Going Global

Going Global (published in InPrint magazine)

I’m not really sure how this has happened but, suddenly, the international clients I have on my books, far outnumber the domestic ones. News seems to have travelled and, strangely, there seems to be a global requirement for the humble ghostwriter. Up until recently, I have made a decent living from my home in London, happily visiting my local clients on a weekly or monthly basis, busily drinking tea and munching biscuits during interviews, and generally having a grand old time. Clients living abroad are a different kettle of fish altogether, but exciting all the same. Take my new Greek client, a wealthy businessman based in Athens. This is how one of our first conversations went:

Client: Let’s organise a meeting and chat about my idea for the book.

Me: No problem (flicking frantically through my diary). I am free to chat next Tuesday or Wednesday.

Client: Great. I will book you on a flight to Athens at 7am next Tuesday morning, put you up in a hotel, and you can flight home on the Wednesday.

Me: I thought you were talking about a chat over the phone!

Client: Nope. Let’s get you over here and we can chat in person.

Me: Gulp.

In the end, he came over to London (which suited me as I simply didn’t have the time to jet off to Greece at a moment’s notice, darling), and we spent a very pleasant day of interviews in a rather posh 5-star hotel (no biscuits, though, which was very disappointing).

The thing with international clients is that they open up a whole new world of possibilities. As this particular business book progresses, I will be over and back to Athens (which is nice) on a regular basis and, hopefully, experiencing some real sunshine – let’s face it, any time spent away from the Great British Summer is surely time well spent. But it doesn’t end there. I am also lucky enough to have clients in France, Dubai (genius!), and LA. One client has even decided that she is sending me on a tour of Turkey and Armenia, all in the name of research. Well, I’ll have to think about it . . .

When I was first starting out, I used to hear about the great travel opportunities available to the determined ghost, but I never really thought it would happen to me. However, having clients all over the world takes you out of your comfort zone a bit, and changes the way you work. For instance, not every client is able to arrange a personal meet-and-greet so a lot of work is carried out over the phone. However, nothing beats a personal meeting at the beginning of a project, as it gives you both the opportunity to weigh each other up and really decide whether you are compatible or not: this is absolutely crucial as you will be spending more time with this person than your own wife/husband/family, so it is vital that your personalities mesh from the get-go.

After the initial ‘bonding session’, things fall into place a bit more easily, and interviewing over the phone becomes less formal – more like a chat than anything else. However, as someone who likes meeting with clients in person on a regular basis, I do find the phone interviews a bit more arduous, mainly because it rules out the ability to read body language and facial expression. Email doesn’t exactly make up for personal contact either. But, in a way, it’s also exciting to get to grips with a different way of working.

Another point to consider when taking on international clients is cultural differences. I have a French client who has good English, but he sometimes struggles to find the correct English word when giving feedback on a piece of work I have written for him so, instead, he chooses a much more extreme version. For example, if he doesn’t like something, he will call it ‘a disaster!’ or ‘a tragedy!’ (accompanied by putting his head in his hands, or flapping his arms about in a violent manner). This can be a little disconcerting for the sensitive writer, especially when the catalyst for all this drama is the simple omission of a comma. However, as time goes on, I have learned not to take his harsh criticism too seriously, and we have both reached a silent but mutual understanding i.e. He flaps, and I ignore. It seems to be working out rather well . . . .

So, in short, international clients are great people to have on your books. What could be better than visiting different countries, learning about new cultures, writing about international matters, and, generally, gaining even more knowledge and experience? They are truly a gateway to a whole new world for ghostwriters.