Ghostwriter Book Quote Calculator: Price a Book From Your Hours

How much should you charge to ghostwrite this book? Price it from your hours.

Type the word count and how long each part of the job really takes. The tool builds a flat fee that holds your target hourly rate after commission, shows the per-word and per-page rate that results, a deposit and milestone schedule, what a 25% overrun does to your real hourly, and what a client's lower budget pays you.

Arithmetic on assumptions you type. Not legal, tax or financial advice. The example figures are placeholders, not market rates or a recommendation.

1. The book

Target word count

Finished words per hour of drafting

Revision rounds included

Cost of each round as a share of drafting hours (0.1 = 10%)

2. The other hours

Interview hours with the client

Prep and transcript hours per interview hour

Research hours

Project management and email hours

3. Your rate and terms

Hourly rate you want to earn ($)

Premium for uncredited work (0.25 = 25%)

Rush premium (0.2 = 20%)

Marketplace or agency commission you pay (0.1 = 10%)

Expenses passed through at cost ($)

Client's stated budget, if any ($, 0 = none)

Overrun to stress-test (0.25 = 25% more hours)

Deposit share (0.3 = 30%)

Payments after the deposit

Questions ghostwriters ask

How much does a ghostwriter charge for a book?

Quotes for a full-length nonfiction book commonly run from low five figures to well over $100,000 depending on experience, and the range is wide because scope differs. The honest way to price is from hours: drafting, interviews, research, revision rounds and project management, times the hourly rate you need, plus premiums. This tool does that arithmetic and shows the per-word and per-page rate that falls out. The figures are not market data.

Should a ghostwriter charge per word, per hour or a flat fee?

Clients usually want a flat fee and writers are safest when that flat fee was derived from hours. Per-word pricing hides interview and revision time; hourly pricing worries clients who cannot cap the cost. Build the flat fee from hours, then check the implied per-word rate against what the client expects.

Why charge more for uncredited work?

Credited work gives you a portfolio line and referrals; uncredited work gives you neither and often an NDA. Many ghostwriters add a confidentiality premium for that. The tool lets you set the percentage, and shows how much of the fee it accounts for.

How do I handle clients who want unlimited revisions?

Price a fixed number of revision rounds into the fee and a separate price for each extra round. The tool shows what one extra round costs at your rate so you can write it into the agreement.

What if the client's budget is below my number?

Type their budget. The tool shows the hourly rate you would earn at that fee, and how many words of book that budget buys at your target rate with the same interviews and research, so you can offer a shorter book or a smaller scope instead of a discount.

Is this legal or financial advice?

No. It is arithmetic on figures you type. Contracts, rights and tax treatment of your income are for you and a qualified professional.

Not decided

Contract terms, rights and royalties, kill fees, co-author or "with" credit negotiation, sales tax and self-employment tax on the fee, currency conversion, and what the market will bear. A fee that is right on paper can still lose the job; the tool only tells you what the job costs you.