Greenspan Selects Co-Author

According to one report, Alan Greenspan has chosen a co-author for his upcoming memoir. The former chairman of the Federal Reserve signed a reported $8.5 million deal with Penguin Press and has selected Peter Petre to assist with the writing chores. Petre is a senior editor at large for Fortune magazine and co-authored best-sellers with General Norman Schwarzkopf and former IBM chairman Thomas J. Watson.

One of the reasons this article caught my attention was that I’ve always wondered how much co-authors and ghost writers make. Obviously, a lot depends on the specific book deal, celebrity, and experience of the co-author. But in this case, the report said that Petre “received a reported $500,000 for his work on Schwarzkopf’s book.”

I expect you would earn at least that much for ghost writing Corey Feldman’s memoir. Or maybe Screech from Saved By the Bell. You probably have to accept much less for working with lesser known celebrities.