Ghostwriting Agreement

What is a ghostwriting agreement?

Legal Definition

A ghostwriting agreement is a legally binding contract that defines creative collaboration between the parties in creation of copyright like books, novels or speeches.

A well-structured ghostwriting agreement sample address the following essential components:

• full details of the parties (i.e., names, addresses and contact information);
• description of services provided and final deliverable;
• schedule of services;
• compensation terms;
• obligations of the parties;
• termination clause;
• provisions regarding the transfer of intellectual property rights;
• confidentiality clause; and
• other standard contractual clauses (i.e., limitation of liability, governing law, etc.).

The parties involved in a freelance writing contract template are the writer and the client. The writer is an individual who has all necessary expertise and qualifications in the provision of professional writing services. The client could be an individual, company, or business that is willing to order professional services. Usually the client could be a public figure like an actor, political leader, etc.

Ghostwriting vs. Content Creation

A ghostwriting contract is a special type of general services agreement that sets up a legal framework for cooperation between the client and the writer.

However, this document shall not be confused with the content writer agreement. While both documents are similar in nature, as they deal with freelancer writing services, they are different as follows:

• IP Rights. The author of a created work under a content creation contract is the content creator. Thus, the content creator may publicly credit his or her ownership over the content and include it in the professional portfolio. Under the ghostwriting agreement contract, the real authorship is anonymous. In other words, once the work is created, the client becomes its legal owner and author.
• Type of Projects. The content creation services are usually ordered to write a post for social media or marketing or advertising materials, while ghostwriting services are more suitable for complex projects like public speeches or books.

How to draft a ghost writing contract template?

Crafting a ghost writing contract template from scratch is a challenging task. We’ve got you covered and made a short list of all essential components a legally binding template should have.

Scope of Services

A good example of a ghostwriting agreement sample includes the detailed description of services to be provided. This clause usually provides:

• type of a final deliverable (e.g., book, novel, speech, etc.);
• size of a final deliverable (i.e., a minimum required number of words);
• exclusivity of relations (i.e., the client may wish to limit the writer’s right to participate in other similar projects);
• deadlines, completion dates, or milestones (depending on the type and complexity of the deliverable); and
• number of free edits (i.e., a right of a client to request amendments or changes to the final deliverable).

Depending on the type of cooperation between the parties, the original writing contract template may also include a number of meetings or interviews with the client. This is usually required when creating biographies or stories based on true events.

Payment Terms

One more essential element for every ghostwriting agreement contract is a set of payment terms and conditions. In that case a well-written document should answer the questions below:

• How the writer shall be paid (e.g., a fixed fee, hourly rate, or weekly rate);
• What is the payment schedule (e.g., in full upon delivery of services, based on the issued invoice)?
• What are acceptable payment methods the client can use to make payments (e.g., cash, credit or debit card, or PayPal)?

It is less common to include late fees in case the client fails to pay the required sum on time. Usually, such a disadvantage is balanced by the right of a writer to end the contract immediately.

Termination of the Agreement

Either party can end the ghostwriting agreement at any time with or without cause. There are two possible ways to do that:

• immediate termination. A party has a right to end the contract immediately once a limited number of circumstances that trigger immediate termination occur. For instance, the client may end this contract instantly if the writer breaches exclusivity. On the other hand, the writer can terminate the contract once the client fails to pay in a timely manner.
• planned termination. This is a contractual right of both parties to end the contract without cause by sending a prior written notice to another party. A notice period for a writing contract template is usually relatively small and lasts between 7 and 14 days.

Obligations of Clients

A vital part of every ghostwriting agreement contract is a list of the client’s obligations that includes:

• provision of all requested information in a timely manner;
• communication of feedback in a clear and professional way;
• refrain from intervention into the writer’s creative process (the client can only judge the deliverable itself);
• provision of payments on time.

Failure to comply with either of the duties listed above may directly affect the quality of a final deliverable. For instance, imagine you order someone to write your biography but fail to provide any accurate information about yourself at all.

Intellectual Property Rights

In the course of cooperation under a ghost writer contract template, the writer creates an intellectual property right—i.e., a final deliverable. By virtue of law the writer becomes an automatic author of such a work, which grants the writer full right to use, dispose of, or modify the work, as well as to claim their authorship publicly.

The main purpose of a ghostwriting agreement, however, is to transfer authorship for a final deliverable in full to the client. So that the client can publicly announce that they are an author of that work, speech, book, etc. Therefore, the text of a final document shall clearly stipulate a transfer of all related intellectual property rights for the final deliverable from the writer to the client.

Confidentiality Clause

The last mandatory element a good ghost writer contract template includes is the confidentiality clause. It obliges both parties to refrain from disclosure of any information that becomes available to either party during their cooperation under this agreement.

The non-disclosure obligation remains in force not only for the whole period of the cooperation but also for some time after the agreement ends. There is, however, an exception to that rule. The writer cannot disclose at any time their authorship for the deliverable under the agreement. This is actually the main reason why the writer is being referred to as a “ghostwriter.”

How to customize a ghostwriting agreement at FasterDraft?

To get a fully customized legal document, follow a few easy steps below:

1. Click the “Create Document’ button.
2. Answer simple questions in the form.
3. Select a template’s format—ghostwriting agreement PDF or Word.
4. Make a payment.
5. E-sign, download, and instantly use your template.