What is Ghostwriter? & Top Ten Ghostwriters In the Industry
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All of those bestselling books, enthralling articles, poetries, poems or powerful speeches have one unseen force lurking behind stories, news, or entertainment. For sure, that rings a bell. The very name already raises so many interesting connotations. Yet, what precisely is a ghostwriter, and who are among the most famous ones who have shared in such a rather unusual line of work?
What is Ghostwriter?
A ghostwriter is a professional writer who accepts most writing assignments for which someone else will receive credit as the author. Most people associate a ghostwriter with writing the words to a celebrity memoir or a business leader autobiography. The person for whom a ghostwriter writes takes full credit as an author, and generally, a ghostwriter's contribution goes without giving a mention.
They will have stories, but not the time, the writing grace, the storytelling flair needed to bring these stories to life. That is because breathing life into somebody else's voice and converting that into interesting prose is a job that needs long years of experience, dedication, and passion. Since the art of writing, the written word encompasses remarkable storytelling acumen from innumerable sources.
Famous Ghostwriters and Their Contributions:
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| Famous Ghostwriters and Their Contributions |
Though most of the ghostwriters remain anonymous, there are a few who have come out into the public domain because of the number of projects that have become major successes or public disclosures of clients. Some of the most stunning ghostwriters include:
1. Andrew Crofts:
Over 80 books were written by Andrew Crofts, the majority of which went on to become best-sellers. Throughout his lengthy career, he has worked in a wide range of genres and has no trouble adapting his writing to fit the style of another author, which forces him to carry some of the biggest weights in the industry.
2. Tony Schwartz:
One of the most famous ghostwriters, of course, is Tony Schwartz, who penned something called '' The Art of the Deal'' on the behalf of Donald Trump. He called it a landmark in its image to the public of Trump back in 1987; he would go on to say that he had come to dislike that character he had helped to create and therefore now detested his involvement in the project. The controversy notwithstanding, work on the book remains one of the more famous examples of ghostwriting.
3. James Patterson's Ghostwriting Team:
James Patterson is interchangeably used with the bestseller thriller, but what most people do not know is the fact that he worked with a team of ghostwriters or co-writers. This is how it became humanly possible that Patterson could issue some practically unthinkable number of books a year and remain in the bestseller lists almost without strain—the system and strategies work with ghostwriters.
4. J.R. Moehringer:
J.R. Moehringer is the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who stepped into the limelight when he ghosted tennis ace Andre Agassi's autobiography. '' Open ''. Much critical praise accrued to the book, calling it forthright and highly personal—for what turned out to be Moehringer's ability to plumb the depths of his subject's psyche and reproduce it sincerely.
5. David Ritz:
David Ritz's books, ''Brother Ray: Ray Charles' Own Story'' and ''Divided Soul'', ''The Life of Marvin Gaye'' have unaccountably propelled him into the annals of music history. He contributed to the legacy of some of the most important musicians being preserved for all time.
6. Michael Robotham:
Before becoming a best-selling crime writer, Michael Robotham was a ghostwriter of autobiographies of the likes of British pop star Lulu. He, however, found his way to quite a successful writing career because of his knack in good story arcs.
7. Robert Lindsey:
Another journalist/writer ghostwrote the novel titled "The Falcon and the Snowman," which was also a true crime novel and turned into a movie. There is also a great deal of his style in other famous books that he ghostwrote.
8. Larry McMurtry:
Larry McMurtry is one of the more successful novelists in history. He ghosted All My Friends Are Going to Be Strangers, based on the life of author Ken Kesey. Both his own and ghostwritten works are a testament to his skills.
9. Nelsie Spencer:
The novelist herself is Nelsie Spencer, also known as the author of the best-selling book, "The Big Girl's Guide to Life." Now, that was more of an added confirmation that writing memoirs and self-help books for her clients made her versatile enough to shift between a myriad of voices and styles-hers being one.
10. Hilary Liftin:
Hilary Liftin has written several celebrity memoirs, among them " 'Tori Spelling's TORI Telling'' that made it to the New York Times bestseller list. Her job is to bring the celebrity's story out, in a way that got her recognized somehow.
The Power of Pen Behind the Curtain
It is often said that ghostwriters shape public opinion, capture lives, tell stories that might not otherwise be told. Most of their work is behind the scenes and not fully visible, although the credits of many of these publishing giants in this major city of New York in the bestsellers of big publishers could easily equate to greater success. Few are those really great ghosts, who can leave their true eternal print on literature and its environment. It then gave that place of respect to ghostwriters in the industry where being anonymous meant being a part of the job description. Undeniable proof: sometimes the most powerful pen of all is the one you never saw.
Here are the top three ghostwriting platforms:
Overview: Reedsy is the one-stop shop for every author needing professional ghostwriters, representing nearly a talent pool pre-filtered for expert writers, editors, and designers. The quality of work can thus be assured to be of top quality. This platform works great with book, memoir, and autobiography projects.
Best For: Best for authors who want top-line ghostwriting services.
Overview: It's a freelance marketplace versatile enough to host ghostwriters of almost any kind of content. In line with this very flexible hiring process, a client could commission ghostwriters to work on anything from books down to blog posts.
Best For: Any client in need of ghostwriting services for a number of content types at a number of budgets.
Overview: A platform that ghostwrites books, articles, and so on. Writers For Hire are professional writers in their chosen craft, working on the production of customized content in line with the needs of each particular client.
Best For: Specialized and tailored ghostwriting needs.
