Publishing Gossip: Do you think your favourite author uses a ghostwriter?

I'm posting this in the Gray Area because I have no way to prove this information, as I heard it second hand. It may not even be true, but I think it would be interesting and conspiratorial to hear people's opinions about how much of their favourite authors works are actually their own work.

I work in freelance ghostwriting. I often write articles for columnists, and I just finished an outline for a young adult novel for a recognizable author to flesh out. Both of these things are quite common, but ghost writers are always locked into non-disclosure agreements, and some readers may not know this.

The truth of the matter is...authors have lives, emergencies, they fail to have confidence in their work, and so, ghost writers are called upon to help meet deadlines or meet consumer demand.

Now, there's no denying that some authors are machines who can and will create until they drop dead. Many prolific writers call out for a bit of help. The job of ghostwriting books for many prolific authors usually falls on trusted editors who are familiar with an authors writing style, and these are harder to spot.

Young adult novels are the most often ghost written, as the consumers are voracious for them and bigger names sell more books. There is one VERY well known adult suspense author whose YA branch out novels are almost all ghost written.

Today I heard such a piece of publishing gossip that I can't resist but allude to it. Im sure you'll all see where I'm going with this. A very, very famous author is burnt out. The television adaptation of the authors books has overtaken the plot of the novels and the author is just sick of writing. The author first thought of asking writers within the show to outline their proposed ending so it can be fleshed out into the final books. It was determined that this would be figured out, as fans of the books expect a different outcome than show watchers. The author then appealed to their publishers and editors to search the fandom for die hard fans who know canon so well, that they can be paid to make outlines for different story lines seperately, which the author could then stitch together.

I can't say for sure this will happen. The author has a stranglehold on his rights, and if they don't want to finish, it won't be finished. Rumour has it, this has happened before, with one other book in ther series being mostly ghost written. The caveat by the author? Don't advance the plot too much, as the author was working on plot lines.

Allegedly, the author is so disheartened that readers have mostly figured out the plot lines, they have no desire to write them down anymore.

This is highly speculative industry gossip. Don't take this too seriously.

So, who do you suspect uses a ghost writer?

a reply to: Atsbhct

I'm guessing Patterson is the YA author you are referring to. I've heard more than once that he uses ghost writers quite a bit to maintain his rate of release with all his different series.

a reply to: Atsbhct

George R. R. Martin is the one you speak of ?

LoL I knew there was a reason GRRM hasn't put out The Winds of Winter yet! So much speculation on where the books are heading and whether Jon Snow is really Ned Starks bastard.

That being said if he were to use ghost writers it is cool I just want a book to read from him and see the series through!

LoL I have no idea if I am right or not but the series is about to overtake the books as of the end of the month!

Ha! I know a well known author who built her whole career around a book she didn't write.

No. Not naming names.

a reply to: Annee

That's the thing! No names can ever be named, but it's fun to speculate.

a reply to: Annee

It's not just the book scene I know a few DJ's who release music with their name attached as artist yet they can't make music

a reply to: Discotech

Names sell!

a reply to: Atsbhct

Well of course, you can't name names. If you ghost write, you sign confidentiality agreements.

I can't actually talk about some things related to my job either.

originally posted by: Atsbhct
a reply to: Annee

That's the thing! No names can ever be named, but it's fun to speculate.

Yeah, what's really the point.

Its not like a closet gay politician promoting anti-gay legislature.

The readers would be the real victims.

I would never do that.

a reply to: Annee

Oh, sort of like when Watson and Crick used their lab assistants work?

originally posted by: ketsuko
a reply to: Annee

Oh, sort of like when Watson and Crick used their lab assistants work?

Yes, some situations need to be exposed.

a reply to: Annee

So you're going to tell us the name?

originally posted by: ketsuko
a reply to: Annee

So you're going to tell us the name?

NO!

There is nothing to gain with this one.

a reply to: Atsbhct

That's the thing, these guys were no name bedroom DJ's, it's only because they hired a ghostwriter to give them an entire track they got famous.

Some of them are DJ's and they don't even DJ, they put on a premade mix and "pretend" to be mixing the songs, a few years back some of them got caught out when there were pictures shown of the CD decks and mixer having zero wires, not even the power supply on them

originally posted by: Annee

originally posted by: ketsuko
a reply to: Annee

So you're going to tell us the name?

NO!

There is nothing to gain with this one.

What a contradiction.

An author makes a huge career out of a ghostwritten book, and you know the ghostwriter.

Watson and Crick claim all the credit for discoveries enabled partially by work done by their female lab assistant.

You see no comparison? In both cases, the famous person is profiting enormously off the hard work of the unknown other.

I'm not seriously asking you to give up the name, but I am asking you to see the similarity between the position of the assistant and the writer here.

I was thinking RR Martin too, he is old and he hates selfies which people are anxious to get him on.. so much fuzz for a old guy. Martin also said that he has told, how the story ends, to screenwriters so i wonder.. would producers really force serie to go on and on.
Another one which came to mind is Stephen King .. he has his ups and lows.. and his books has ups and lows. Sometimes very creepy and exiting and sometimes utterly boring ( like totally different writer "..

these are my bets.

a reply to: dollukka

I am thinking of a lot of Romance house authors. All those books would be serially easy to ghostwrite. Honestly, the have to just send you and pre-fabricated storyline and tell you to flesh it in when they commission the book. They all go the same exact way from sub-series to sub-series.

a reply to: dollukka

I will say that the differences in Kings novels come mostly from the fact that he spent periods writing while high out of his mind, or strung on booze. He's also allegedly riddled with fears, and he writes them into his books. Different things plague him at different times.

a reply to: ketsuko

This is a known truth in publishing, about romance novels. Some of the older authors don't even collect pay checks for newer works in their names. A small royalty fee is paid to secure the name only.

ETA- I suppose the difference between a ghostwriter and one of those female lab assistants is that the ghostwriter signs a contract and is "in on" the deception.