Debra Devi, Ghostwriter in Jersey City, NJ, USA

Overview

I ghostwrite award-winning memoirs, and bestselling nonfiction books on topics ranging from entrepreneurship and investing to neuroscience and music. My book proposals have secured my clients representation by top literary agents. Publishers include Ballantine, Random House, BenBella Books, Penguin and Prentice Hall.

I co-authored a teacher's multi-award-winning memoir, which reached #22 on Amazon Biographies and is being developed into a film. I wrote a #3 WSJ bestseller with a Fortune 500 consultant/neuroscientist. Another memoir I co-authored is now an Off-Broadway play. I have also ghostwritten top-selling books on investing and yoga.

I genuinely enjoy collaborating with fascinating people--helping them tell their stories and share their ideas. I focus on creating a compelling page-turner that feels like it was written by YOU. My clients have included a popular rock musician, the leading global expert in entrepreneurship education, celebrity yoga teachers, a neuroscientist and a senior VP at Bank of America.

I hold a B.A. in economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and an M.S. from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. If you need an article, blog post or Wikipedia entry, don't worry, I can do that, too. I've written lots of short-form content for my clients.

Together, we'll figure out what process works best for you and your schedule. I will do what it takes to make you feel comfortable and confident every step along the way--while making sure we hit every deadline.

I'm also a working musician, which led to me write my own award-winning book about the blues.

RECENT BOOKS:

#3 Wall Street Journal Bestseller THE BRAIN-FRIENDLY WORKPLACE: WHY TALENTED PEOPLE QUIT AND HOW TO GET THEM TO STAY for Fortune 500 consultant and neuroscientist Friederike Fabritius (Rowman & Littlefield 2022)

#22 Amazon Biography (#1 in four additional categories) GOODBYE HOMEBOY: HOW MY STUDENTS DROVE ME CRAZY AND INSPIRED A MOVEMENT (foreword by Wes Moore) with Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship founder Steve Mariotti (BenBella Books 2019)

ALMOST GROWN: A NEW YORK MEMOIR for rock musician Jesse Malin (Akashic Books, 2026)

SHORT FORM CONTENT:

You'll find a sampling of my short-form content below, including a list of Huffington Post articles I wrote for Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship founder Steve Mariotti, a Village Voice article I wrote for rock musician Jesse Malin, and Wikipedia entries for big data expert Ted Myerson and Steve Mariotti.

Let's create something extraordinary together!

Services

Book Ghostwriting

Book Proposal

Short-Form Content

Non-Fiction

Biographies & Memoirs Business & Management Entertainment Music

Languages

English (US)

Awards

ASCAP Deems Taylor Award for The Language of the Blues: From Alcorub to Zuzu
2020 Next Generation Indie Book Award for Education for Goodbye Homeboy
2019 Nautilus Book Awards Winner for Goodbye Homeboy
Independent Press Gold Medal for Education for Goodbye Homeboy
NABE Pinnacle Book Achievement Award, Best Autobiography of the Year for Goodbye Homeboy
2019 Author of the Year, American Human Rights Society for Goodbye Homeboy

Work experience

Ghostwriter

Self-employed

Jun, 2022 — Dec, 2024 (over 2 years)

ALMOST GROWN: A NEW YORK MEMOIR (Akashic Books, spring 2026) by Jesse Malin with Debra Devi - I worked closely with rock musician Jesse Malin on this intimate, voice-driven memoir. We met weekly either in person or by phone when he was touring. "Jesse Malin’s new memoir is raw and sweet and gritty―and surprisingly gripping. I’ve long been a fan of Jesse’s music, but I knew next to nothing about the man behind the songs until I read the dramatic and poignant NYC tale of his rise." ― Harlan Coben, author of I Will Find You "Almost Grown stands toe to toe with The Basketball Diaries as a story about growing up in New York" ― Lucinda Williams "New York City is the center of the universe, and there is no New York City without Jesse Malin." ― Billie Joe Armstrong, Green Day

Ghostwriter

Self-employed

Feb, 2021 — Nov, 2021 (9 months)

THE BRAIN-FRIENDLY WORKPLACE: WHY TALENTED PEOPLE QUIT AND HOW TO GET THEM TO STAY (Rowan and Littlefield in 2022) - This long-distance collaboration culminated in the #3 Wall Street Journal Bestseller. I worked with neuroscientist and Fortune 500 consultant Friederike Fabritius daily over Zoom from her home in Germany until we got her book just right.

Ghostwriter

Self-employed

May, 2017 — Dec, 2018 (over 1 year)

GOODBYE HOMEBOY: HOW MY STUDENTS DROVE ME CRAZY AND INSPIRED A MOVEMENT (foreword by Wes Moore, BenBella Books 2019) - I have written many books with Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship founder Steve Mariotti, but this memoir of his early career teaching special ed in the South Bronx is my favorite. The transformative effect learning about entrepreneurship had on these children kicked off a global movement in entrepreneurship education for low-income youth. GOODBYE HOMEBOY rose to #22 on the Amazon Biographies list, and #1 in four additional Amazon categories. It has won multiple awards and I'm currently developing it into a movie with producer Richard Baratta (The Irishman, Wolf of Wall Street).

Ghostwriter

Self-employed

Jan, 2013 — Nov, 2013 (10 months)

AN ENTREPRENEUR'S MANIFESTO (Templeton Press, 2015) - "There is no more revolutionary act than starting a business" is how this treatise on the power of entrepreneurship to uplift communities begins. This is Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship founder Steve Mariotti's definitive statement on the positive impact of encouraging entrepreneurship around the globe.

Ghostwriter

Self-employed

Jan, 2010 — Dec, 2010 (11 months)

THE COMPLETE IDIOT'S GUIDE TO INVESTING LIKE A PRO (Alpha Books/Penguin, multiple editions) - I met weekly with Bank of American senior VP Ed T. Koch to pick his brain about investing and write multiple editions of his top-selling book on investing. Ed's best advice: If you come into money, do not buy a boat.

Ghostwriter

Self-employed

Jan, 2006 — Aug, 2007 (over 1 year)

JIVAMUKTI YOGA: PRACTICES FOR LIBERATING BODY AND SOUL (foreword by Sting, Ballantine Books 2008) - One of my first ghostwriting projects was this inspiring book by celebrity yoga teachers Sharon Gannon and David Life. We spent weeks working together at their home in Woodstock - often going til 2 am and then trekking outside in the snow to unwind in a hot tub under the stars.