Exploring the role of a ghostwriter in book collaboration

Channeling the voices of celebrities can be a lucrative career — one that requires empathy and discretion as well as literary chops. Zachary Crockett checks the acknowledgements.

• SOURCES:
  • Valerie Frankel, ghostwriter.
  • Madeleine Morel, President and Lead Agent of 2M Communications.
  • Daniel Paisner, ghostwriter.

• RESOURCES:
  • "Ghostwriting History: Churchill, Kennedy and the Authenticity of Authorship," by Andrew Mumford (The International History Review, 2024).
  • "Column: How many ways can a political memoir backfire? Ask Kristi Noem," by Robin Abcarian (Los Angeles Times, 2024).
  • "Notes from Prince Harry’s Ghostwriter," by J. R. Moehringer (The New Yorker, 2023).
  • "Confessions of a Celebrity Ghostwriter," by Dina Gachman (Texas Monthly, 2022).