At Adducent, ghostwriting engagements range from $15,000 to $75,000+, depending on the type of book, its scope, and its complexity. I’m Dennis Lowery. I’ve ghostwritten 42 books since 2008 — 17 novels, 14 nonfiction titles, 9 memoirs, and 2 works of creative nonfiction — and this page explains what that money buys, what the rest of the market charges, and how to read the quotes you’re going to get.
The three tiers of the ghostwriting market
$2,000–$10,000: agencies and mills. Search “ghostwriting services” and most of what you’ll find are high-volume agencies, many operating dozens of near-identical brands, quoting $2,000 to $10,000 for a “complete book.” At that price, the economics work only one way: templated writing produced by low-paid or AI-assisted staff, and the real revenue collected later through upsells — publishing packages, marketing packages, “bestseller campaigns.” Often you will not be told who is actually writing your book, because the answer changes weekly. If a price in this tier fits your budget and your expectations, go in with clear eyes; just know what the price structure means.
$15,000–$75,000+: working professionals. This is where established independent ghostwriters and small studios operate. Reedsy’s 2026 marketplace data puts memoir ghostwriting at $18,000–$50,000 and business books at $30,000–$48,000. Adducent’s range starts slightly below that band — $15,000 covers smaller, tightly scoped projects — and extends above it for long or complex work.
$100,000–$500,000+: the celebrity tier. Ghostwriting for public figures with major-publisher deals, arranged through literary agencies. This tier is real, and the work is often excellent. If you have a national platform and an agent, it’s where you should shop. Most authors don’t need it.
What moves a quote inside my range
Three things: type, scope, and complexity.
Type. A memoir built from your memory and a few dozen hours of interviews is a different project from a business book requiring research and source-checking, which is different again from a novel, where the story must be engineered, not just captured.
Scope. Word count is the crude measure; the true one is how much raw material exists and how much must be created. A book from a client who has transcripts, journals, and documents prices differently from one that starts with an empty page and a life story told across interview sessions.
Complexity. Multiple points of view, technical or classified-adjacent material that must be handled carefully, archival research, sensitive family or business history, translation of a non-native-English speaker’s voice — each adds working time. The largest engagement I’ve taken was a four-book historical fiction series: 710,681 words, written over five years.
What the fee includes
Every Adducent engagement follows the Story Studio Process — Idea → Development → Completion — and the fee covers all of it: planning and structure, interviews (including a call-in dictation line available around the clock), the writing itself, and revision until the manuscript is done. You work with me directly. Every engagement is confidential, and when the book is finished you own all rights to it — both are in the contract, not implied. Your name goes on the cover. Mine doesn’t, and doesn’t need to.
Before you commit to anything, we set the terms in the open: timing and a milestone schedule with deliverables are established during the project proposal and discussion process — the last step before your decision to proceed.
How to vet any ghostwriter — including me
Ask these five questions of anyone you’re considering:
- Who, by name, will write my book? If the answer is a team, a process, or a brand, walk.
- What have they written? Ask for scope and category — a credible ghostwriter can describe their body of work in verifiable terms even when client names are confidential.
- Who owns the rights, and where does the contract say so?
- Why is the quote the number it is? A professional can decompose their price into type, scope, and complexity. A mill can only offer you a discount.
- What happens if the first draft isn’t right? Revision terms tell you whether the price is for a manuscript or for a finished book.
Ready to talk?
A consultation call costs nothing and obligates you to nothing. Bring your story; I’ll tell you honestly what it needs, what it would cost, and whether I’m the right writer for it — and if I’m not, I’ll say so. Contact us and request a call appointment.
FAQ SECTION
How much does it cost to have a memoir ghostwritten? At Adducent, $15,000–$50,000 is a typical range for memoirs, depending on scope and complexity. Industry-wide, Reedsy’s 2026 marketplace data shows $18,000–$50,000 for professional memoir ghostwriting. Quotes far below that range are priced for a different product.
Why do ghostwriting quotes vary so much? Because the market has three tiers with different economics: volume agencies ($2,000–$10,000, templated work plus upsells), working professionals ($15,000–$75,000+), and agency-brokered celebrity projects ($100,000+). Within the professional tier, price follows type, scope, and complexity.
How long does a ghostwritten book take? Most single-book engagements run three to six months; scope and workload can extend that. Timing and a milestone schedule with deliverables are set during the project proposal and discussion process — the last step before the decision to proceed.
Do I own the rights to a ghostwritten book? At Adducent, yes — clients own all rights to the work created for them, stated in the contract. Ask any ghostwriter you’re considering to show you where their contract says the same.
Is my project confidential? Yes. Every Adducent engagement is confidential, and that is stated in the contract, not implied.
Is it cheaper to write a book with AI? Cheaper, yes. The question is what you’re buying. A book worth putting your name on requires judgment about what to include, what to cut, and how to make your voice carry — that’s the work, and it’s why professional ghostwriting costs what it costs.
ABOUT US
Adducent, founded July 5, 2000, is a story and book development company based in Jacksonville, Florida. Founder Dennis Lowery is a U.S. Navy veteran (Operations Specialist) who spent the 1990s in aerospace manufacturing, then more than eight years in business consulting, planning, and development for growth through acquisitions alongside M&A attorneys and investment bankers. He completed his first book in 2008, and in 2009 the company’s focus became writing and publishing.
Since 2008, Dennis has ghostwritten 42 books—17 novels, 14 nonfiction titles, 9 memoirs, and 2 works of creative nonfiction. More than 2.9 million words of client work, including a four-book historical fiction series of 710,681 words written over five years.
As a publisher, Adducent has produced more than 100 titles under three imprints: FORTIS (nonfiction and memoir), BOOKNOLOGY (business and educational nonfiction), ESCRIRE (fiction), with global print-on-demand distribution through Ingram — a network that, by Ingram’s account, reaches 50% of the world’s population. STANDFAST (titles from Special Forces / special-operations veterans and the Intelligence Community) is a new imprint established in 2026.
Clients include business founders and executives, military leaders, and private individuals across the United States and in Toronto, London, Paris, Oman, India, Vietnam, Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan, and New Zealand.
Engagements follow Adducent’s Story Studio Process (Idea → Development → Completion). Ghostwriting engagements range from $15,000 to $75,000+ depending on type, scope, and complexity. Clients own all rights to the work created for them. Dennis is a member of the Authors Guild.