Around the Word: Outing the Ghosts

Pictures supplied by Eva Rinaldi and NASA

Astronaut Chris Hadfield, who has become something of a celebrity du jour thanks to his videos and tweets about life on the International Space Station, may have had a ghostwriter compose some of his tweets, according to The Albatross. 

Blacklock’s Reporter Tom Korski claims that documents from the Canadian Space Agency showed that Hadfield’s “seemingly spontaneous performances in space were the product of a three-year marketing campaign.” Hadfield’s son, Evan Hadfield, adamantly denies it.

Are we missing something? What’s the big deal? It looks to us as though Blacklock’s Reporter seriously exaggerated what help Hadfield had. Having an occasional tweet drafted by your son, or even the CBC, doesn’t equal a “three-year marketing campaign.” And even if Hadfield did have a ghostwriter, that’s not exactly the makings of a scandal, is it?

Maybe it is. In fact, Chris Hadfield wasn’t the only one “accused” of using a ghostwriter recently. Ransom, a rapper who collaborated with Nicki Minaj, recently released a song in which he claims to have written verses for her before she became famous. Nicki denies ever having used a ghostwriter in a (somewhat profane) response on TMZ.

What do you think about these stories? Is "ghostwriter outing" the new rage? Why all the hubbub?

Writer Poll: Is Ghostwriting Hazardous to the Health of Your Voice?

All ghostwriters are writers—whether they're writing in collaboration or on their own. So what happens when a ghost is too good at inhabiting the writing mind of another person or persona? Is it possible to get so immersed in another voice that you lose track of your own?

Annie Davies' recent Salon piece, “My Dirty Secret Writing Life,” says yes. In it, she expresses regret that she spent so many years ghostwriting a young-adult book series based on a popular TV show. Ultimately, she decided that “none of the ghostwriting gigs mattered very much, not in the long run.” And when she finally stopped writing for the series and turned to her own bylined projects, she found that she’d become disconnected from her own voice.

We polled our writers to see whether that resonated with them—had ghostwriting ever been hazardous to the health of their voice?

Davies' article really hit a nerved in our writer community. Most responses scolded her for her unacknowledged privilege, including some variation of “first-world problems.”

One of our ghosts, Sandra Rea, responded with “DUH…she lost herself. That’s what writers do.” She went on to pose some questions in a hypothetical conversation wtih Davies: “What does being a 'real' writer mean to you? What do you think you were doing all those years? If you were busy as a ghost—and paid well too—doesn't that legitimize you as an actual, flesh-and-blood writer?”

Some writers said that they found ghostwriting to be beneficial for their other projects. Holly Robinson said, “I enjoy the challenge of capturing a new voice on the page and have discovered that, although most of my clients are people whose lives are quite different from mine, many of our central conflicts and experiences share a common thread. Plus, ghostwriting has given me lots of good fodder for my fiction writing!” Alan Perlman felt similarly, saying, “As an academically trained linguist, I'm unusually objective about language, and as a student of stylistics, I like the challenge of replicating another person's voice. Praise from the client, audience reaction to a speech, and money—these serve my superficial ego needs.”

Other ghosts felt that, though they had at times felt conflicted about their own voice, at the end of the day, it all comes down to the paycheck. A writer who preferred to remain anonymous said, “Anything hazardous [to my voice] has been helped by the check I get that covers my rent and life.” Blogger and ghostwriter Claire Shefchik agreed: “When I'm ghostwriting and start worrying about ‘the health of my voice,’ these three little words usually help: I'm getting paid.”

The consensus from our writers is clear. Davies should be happy that she's been able to do what so many people can’t: make a living off of her writing, bylined or not.

Around the Word: New Books, New Places

With the heat wave we went through in NYC last week, there’s no denying that the dog days of summer are emphatically here. The bad news is that you could fry an egg on the sidewalks, but the good news is that it's probably time for a writing vacation!

If you’re planning to traveling to new and exotic locations, you'll surely want to keep a travel journal. Writer inspiration blog "One Wild Word" shares some great travel writing tips to make sure your vacation memories stay remembered, and even gives suggestions for waterproof notebooks—in case you're too close to the surf when inspiration strikes.

Then again, if you want to spend your vacation actually vacationing, know that you’re in good company. “I loafe and invite my soul,” wrote Whitman in his "Song of Myself." “I lean and loafe at my ease observing a spear of summer grass.” Melville House’s Emma Aylor shares the expertise of several other famous authors who weren’t afraid to kick their feet up.

Or maybe you think the whole “vacation” concept is over-hyped. Who needs to swelter in the Fiji sun when you could be sitting in the comfortable cool of your air-conditioned office? If that's more your speed, stay home and leave the traveling to the books with Mailbooks For Good. The clever company partnered with Random House Australia to make books whose dust jackets transform into pre-addressed, pre-stamped boxes, so you can to donate the books you've finished to literacy charities.

Guest Post: Building Books as a Ghostwriter

by Alice Lesch Kelly

One of the authors I ghostwrite for checked in recently from the road. She was out promoting the book I’d written with her, and she was having one of those “I forget which city I’m in” moments.

While she rattled off her frantic schedule—a long list of readings, interviews, TV appearances, and speaking engagements—I sat back and appreciated the situation. After months of work on her book, we were both just where we wanted to be. She was out promoting her bestseller, and I was writing my next book.

As a ghostwriter, I get to do what I consider to be the most interesting parts of creating a book. I brainstorm topics, develop content, define strategies, package ideas, delve into research, and conduct interviews. And then, best of all, I write—expressing ideas, choosing words, crafting sentences, guiding narratives. I draft, revise, and polish.

Then, when I’m finished, I hand it all over to someone else.

I often think of myself as a surrogate mother. My books’ genetic material comes from another person, but I form it. I carry it for months, molding it, cultivating it, giving it voice. Under my care it develops and grows from the seed of an idea to a completed book that’s all ready for delivery.

The process works for everyone: The author has her baby, and I have the satisfaction of having written it to life.

When I started ghostwriting, I thought I’d feel disappointed when my authors received praise and attention for books I had written, or that I might be envious when Good Morning America called them rather than me. As it turns out, though, I prefer it this way. I get to have all the fun of writing—but when my books are ready to step out into the spotlight, I’m happy to let them go.

That’s why I love ghostwriting. Authors build platforms and marketing strategies, but I get to build books.


Alice Lesch Kelly is a book collaborator and ghostwriter specializing in health and self-improvement. Two of her recent books are Healthy Mom, Healthy Baby (HarperOne) and The Omni Diet (St. Martin’s Press). Her website is www.alicekelly.net.

Published Posthumously

The New York Times had a particularly interesting book review last Sunday covering autobiographical books written about the authors’ own deaths.

The clever title, “Deadlines,” draws the reader in, and Meghan O’Rourke doesn’t disappoint, bringing up the insightful questions throughout the article. The piece touched on books such as John Updike’s Endpoint and Roger Ebert’s Life Itself: A Memoir, asking why there has been such an explosion of “death lit” recently.

Interestingly, the New York Times published another article on the very same day highlighting David Rakoff’s final novel, Love, Dishonor, Marry, Die, Cherish, Perish, which he wrote on his deathbed. The book is written in iambic pentameter, something Rakoff had never done before. Joel Lovell paints a touching and inspirational picture of Rakoff’s struggle to finish his novel before his final deadline.

Does literature about death inspire or depress you? Why the sudden influx of books about dying? Let us know what you think in the comments.

3 Benefits of Being a Blog Ghostwriter

by Kelsey Jones

Many writers get into blogging because they want to have their work published online. However, if you have started blogging for a living, you will quickly learn that the benefits of not having your name on something can often far outweigh the name recognition you’ll get on a piece of content written under your name.

Writing content that isn’t going to be published under your name (and is instead published under someone else’s name) is called ghostwriting. Published authors have been using ghostwriters for years on their books, and now the market for digital ghostwriters is stronger than ever. Higher rates, more work, and better guidelines are all things you can look forward to as a ghostwriter.

Better Pay
Most bloggers charge higher rates for ghostwritten pieces over those published under their name. This is understood by most clients, as not having your work recognized as your own carries a higher cost (as you can’t usually use it in your portfolio). For ghostwriting assignments, I usually charge 15 to 30 percent more per word or per piece. This rate usually varies wildly per industry and takes some experimentation before settling into a steady ghostwriting rate.

More Opportunities
Many clients are specifically looking for ghostwriters for their own marketing/blog content or to for their clients. Because the quality of content has a significant impact on a website’s traffic and search rank, companies are looking for great bloggers who can craft unique and engaging content. As many companies begin to realize how important blogging can be a website’s ROI and engagement, they will begin to hire more writers as well. What does this mean for bloggers? There will be more ghostwriting assignments available to go around. If you are okay with ghostwriting, this can allow for more clients than you might have received had you been adamant about your name being attached to any work you produce.

More Structure
More rules and guidelines might be viewed as a negative aspect of ghostwriting, but many bloggers see it as a benefit. For writers who are given free rein on assignments they attach their name to, it can be difficult at times to continuously come up with new blogging topics, due to that pesky writer’s block. However, many ghostwriting assignments have specific guidelines for content length, topic, and frequency, which can help the creative process when it comes to composing posts. We all need a break from idea generation, and more structure can often help.

This article originally appeared on the Blog Herald.

Visit Kelsey Jones' website: The Social Robot.

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