Non-Fiction

Most experts can talk about their subject for hours and still cannot get a chapter out. That is normal, and it is the most common reason authors come to us. Speaking and book-length writing use different muscles, and the second one needs time most professionals do not have. A calendar full of clients does not leave room for 300 pages, and a draft started in January often sits half-finished in June.

A nonfiction ghostwriter closes the gap. The writer asks the questions a curious reader would ask, collects your notes, talks, slides and past articles, and drafts chapters that sound like you at your clearest. This page covers general nonfiction, while our broader ghostwriting services page explains the whole model.

The result reads like you wrote it, because the ideas, the examples and the opinions are yours. What changes is the pace and the polish. A book that might have taken you three years of evenings arrives in a schedule we agree on at the start.

Readers of nonfiction buy for an outcome. They want to understand, decide or do something, and they judge the book by how fast it gets them there.

That shapes the work. A strong nonfiction book states its promise early, orders ideas so each chapter depends on the last, and uses examples in place of abstractions. It repeats key points sparingly, defines terms the first time they appear and ends chapters with something the reader can carry forward. It also respects the reader's time: no padding, no throat-clearing, no thirty-page preamble. Headings should tell a skimmer what the chapter does, and the table of contents should read like a plan. Every chapter should also answer one question the reader would plausibly have asked.

The hardest part is cutting. Experts know too much, and not everything belongs in the book. Our writers help you decide what stays, what goes to a second book and what is better left as a talk. Readers do not need everything you know. They need what answers their question, in the order they will use it.

1. Consultation and fixed quote. We listen to your subject, your reader and your goal, then send a written quote split into milestones. Once you approve it, the figure is fixed.
2. Material gathering. You send what exists: slides, articles, transcripts, frameworks. The writer reviews all of it and returns a short list of gaps, such as a missing case study or an unexplained term.
3. Interviews. Recorded sessions pull out the stories, opinions and reasoning that only you can supply. The writer also asks "why" more often than a colleague would, which is how buried reasoning reaches the page. Transcripts come back to you, so you can correct anything the writer misunderstood.
4. Outline. A chapter-by-chapter plan with the promise, audience and takeaway for each chapter. You approve it before drafting, which is the cheapest moment to restructure the whole book.
5. Drafting and revisions. Chapters arrive in stages, and each stage can be revised before the next begins. You check facts and tone, and the writer folds your notes into the next batch.
6. Review and sign-off. You read the whole book once, start to finish, and flag anything that does not sound like you or does not match your practice. This is also when you confirm that every example is one you are comfortable sharing publicly.
7. Final manuscript. A complete, consistent manuscript goes to editing and, if you wish, publishing. Publishing with us usually adds 4 to 8 weeks.

Nonfiction lives or dies on trust. Our writers separate what you know firsthand from what needs a source, keep a research file and flag every claim they could not verify so you can decide whether to source it, soften it or cut it. Citations follow a single style across the whole book, and we default to the Chicago Manual of Style unless your field uses another. Quoted material is cleared before it reaches print.

If your book includes medical, legal or financial advice, we also recommend a professional review in your field. A writer reports your expertise carefully, which is a different skill from holding the license, and the book should not pretend otherwise.

Here is what lands in your inbox at the end. You get the complete manuscript, the approved outline, a source list, a style sheet and all of your interview material, so nothing is locked inside our systems. Ask for a one-page summary of each chapter and we will include that too, which comes in handy for marketing, for jacket copy and for a book proposal. Next comes book editing services for a copyedit and proofread, then book cover design services and book publishing services when you are ready. One project manager stays with you through all of it.

Personal and how-to projects start from $4,900 for up to 35,000 words and 10 hours of interviews. Business and thought leadership books start from $9,900 for up to 50,000 words. Research-heavy reference or science books are quoted by scope, because the research hours drive the price more than the word count does. See pricing for the tiers. You receive a fixed quote based on scope, and no fee appears later that was not in it. The sooner you can send your source material, the more accurate the quote will be. A quick call usually settles the tier.

You do. Ownership is assigned to you in writing, and you keep every royalty, because we never take any. That matters because a ghostwriter is usually the first legal owner of the text until a contract says otherwise. The Copyright Office explains the basics in its circular on works made for hire. The Authors Guild also offers contract help, and we are happy for your attorney to read our agreement before you sign.

As a rule of thumb, a nonfiction book of 40,000 to 60,000 words takes 8 to 14 weeks to ghostwrite, and a research-led business book of 30,000 to 50,000 words takes 8 to 12 weeks. A short ebook or business guide of 5,000 to 15,000 words runs 3 to 5 weeks. These figures assume prompt feedback, and rush schedules are available for an additional fee, quoted up front. A signed NDA is in place before work begins, and rights transfer to you on delivery, confirmed in writing at the start of the project.

Bring the idea, the slides or the messy notes. Get a free consultation or submit your manuscript, and a reply reaches you within one business day. The first conversation is free, and you will leave it knowing what your book needs, how long it will take and what it will cost. Our nonfiction ghostwriting services exist so your expertise reaches readers, not a drawer.