Book Proposal Ghostwriter: Costs, Contents & Timeline

If you want a traditional publisher for a non-fiction book, such as business, self-help, health, history, science or narrative non-fiction, the first thing you need isn’t the book. It’s the proposal. Agents and editors decide whether to take a project from the proposal and a sample chapter or two, and the advance is often negotiated on that basis. Because so much depends on it, many authors hire a professional to write it, even if they plan to write the book themselves.

What’s in a book proposal?

Section	What it does	Typical length
Overview	The hook: what the book is, why now, why it matters	3–8 pages
About the author	Your credentials and why you’re the person to write it	1–2 pages
Platform	Your audience: email list, social following, speaking, media, clients, partners	2–5 pages
Target readers	Who buys it, and how many of them there are	1–2 pages
Comparable titles	4–8 recent books it sits alongside, and how yours differs	2–4 pages
Marketing plan	What you’ll do to sell copies, concretely	2–4 pages
Chapter outline	A paragraph or more per chapter	5–15 pages
Sample chapters	Proof you (or your team) can deliver the book	1–2 chapters

See a full book proposal example for how these sections read in practice.

How much does a book proposal ghostwriter cost?

Scope	Typical cost
Proposal edit or “polish” of your draft	$2,000–$6,000
Full proposal, no sample chapter	$5,000–$12,000
Full proposal plus 1–2 sample chapters	$8,000–$20,000
High-profile or big-advance proposal	$20,000–$35,000

Many ghostwriters will credit part or all of the proposal fee against writing the full book if the proposal sells. Ask about that up front, along with what happens if it doesn’t sell. You still own the proposal and can use it to self-publish or try again later.

What makes a proposal sell?

• A sharp hook. An agent should be able to describe your book in a sentence after reading the first page.
• Platform, shown with numbers. Publishers want to know you can reach readers. Concrete numbers (subscribers, audience size, speaking dates, partner organisations) beat adjectives.
• Honest comparable titles. Recent books (usually from the last three to five years) that sold well, but not the one-in-a-million blockbuster.
• A marketing plan you’ll actually carry out, not a list of things the publisher should do.
• Sample chapters in the book’s real voice, polished to the standard of the finished book.

How does working with a proposal ghostwriter go?

1. Discovery sessions (3–6 hours) on your idea, expertise, audience and goals.
2. Positioning: the hook, the title options and the comparable titles, agreed before drafting.
3. Drafting the proposal sections and the chapter outline.
4. Sample chapter(s), written from interviews.
5. Revisions, usually one or two rounds, and sometimes another round after early agent feedback.

Total time is typically 6–12 weeks. Your time is 10–20 hours.

Do I need a proposal for my book?

• Non-fiction for a traditional publisher: yes. It’s the standard way these books are sold.
• Memoir: it depends. Memoirs by people with a public profile often sell on a proposal. First-time memoirists are usually expected to have a complete or near-complete manuscript.
• Fiction: usually no. Debut novels are sold on the finished manuscript and a query letter.
• Self-publishing: no. But a proposal-style plan (audience, positioning, comparable titles, marketing) still makes a better book.

Not sure whether traditional publishing is right for you? Read self-publishing vs traditional publishing and how to get a book agent. When you’re ready, take the writer match quiz to be matched with a writer who has sold proposals in your category.

Frequently asked questions