by Nick Pollack Most people think the hardest part of writing is getting started. “If only I had the time / one day I’ll start / once the kids are at uni” But starting isn’t the hardest part. The hardest part is finishing. The road to hell is paved with unfinished manuscripts, someone wiser than me once said. Finishing means pushing past the part where it stops being fun, someone after the first act, or the first 100 pages in a novel . It’s where the excitement fades, the sel

By Nick Pollack, The Paperback Writer Bureau James Patterson is one of the most prolific authors in publishing history. Over 300 titles to his name, hundreds of millions of copies sold - the scale is almost unbelievable. Yet even for someone writing as much as he does, every word doesn’t come from one pen. Patterson’s model is a masterclass in narrative scalability, collaboration, and disciplined process. Let’s unpack how he does it - and what ghostwriters who care about craf

By Nick Pollack, The Paperback Writer Bureau Every great story starts the same way: With fragments. A few pages of notes.Half a screenplay.Voice memos.A lifetime of experiences that feel important - but not yet shaped into a narrative. That’s where most people get stuck. They know they have  a story, but not how to begin  it. Working with a ghostwriter bridges that gap - but a little preparation before you start can turn a good collaboration into a great one. 1. Know what kin

By Nick Pollack, The Paperback Writer Bureau One of the most common questions I hear is this: “How can a ghostwriter possibly capture my voice?” It’s a fair question. Your voice - the cadence of your thoughts, the rhythm of your sentences, the honesty in your pauses - is what makes your story yours. So how can someone else write in it without losing the soul of what you’re trying to say? The truth: a good ghostwriter doesn’t replace your voice. They reveal it. Voice is music

By Nick Pollack, The Paperback Writer Bureau Every great book begins the same way - in chaos. A scattered folder of notes.Half-written chapters. A string of voice memos recorded in traffic.A feeling that there’s something there , but no idea where to start. That’s the moment most people find me. As a ghostwriter, my job is to take that raw, unfiltered energy - the story you’ve been carrying - and build it into a finished book ready for readers, publishers, or screens. Here’s

By Nick Pollack — The Paperback Writer Bureau You’ve read our work - you just don’t know it. Ghostwriting is one of the biggest invisible industries in publishing. It doesn’t make headlines or roll credits, but it’s everywhere. From business memoirs and celebrity autobiographies to political essays and viral op-eds - ghostwriters are behind many of them. Not because the credited author isn’t capable, but because they’re busy being  the story: building companies, leading teams

By Nick Pollack, The Paperback Writer Bureau I’ve spent most of my life writing stories for other people. Sometimes for studios. Sometimes for producers. Sometimes for audiences who never knew my name. Over the years, I’ve written or developed more than 30 screenplays across genres -thrillers, dramas, comedies, and even faith-based projects. I’ve worked in the world of film and television production for over two decades , editing, shaping, and storytelling across visual medi

By Nick Pollack, The Paperback Writer Bureau Let’s start with the truth: Most great books, memoirs, and screenplays you know weren’t written alone. Behind the name on the cover, there’s often a ghost - a professional storyteller quietly shaping the prose, structuring the narrative, and refining the rhythm of every sentence. And there’s no shame in that. In fact, it’s smart. Hiring a ghostwriter isn’t an act of vanity or deception. It’s an act of clarity - recognising that you

By Nick Pollack, The Paperback Writer Bureau Screenwriting and novel writing share a heartbeat - but they speak different dialects. One deals in action and dialogue. The other breathes in thought and texture. If screenwriting is architecture, novel writing is atmosphere. And ghostwriting across both means learning how to translate between the two - between blueprint and breath. After more than twenty years in film and television, I’ve learned that every story that works on sc

By Nick Pollack, The Paperback Writer Bureau Let’s start with the obvious: Artificial intelligence has changed how people write. It can mimic tone faster than any human could. But when it comes to ghostwriting, the intimate process of turning someone’s lived experience or creative vision into something real, AI is a tool, not a storyteller. The ethical question isn’t whether  to use AI. It ’s how . Ghostwriting is about humanity, not automation At its core, ghostwriting is hu