Citations in Non-Fiction Self-Help Books – Advice from Ghostwriter Thomas Hauck
As a ghostwriter who has authored dozens of self-help books for both self-published authors and major New York publishing houses, one of the biggest questions that I and my clients must consider is how to credit quotes and research by … Continue reading
Character Development in Thrillers
I ghostwrite a lot of thrillers for my valued clients. (Surprised? Don’t be!) Naturally they often ask questions about the writing process and the relative importance of various elements including character development. Generally in thrillers you don’t spend much time … Continue reading
Write Cleanly and Clear Out Those Unnecessary Words!
I do a lot of book editing for my clients. Typically, my job is to clean up the text and make the emotions more vivid or (in the case of business books) the arguments more persuasive. I help my authors organize … Continue reading
The Vexing Problem of Numbers – Advice From Thomas Hauck, Author and Ghostwriter
In the English language, we have an alphabet of twenty-six letters. We use these letters to form words and sentences. Each letter is unique; generally, for any given word formed of letters, you can’t substitute other letters without changing the … Continue reading
Be Careful with Acronyms – Advice from Thomas Hauck, Ghostwriter
Acronyms are ubiquitous in both business writing and novels. But you have to be careful and consistent in how you construct them! Here’s an actual excerpt from an article in The New York Times published on September 1, 2017. The … Continue reading
More About Capitalizing Job Titles from Thomas Hauck, Ghostwriter and Book Editor
I’ve written often about the capitalization of job titles. This is because writers seem to have a wide range of opinions about the subject, and approach the question on an ad hoc basis, without having a clear concept to guide … Continue reading
About paragraph spacing in novels, narrative non-fiction, and most self-help books
Clients often ask me if they should indicate paragraphs with an extra line inserted between paragraphs. (Like this.) It’s the format used in emails, many blogs including this one, and technical books. Here’s my answer. Regarding paragraph spacing in a work … Continue reading
Fair Use: When Can You Use Quotes or Excerpts from Other Authors? Advice from Thomas Hauck, Ghostwriter and Book Editor
Many of my clients who have written non-fiction self-help books (business, health, politics) have used quotes from other authors in their own text. These quotes can be just a few sentences or entire paragraphs (which makes them excerpts). My clients … Continue reading
Capitalization of Job Titles in “The New Yorker” – Comment by Thomas Hauck, Ghostwriter and Book Editor
Twenty years ago my parents gave me a gift subscription to The New Yorker magazine, and they’ve been renewing it every year. I look forward to receiving each issue, and there’s always something interesting and eye-opening to find in it. … Continue reading