Janice Thompson had the rapt attention of everyone in the room as she spoke on the pros and cons of ghostwriting during the last meeting of Writers On The Storm, Houston's Chapter of American Christian Fiction Writers. She is a prolific writer as evidenced by the growing list of publications to her credit viewable on her website, www.janiceathompson.com She is also a seasoned ghostwriter.

The art of capturing an authors voice is one of the greatest challenges to ghostwriting, she stated. Getting into their head, seeing the scene, the setting, the clothing, and the character's description through their eyes are all hurdles for any would-be ghostwriter. 

She provided each attendee sample copies of her Writing Agreements to give us an idea of what kinds of information a ghostwriter would want to include in a contract. The upside is the financial compensation can be pretty lucrative. Ten cents per word is a good rule-of-thumb she targets as a reasonable fee. 

Another issue ghostwriters will be confronted with is relinquishing their work to be used by the author. And should that book become a best seller or receive accolades, it can be a hard mouth full to swallow as you sit on your hands and wish them well. A situation with which she is familiar.