and a time schedule.

Step #3: We will sign an agreement that stipulates, among other things:

a) Time schedule for my manuscript submissions to you;
b) Schedule of payments;
c) Terms and conditions governing your copyrights, my professional competence, and the originality of the work I will produce for you.

Step #4: I will design a ghostwriting, editing or copywriting project that exactly fits your goals and budget, then start on a first submission, which will allow you to judge my work and give me your first feedback. 

Step #5: In order to minimize any inconvenience to either of us during this trial period, the first submission sent to you will have a maximum length of 15-25 pages (for long projects). That should give you a fair idea of the quality you should expect from me thereon.

Step #6: Assuming my submission meets with your approval, I will resume work according to our agreed schedule. In the event of any disagreement, and if you decide I’m not the right professional for this job, you may withdraw after discussing the problems with me. You would incur only an hourly fee for the work already done, assuming there were no serious technical flaws, and the remainder of your first installment would be refunded.

Step #7: I will continue to work on your content until I get to the halfway point, my second formal submission to you. (You may consult with me at any time between submissions or check on my progress.)

Step #8: You receive the last submission. All final adjustments have to be made by this point.

Format 

Every job is formatted according to proper standards and conventions:

Ê Books are typed in MS Word or in Word Perfect in standard page layout or, upon request, according to the submission requirements of a particular literary agent or publisher, if any. (Your agent, publisher or printer may have special submission requirements.)

Ê Scripts are formatted in FinalDraft software, one of the most widely used by scriptwriters and media people.

Ê Web page and other forms of online copy are formatted in MS Word. Thereafter the client is responsible for uploading or submitting the text for application on the designated online site, unless otherwise stipulated in our contract.

Results You Can Count On

When all is said and done, your readers should be able to declare without hesitation:

“I learned something from this book.”
“This blogger has hit the nail on the head.”
“Son-of-a-gun, they got me hooked. I think I’ll contact them.”
“This author has something really interesting to say.”
“That was entertaining!”
“Not exactly my mind-space, but somehow I still loved it!”

For any of this to happen, the writer you hire has to be able to bring your “story” to life, whether that story is a fiction or nonfiction.

That’s no mean task. A professional writer has to have the talent to use your store of memories, knowledge and experiences in order to produce a unique “narrative,” whether it be in fiction, nonfiction or business. That writer must also have the resources to finish the job.

I WORK IN THESE FORMATS:

Book
Magazine
Web/Blog/promotional article
Newsletter
Speech

I GHOST & EDIT IN THESE GENRES:

Nonfiction:

Memoir/autobiography/biography
Business & management
Business history/company profile
How-to/ self-help/self-improvement
Americana
Politics
Popular science
Health
Social sciences
Religion/theology/inspirational
Philosophy
International relations

Fiction:

Action
Romance
Suspense
Mystery
Inspirational/religious
Adventure
Historical
Science fiction

Anthony F. Shaker, PhD
writer/editor
(819) 597-4072
Afshaker@aol.com  
www.wordstead.com  

Tell me about the project you have in mind.

Please note that the strtictest confidentiality will be maintained in all our correspondence, including this one. No information will be passed on to a third party. (This pledge is legally binding.)

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