How A Ghostwriter Turns Lived Experience Into A Book People Want To Read

What does it take to turn real life into a book readers can’t put down?

In this episode, I talk with Dr. Amanda Edgar,award-winning author, ghostwriter, and founder of Page and Podium Press, about the craft and business of memoir and prescriptive nonfiction. 

Amanda shares how she helped document firsthand stories from the summer of 2020 for a follow-up to her 2018 Black Lives Matter book, and why she measures success not just in sales, but in impact and ongoing conversations.

We also get practical. Amanda explains what ghostwriting really involves—from interviews and research to collaborative outlining and preserving a client’s voice. She discusses timelines, her 3,000-words-per-week writing cadence, tools like Scrivener, and why her press avoids AI-generated prose to protect authenticity and trust.

For aspiring ghostwriters, Amanda shares business advice: start with a few projects, set up your contracts and LLC, and choose a marketing channel you actually enjoy—her YouTube strategy brings in steady organic leads.

Finally, we talk about the emotional side of memoir writing: interviewing people about painful experiences, honoring their stories, and knowing which projects align with your values. Amanda also previews two upcoming books, including a guide to her Memoir Method and her own deeply personal memoir about surviving a hidden abusive relationship.

If you’re interested in memoir, ghostwriting, or writing books that make an impact, this episode is for you.

Send us Fan Mail

Support the show

📬 JOIN THE NEWSLETTER

The Storyteller Quest is  a weekly letter on writing,
publishing, and the business of books.

Subscribe, and I'll send you Traditional, Self, or Hybrid? —
11 pages on what each publishing path really costs, plus a
7-question worksheet that tells you which one is yours.

Subscribe here.