Warning, this is going to be a much shorter, rant-y post, much different than what I usually post.
I’ve always known what ghostwriters were, but only recently I found out how little they are known about or appreciated. It usually happens with famous YouTubers or celebrities who want to “write” a book to expand their brand and get with the trend of books written by celebrities, but most of the time, they don’t know how to write. Because writing isn’t a skill they have and they want it to be good, they hire a ghostwriter.
I was curious as to what guidelines a ghostwriter is given when it comes to the plot, characters, etc of the story, but couldn't really find much information there. What I will assume is that they are given a fairly detailed plot and some of the characters, but the rest is up to the writer’s creative liberty. The fact that these people do most of the work and usually never get credited seems unfair to me.
As someone who loves writing myself, if I put a ton of effort into writing something I would want to get credited, but instead the celebrity gets their name on the front cover. I guess that this is what’s expected when someone goes into the ghostwriter career, but I lose a lot of respect for a book when I find out it’s written by a ghostwriter.
I agree, which is why I would never be a ghostwriter because I would want to get credit for my hard work
I mostly agree, although ghostwriters willingly signed up for the job, which probably means they just don't really want to be credited or become famous for whatever reason. If they did, they could just write a story themselves since they clearly have the talent for it. I do lose some respect for the celebrity themselves, but at least they pay the ones who actually wrote it