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The ChatFeatured Ghost integration allows you to publish articles directly to your Ghost publication. Authenticate with your Ghost Admin API Key, then publish articles with a single click. Status: Available | Setup time: 10 minutes | Complexity: Beginner

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Why Ghost?

Ghost is a membership and newsletter platform built for content creators. The ChatFeatured integration lets you publish blog articles while maintaining Ghost’s email newsletter features and membership tiers.
Ghost’s API supports memberships, newsletters, and paywalls natively. Once you publish from ChatFeatured, you can immediately configure member access levels and email distribution directly in Ghost.

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Setup Instructions

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Step 1: Open Your Ghost Admin

  1. Go to your Ghost admin dashboard at yourblog.ghost.io/ghost
  2. Log in with your Ghost account

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Step 2: Create a Custom Integration

  1. Navigate to Settings → Integrations
  2. Scroll down and click “Add custom integration”
  3. Enter name: “ChatFeatured”
  4. Click “Create”

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Step 3: Copy Your Admin API Key

  1. In the custom integration details, find the “Admin API Key” field
  2. Click “Reveal” to show the key
  3. Copy the entire key
The format should be: 64a1b2c3d4e5...abc:def123gh456
Critical API Key Format: The Admin API Key MUST be in the format {id}:{secret} with a colon separating ID and secret. If the key doesn’t contain a colon, you may have copied the Content API Key by mistake. Always use the Admin API Key for publishing.

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Step 4: Connect in ChatFeatured

  1. In ChatFeatured, go to Integrations → Ghost
  2. Enter your Ghost Site URL (e.g., https://yourblog.ghost.io)
  3. Paste your Admin API Key from Step 3
  4. Click “Test Connection” to verify
  5. Click “Connect Ghost” to save
Test the connection before publishing to ensure your API Key is correct. This saves time debugging later.
Once connected, your Ghost site will appear as a publish destination.

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Publishing Articles

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Publish an Article

  1. In ChatFeatured, click Publish on your article
  2. Select Ghost as the destination
  3. Configure publishing options:
    • Site URL: Your Ghost domain (auto-filled)
    • Admin API Key: Your authentication key (auto-filled)
    • Title: Article title
    • Content: Article body
  4. Click “Publish to Ghost” to save
Your article will be created as a draft in Ghost and appear in your admin dashboard.
Articles always publish as drafts first. This lets you review them in Ghost before making them live. You maintain full control over when to publish.

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Edit in Ghost

After publishing from ChatFeatured:
  1. Log into your Ghost admin
  2. Go to Posts (or Pages if you published as a page)
  3. Click your article to edit
  4. Configure:
    • Publish status: Schedule or publish immediately
    • Featured image: Add cover image
    • Tags: Organize your content
    • Excerpt: Set custom summary
    • Access level: Public, Members-only, or Paid members
  5. Click “Publish” when ready

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Advanced Features

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Membership Tiers

Ghost natively supports membership and paywalls. After publishing from ChatFeatured:
  1. Edit the article in Ghost
  2. Set Access level to:
    • Public — Everyone can read
    • Members only — Logged-in members
    • Paid members only — Paid subscribers
This is where Ghost shines for creators—set paywall access right in the article editor. Articles published from ChatFeatured can immediately be configured for paid membership tiers.

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Email Newsletter

Ghost automatically sends articles to your newsletter subscribers:
  1. Configure newsletter settings in Ghost admin
  2. Published articles automatically get email distribution
  3. Subscribers receive notifications of new posts
Make sure articles are published (not draft) for newsletter distribution to trigger. Draft articles won’t be sent to your subscriber list.

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Social Sharing

Ghost auto-generates social media cards. Customize the preview:
  1. Edit article in Ghost
  2. Click “SEO” tab
  3. Set custom meta description and social preview image

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Troubleshooting

Cause: Invalid site URL or incorrect Admin API KeySolution:
  • Verify Ghost site URL matches exactly (e.g., https://yourblog.ghost.io)
  • Ensure Admin API Key includes both ID and secret with colon separator (id:secret)
  • Generate a new API Key in Ghost Settings → Integrations
  • Check that you copied the Admin API Key, not Content API Key
Cause: Key is missing the ID:secret separatorSolution:
  • Admin API Key must contain a colon (:) in the middle
  • Format should be: 64a1b2c3d4e5...abc:def123gh456
  • If your key doesn’t have a colon, regenerate it in Ghost
  • You may have copied the wrong key type (use Admin, not Content)
Cause: API Key invalid or permissions insufficientSolution:
  • Test connection in ChatFeatured settings
  • Verify API Key hasn’t expired (regenerate if needed)
  • Check your Ghost user role has admin or editor permissions
  • Try publishing a new test article
  • Check Ghost admin to see if article appears as draft
Cause: API Key lacks proper permissionsSolution:
  • Only Admin API Keys work (not Content API Keys)
  • Regenerate the API Key in Ghost Settings
  • Ensure the integration has full access permissions
  • Verify your Ghost user has admin-level permissions
Cause: Article is draft or newsletter not configuredSolution:
  • Check if article is published (not draft)—draft articles don’t auto-send
  • Verify newsletter settings are enabled in Ghost admin
  • Check that subscribers are configured
  • Manually send newsletter in Ghost if auto-send isn’t working
Cause: Ghost doesn’t auto-create tags via APISolution:
  • Create tags manually in Ghost admin first
  • Tag articles after publishing in the Ghost editor
  • ChatFeatured can’t create new tags automatically
  • Consider using categories or custom fields as alternatives
Cause: Ghost may have revoked or reset the keySolution:
  • Ghost Admin API Keys don’t expire automatically
  • If token fails, regenerate a new one in Settings → Integrations
  • Update the new key in ChatFeatured
  • Verify the new key includes both ID and secret with colon separator

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Best Practices

  • Publish as draft first to review in Ghost
  • Customize SEO and social settings after publishing
  • Keep your Admin API Key secret
  • Regenerate API Keys periodically for security
  • Test article publishing before creating many
Don’t share your Admin API Key
Don’t commit API Key to version control
Don’t use Content API Key (Admin API Key required)
Don’t delete articles from ChatFeatured after publishing (they won’t auto-delete from Ghost)

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Common Issues

Go to Settings → Integrations. Create a custom integration if none exists. The Admin API Key will be displayed in the integration details.
Check if they’re drafted vs published. Draft articles don’t appear on your live site. Go to Ghost admin and click “Publish” to make them visible.
Verify the article’s access level in Ghost:
  1. Edit the article
  2. Check Access level dropdown
  3. Ensure it’s set to Members only or Paid members only
  4. Click Update to save changes

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Performance Notes

Article publishing typically completes within 5-10 seconds. Ghost will:
  • Create article as draft (manual publish in Ghost required)
  • Generate default featured image placeholder
  • Auto-add creation date and metadata
  • Queue newsletter if configured

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Security Notes

Your Admin API Key grants full access to your Ghost site. Treat it like a password:
  • Never share it publicly
  • Use environment variables in applications
  • Rotate keys if compromised
  • Revoke old keys when changing integrations
Change your Admin API Key every 90 days as a security best practice. This limits exposure if a key is accidentally leaked.

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See Also