Should You Cite ChatGPT as a Primary Source?
Recently, I’ve participated in discussions among writers and clients alike as to whether, in a non-fiction book that provides footnotes, ChatGPT should be cited if information or text from the algorithm has been included in the manuscript. Generally, in a … Continue reading
How to Use ChatGPT for Budget Book Projects
Let’s face it: In the world of commercial writing, large language models such as ChatGPT, Grammarly, Jasper AI, and others are here to stay. In the low-end, mass-market, non-fiction book marketplace, their use has become nearly ubiquitous. I sometimes find … Continue reading
Follow the Rules—Except When You Break Them
As a professional ghostwriter of self-help and business books, an important part of my job is to help my valued client identify the problem they intend to solve for their reader, as well as its solution. The problem and solution … Continue reading
Every Novel Needs a Dynamic Opening
If you read “how to” guides on writing novels, they all agree that your story should open with some sort of action that represents a change for your protagonist. The scene should be dynamic, not static. There should be a … Continue reading
The Power of Storytelling in Business Books
When you think of the salient characteristics of a non-fiction self-help business book, what comes to mind? At first, you might expect such a book to be a “how-to” manual, with instructions on how to accomplish a specified goal. The … Continue reading
Editing Fiction and Non-Fiction: Two Different Approaches
In my nearly two decades of professional book editing, I’ve had the pleasure to serve hundreds of authors of non-fiction (self-help, business, health) and fiction (novels). I’ve found that the two genres of authors have very different expectations, greatly affecting … Continue reading
How Long Should Your Book Be?
Many of my valued clients ask me, “How long should my book be?” My answer is, “Your book is like your legs. Your legs should be long enough to reach the ground. Your book is no different.” They think for … Continue reading
Your 3 Choices: Self-Publish, Subsidy Publisher, or Book Deal
When I work with a client as their ghostwriter or book developer, one of the first questions they ask me is how they should publish and market their book. I explain to them that many artists and creators, including musicians, … Continue reading
What Does It Mean to Be “Happy”? Hedonism vs Eudaimonism
People talk a lot about happiness. It’s even enshrined in the United States Constitution: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among … Continue reading
Should You End a Sentence With a Preposition?
In English grammar, a preposition is a word that typically comes before a noun or pronoun and expresses a relationship between that noun/pronoun and another word in the sentence. Prepositions indicate location, time, direction, manner, or other relationships. Here are … Continue reading