Dan Gerstein hat 2008 Gotham Ghostwriters gegründet, eine Ghostwriting-Agentur. Doch warum funktioniert Ghostwriting? Gerstein bringt es auf den Punkt:
“The bar for being judged a thought leader has been to have a book,” Gerstein explained. “What they’re really looking for is a book as a badge—it’s getting your ticket punched to the thought leader game.”
Interessant wird zu beobachten sein, wie sich der Reputations-Markt verändert, wenn das klassische Buch immer weniger selbstverständlich der stärkste Reputationshebel ist. Gerade im Social-Media-Umfeld dürfte der Bedarf an Ghostwriting wachsen.
Interessant ist auch, welche Art von Schreiber es für das Ghostwriting laut Aussage von Gerstein braucht:
On the business side, Gotham Ghostwriters collects a 15 percent commission on each contract. (…) On the personal side, Gerstein says it “takes a certain type of writer” to be able to pen an entire book without a credit or even an acknowledgement, but that many enjoy working without the emotional baggage that goes with writing. “A number of writers find it liberating,” he says.