Ghostwriting & book coaching services
You have more expertise than you know what to do with. That is not your problem. Your problem is that it is living in your head, in 3 notebooks, in a folder called “book ideas FINAL v6”, and in a voice memo you recorded at 11pm and never played back.
There are 3 ways I get it out of you.
Crystal Adair-Benning. 4x NYT bestselling ghostwriter & book coach. 30 yrs in books, 200+ authors, 12+ countries.
3 ways to get the book out of you.
Some people want their own hands on the keyboard. Some people want the whole thing landing on their desk finished. Neither one makes you more of an author. It only changes who is typing.
Pick the one that matches your actual calendar, not the one that matches who you wish you were on a Sunday.
Ghostwriting
I write the book.
You talk. I write. A finished manuscript in your voice lands on your desk with your name on the cover. You show up for interviews and approvals and that is the entire ask. This is for the person whose calendar has no free Tuesdays and no intention of finding one.
ApplyCo-writing
You write, I shape.
You already have pages. Transcripts, keynote decks, half a draft, that Google Doc from 2023 you cannot bring yourself to open. That is material, not mess. I turn it into a book that holds together and you keep your hands on it the whole way.
ApplyBook coaching
Blank page to finished manuscript.
You write it. I am on every chapter with structure, deadlines and 30 yrs of knowing what actually sells. You get somebody who has done this 200+ times sitting on your shoulder while you do it once.
Book a call“I never dreamed I’d be on a bestseller list. Crystal made it happen and made the process feel like the most natural thing in the world.”
Peter Merrett, 2024 Australia Speaker of the YearWhat working with me actually looks like.
Nobody tells you this part, so here it is before you book anything.
- A call where I might talk you out of it.30 minutes, free. I ask what the book is for, who it is for, and what you want it to do for your business. I have told people their book was not ready. I will do it again. You would rather hear that now than 40,000 words in.
- We decide what the book is actually about.Most books die here, months later, because nobody did this part first. One idea, one reader, one reason the book exists. Least glamorous week of the whole thing. Most important one.
- Interviews, and the questions nobody has asked you.Recorded, in your time zone. Expect me to dig at the parts you skim over. The bit you are rushing past is usually the bit the book needs.
- Chapters, as we go.You are never handed 300 pages at the end and asked to hope. You watch it build, you approve it building, and you course-correct while correcting is still cheap.
- A finished manuscript with your name on it.Then the interesting part starts, because the book is a door and what it opens is the actual point.
What I am not going to do.
I will not write your book without you. The interviews are the method and there is no version of this where you are absent. I will not agree with every decision, because you are paying for 30 yrs of knowing what sells and I intend to use it. I will not tell you your book is brilliant if it is not, which is the most expensive service I offer and the one people thank me for years later.
What I specialise in.
Memoir
Memoir ghostwriting
Your life, written so people cannot put it down. 60 years of material, one story, your voice.
Memoir ghostwritingBusiness
Business book ghostwriting
Your method, written down properly. The asset that gets you the keynote, the board seat and the client who arrives already convinced.
Business booksCoaching
Book coaching
You write it, I am on every chapter. Structure, deadlines and the truth about whether it is working.
Book coachingWho I work with.
Entrepreneurs and founders, coaches and speakers, executives and CEOs. People who have done the courses, filled the notebooks, and still have not written the thing. Also the people I am not right for, which I would rather say on a page than on a call.
Write it somewhere beautiful.
If the problem is that life keeps interrupting, that is what Createcation™ retreats are for. Accommodation, meals, training and long uninterrupted writing time, in rooms built so the book actually gets written.
Want me on your stage or your mic?
Keynotes, workshops and guest spots on writing, publishing, ghostwriting and building an author platform.
The receipts.
- 4xNYT bestsellers
- 200+authors guided
- 12+countries
- 30 yrsin books
Worth reading next.
- What Does a Ghostwriter Actually Cost? An Honest Answer
- The Difference Between a Book Coach and a Ghostwriter
- Is Ghostwriting Ethical? The Truth About Who Actually Writes Bestsellers
- How to Write a Book When You Already Have a Full-Time Business
- 5 Reasons Not to Write the Book
- Your Book Is a Business Asset, and the Data to Prove It
Questions I get asked.
What’s the difference between ghostwriting and book coaching?
With ghostwriting I write the book. You sit for interviews, you approve drafts, a finished manuscript in your voice arrives on your desk. With coaching you write it and I am on every chapter. Structure, deadlines, edits, and the truth about what is working. Same destination. The only variable is who is at the keyboard.
Whose name goes on the book?
Yours. That is the entire point of a ghostwriter. The ideas are yours, the voice is yours, the credit is yours. I do not need my name on it and I never have.
Can I see the books you have written?
Some of them. Not names (I can’t) and not specifics (NDA). The ones I am free to show you are on my portfolio page with the client stories I have permission to tell. There are a lot more than that.
Do you only work with authors in Canada?
No. I am in Victoria, BC, and I work with authors across the USA, UK, Australia and New Zealand. 200+ authors across 12+ countries so far. Calls get booked around your time zone, not mine.
I have a folder of half-finished material. Is that too messy to start with?
That is the normal starting point. Transcripts, talks, voice notes, 3 abandoned drafts and a document called “book ideas FINAL v6”. That is material. Co-writing exists for exactly this.
How long does it take?
It depends on how much material exists and how fast approvals come back. I will give you a real timeline on the call instead of a number designed to sound impressive.
What does it cost?
More than a course and less than a bad hire. The number depends on which of the 3 paths you choose and how much material you already have, so I quote after the call rather than before it. My honest answer on what ghostwriting costs across the industry is here.
How do we start?
A free 30-minute call. I ask what the book is for, who it is for, and what you want it to do for your business. Then I tell you which of the 3 paths fits, or that now is not the time.
Not sure which one is yours?
Book a free 30-minute call. I will tell you which path fits your book, your calendar and your goals. If none of them do, I will tell you that too. I have talked people out of writing books before and I will do it again.
Book a strategy call