Essential Ghostwriting Contract Templates for a Smooth Teamwork
- wearecatalystx
- May 27
- 7 min read
Table of Contents:
Essential Ghostwriting Contract Templates for a Smooth Teamwork
Why You Really Need a Ghostwriting Contract
What Should Be in a Ghostwriting Contract Template?
What the Job Is?
When Things Need to Happen?
How Money Will Be Paid?
Keeping Things Secret
Who Owns the Writing?
Making Changes
What Happens If Things Change?
Where to Find Sample Ghostwriting Contract Templates
Freelancers Union
What to Expect
DocuSign or HelloSign
What to Expect
LegalZoom or Rocket Lawyer
Anticipating what?
Customizing is absolutely essential.
Important Note
Case Study: From Confusing Contracts to Clear Creativity
British Noble: Teamwork Without All the Paperwork
Why Choose British Noble?
Final Tip: Don’t Start Writing Without an Agreement (Unless It’s British Noble)
Author Bio
Key Points
Contracts = Smooth Ghostwriting: Prevent issues, clarify expectations.
Essential Contract Elements: Scope, timeline, payment, confidentiality, ownership, revisions, cancellation.
Template Sources:
Freelancers Union: Basic, easy templates.
DocuSign/HelloSign: Customizable, legally binding online.
LegalZoom/Rocket Lawyer: Detailed, robust (for complex projects).
No Contract = Risks: Case study shows potential problems.
British Noble: Contract-Free Option: Pre-written books with full rights.
Use Contracts (Usually): Protects both parties.
Author Expertise: Robert Smith's experience supports the advice.
Having a clear agreement is quite wise when you pay someone to write for you, say a ghostwriter. It's like having the rules of a game penned down before you ever start playing. Good agreements when using ghostwriting contract templates let everyone know what's going on whether your book is for your company, a great narrative, or a collection of blog entries.
In this blog, we're going to talk about why these agreements are important. We'll also look at what they should include. And we'll show you where to find easy-to-use templates to help your project start off smoothly.
Why You Really Need a Ghostwriting Contract
People could misinterpret one another without something in writing. It's as though you and your friend are building with LEGOs but disagree on what you are creating. A ghostwriting contract helps everyone by:
Saying what everyone expects: It makes sure you and the writer both know what needs to be done.
Setting when things should be done: It helps keep the project on track with deadlines.
Stopping problems with money: It makes sure everyone agrees on how much the writer will be paid and when.
Making it clear who owns what: It says who gets credit for the writing and who owns the final work.
If you're planning to put your name on the writing and publish it, a writing agreement makes sure you get all the credit. It also makes sure your freelance writing contract pays the author collaboration fairly for their work.
What Should Be in a Ghostwriting Contract Template?
A good agreement should be easy to understand. It should also have all the important details. Here are the main things that should be in a ghostwriting contract template:
1. What the Job Is?
What kind of writing is it? (Like a book, an article, or a series of blog posts)
How many words should it be?
Does the writer need to do any research?
2. When Things Need to Happen?
Important dates for the project (like when the first part is done, when changes are made, and when it's all finished).
The date when the whole project should be done.
3. How Money Will Be Paid?
The total amount you will pay.
If you need to pay some money upfront (a deposit) and then pay more later.
What happens if payments are late (late fees).
4. Keeping Things Secret
The freelance writing contract should say that the writer will not tell anyone your ideas or what they are writing for you. This is a non-disclosure.
5. Who Owns the Writing?
The agreement should clearly say that you (the person hiring the writer) will own all the writing when it's finished.
6. Making Changes
It should say how many times you can ask for changes to the writing.
It should also explain what kind of changes count as a "revision."
7. What Happens If Things Change?
This part talks about getting money back if the project stops early (refunds).
It might also talk about paying the writer even if the project stops early (kill fees).
And it should explain how either person can end the agreement early.
These details help make sure your author collaboration goes smoothly. They also protect both you and the freelance writing contract writer.
Where to Find Sample Ghostwriting Contract Templates
Finding a good template can save you a lot of time. Here are three places where you can find reliable templates that you can change to fit your needs:
1. Freelancers Union
One group that supports independent workers is the Freelancers Union. They regularly offer tools and supplies to enable independent contractors run their businesses, including basic contract forms.
What to Expect:
Simple and Straightforward: The templates you find here are likely to be easy to understand and use. They're often designed for shorter projects or more straightforward agreements.
Good for Beginners: If you're new to hiring freelance ghostwriters or your project is relatively simple (like a few blog posts or a short article), a Freelancers Union template can be a good place to begin.
Key Clauses Covered: Even though they're basic, these templates should still cover the essential parts of a writing agreement, such as:
What the writing job is.
How much the author collaboration will be paid.
Who owns the final writing.
Keeping your information private (non-disclosure).
Adaptable: You can usually download these templates and then edit them in a word processor to add specific details about your project, like deadlines and the number of revisions.
Consider it as obtaining a simple cake baking recipe. Although it provides all the basic components and directions, you could wish to add your own frosting or decorative elements to suit you.
2. DocuSign or HelloSign
DocuSign and HelloSign are online services that help you create, send, and sign documents electronically. They offer features that make contracts more secure and legally binding online.
What to Expect:
Customizable Templates: Usually featuring a collection of templates for several kinds of agreements, these sites allow you to easily select templates fit for freelance writing contracts.
Legally Binding Online: A big advantage of using these services is that the electronic signatures they provide are legally recognized in many places. This makes your freelance writing contract official without needing to print and sign paper documents.
Easy to Modify: Their user-friendly interfaces let you readily input your particular specifics on the scope of job, schedule, and payment terms.
Features for Sending and Tracking: The platform will record when the contract is sent, examined, and signed once you forward it to your ghostwriter. This helps ensure everyone has agreed to the terms.
Good for More Formal Agreements: If you want a more professional and secure way to handle your writing agreement, especially for projects with a significant budget or a longer duration, these services are a good choice.
Think of it like: Using a special app to create and send invitations to a party. It looks professional, it makes sure everyone gets the invite, and you know who has said they're coming.
3. LegalZoom or Rocket Lawyer
Online legal services LegalZoom and Rocket Lawyer provide a larger spectrum of legal documents and consultation. Lawyers typically build their templates, which makes them more thorough and legally strong—especially for long-term or complicated operations like publishing an entire book.
Anticipating what?
More specifically tailored agreements: These services' templates will probably include more intricate elements of an author collaboration agreement, such thorough clauses on intellectual property, publishing rights, and what happens should conflicts arise.
Appropriate for Books and Long-Term Projects: Using a template from these providers can help to better safeguard a professional ghostwriter hired for a major project such as a book where numerous possible problems could develop.
Important projects would find great benefit from having a lawyer examine your contract or answer any legal problems you might have in addition to templates, which these services commonly provide.
Customizing is absolutely essential. You will still need to carefully analyze and alter these thorough templates to meet the particulars of your ghostwriting arrangement.
Consider it like hiring a lawyer to assist in drafting a quite crucial deal. Their comprehensive template guarantees that everyone is safeguarded by covering various options.
Important Note: Legal advice cannot be replaced even if these sites provide useful models. See a lawyer to be sure your ghostwriting contract appropriately safeguards your interests if you have particular questions or if your project is really complicated.
Case Study: From Confusing Contracts to Clear Creativity
Let's look at what happened to Alan. He started a company and had a great idea for a book. He hired a ghostwriter to write it for him, but they didn't have a contract. Halfway through the project, the writer just disappeared. Alan lost a lot of time and the money he had already paid.
Then, Alan found British Noble. Instead of hiring a writer and dealing with contracts, he chose a book that was already written by professional ghostwriters. He could customize it and publish it right away. There were no contracts and no waiting. It was just quick and easy.
British Noble: Teamwork Without All the Paperwork
At British Noble, we've already taken care of all the legal stuff and the writing. Our bestselling books:
Are written by experienced professional ghostwriters.
Come with all the rights and ownership for you.
Don't need you to deal with complicated contracts.
Why Choose British Noble?
No waiting for writing to be done.
No extra costs that you didn't expect.
No confusing legal agreements.
Content that is 100% ready for you to use.
Explore our library of books that are ready to be published today at BritishNoble.com. You can skip all the back-and-forth with paperwork and get straight to having your book.
Final Tip: Don’t Start Writing Without an Agreement (Unless It’s British Noble)
A solid ghostwriting contract form will help to prevent legal conflict, misinterpretation, and delays. It keeps you safe, much like a seatbelt in a car does.
But if you want to avoid contracts completely and still publish a professional book, British Noble is a faster, safer, and smarter way to go.
Get your bestseller without the headache of contracts!
Author Bio
Jennifer Horon, a ghostwriter with six years of experience, understands the power of clear agreements for successful projects. She guides authors through the essentials of ghostwriting contract templates to ensure smooth teamwork. Jennifer helps bring diverse stories to life, emphasizing a solid foundation for collaboration.