The 46 Non-Writing Hats Skilled Non-Fiction Ghostwriters Wear

The life of a non-fiction ghostwriter is nothing if not fascinating. Being successful requires wearing a wide variety of hats at different times. In no particular order, they include:

1. Researcher and interviewer.
2. Market researcher. (Yeah, there's overlap here.)
3. Trend observer/prognosticator.
4. Translator/mind reader.
5. Visionary.
6. Realist.
7. Synthesizer.
8. Analyst.
9. Summarizer.
10. Storyteller.
11. Planner and project manager.
12. Consultant.
13. AI experimenter.
14. Motivational coach.
15. Hitting coach, because clients sometimes need help keeping their eyes on the ball.
16. Client advocate, because sometimes you have to go to bat for them when working with partners.
17. Occasional but respectful bad cop.
18. Sporadic punching bag.
19. Occasional noodge.
20. Expert wordsmith.
21. Comedian, because a little humor can diffuse tense situations.
22. Editor.
23. Grammarian.
24. Expert in Microsoft Word or a similar program. (Nothing in this post should surprise your prospective ghostwriter.)
25. Application expert, because ghostwriting goes way beyond using a word-processing program.
26. Explainer/trainer/teacher.
27. Listener.
28. Chef.
29. Brainstormer, idea generator, and sounding board.
30. Publishing and process expert.
31. Accountant.
32. Perennial voice of the book's ultimate readers.
33. Networker/bridge builder.
34. Fixer/problem solver.
35. Paralegal, especially with respect to fair use.
36. Bullshit detector and fact-checker.
37. Devil's advocate.
38. Dispenser of tough love when necessary.
39. Provocateur.
40. Master organizer.
41. Tech-support specialist.
42. Amateur designer.
43. Data wrangler (to create figure prototypes for proper designer to tweak.)
44. Video creator, because sometimes a proper Zoom meeting isn't necessary. (Tella rocks here.)
45. Intermittent marketer.
46. Rapid typist. (I can't put a precise number on the ideal speed. Still, exceeding the average words-per-minute is table stakes.)