by Amanda Evans

Created on: January 09, 2009

I started ghostwriting back in 2004 and to this day I still love what I do. How did I get started ghostwriting? It all started when I first got the internet. I had always wanted to be a writer and I began my quest by looking for different writing websites. I began submitting some of my poetry and short stories and received excellent feedback. More and more people were telling me that I should be getting paid for my writing and that was the beginning.

I first started looking at freelance writing websites but the thought of all the hard work submitting query letters and not being guaranteed acceptance for articles just wasn't what I wanted. I began searching "get paid to write" and I came across Elance. Once I looked at this website and some of the projects that were posted, I knew this was for me. All I had to do was bid for the jobs I wanted and if I got them I was guaranteed payment. I signed up immediately and the rest as they say is history.

Elance is one of many bidding websites where writers can go and bid on ghostwriting jobs. If you bid is accepted you complete the assignment and you get paid. It's a simple as that. When I started ghostwriting I couldn't believe that I was actually getting paid for writing. I loved it and best of all I was able to make the same amount ghostwriting as I was in my 9 to 5 job. It was perfect for me and when my son was born in 2006 I quit my day job and became a stay at home mom.

I know that this all sounds great but let me assure you that becoming a successful ghostwriter takes a lot of hard work and time too. If you choose to go down the route of bidding websites such as Elance.com, Getafreelance.com, or Guru.com, you are not guaranteed to get an assignment. You will be bidding for the job against many other potential winners so you need to be confident in your writing skills and be able to sell yourself.

If you think you have what it takes to become a ghostwriter there are a few necessities. You will need to set up a paypal account so that you can receive payment and many of the bidding websites require you to pay a monthly membership fee. There are plenty of free bidding websites such as Getafreelancer.com where you can bid on up to 15 projects per month without paying any fees. If you find that you are successful you can then upgrade to gold membership status for a small fee of $12. Getafreelancer.com is a very busy freelance website but a lot of the jobs on offer here expect you to work for next to nothing. Elance is

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