Some writers would not dream of spending their time and energy writing an engaging, thought-provoking piece as a ghostwriter and allowing another person to take credit for their work. However, others enjoy the anonymity of ghostwriting. They want their words to spread to others, but they want to do so in an anonymous way that does not draw attention to themselves. Furthermore, it is relatively easy to find lucrative ghostwriting assignments, but it may be more difficult to get paid writing under your own name. While there are benefits associated with ghostwriting, there are reasons why you may consider writing under your own name as well.

An Established Reputation

You may be one of the most prolific ghostwriters in the world, but you won’t have much to show for your efforts except money in your pocket. Because a ghostwriter’s work is published under a pen name or with credit to another individual, the hard work of a ghostwriter goes unrecognized. However, when you publish your own work, you can establish a great reputation under your own name for your writing talents.

Proven Experience

There are many reasons why you may need to prove your experience as a writer. You may not have any plans to head back into the regular workforce now, but there may come a time in the future when you will need to prove your experience as a freelance writer. When you only write pieces that others take credit for, you will be hard-pressed to show that you actually wrote those pieces. This can be it difficult for you to document the extensive experience that you have had in the field up to this point. In addition, you may need to prove your experience to other clients who want to see what you can do. While you can send them Word document with your work typed into it, it is far more impressive to send links to your work that is published under your own name.

Higher Paychecks

With the ability to prove your extensive experience as a writer and to show that you have an established reputation for quality work, you may be able to command a higher paycheck on certain assignments. Some writers have developed a loyal following, and many companies will pay to take advantage of that following. Other companies and clients may simply want to know that they are hiring one of the best writers out there, and this is most easily proven when you have a solid reputation in the industry and the ability to easily prove your experience.

It is understandable that you may want to maintain an element of privacy in your life. After all, having your work published with your name and a headshot next to it and thrown out there for anyone and everyone to see may be desirable for some, but it is not what everyone wants to experience. If you prefer to ghostwrite your pieces, you should consider publishing at least a few pieces under your own name from time to time in order to enjoy the benefits outlined here.