I thought that the ghostwriting experience was easy for me, but it was only because of the circumstances. I chose to ghostwrite my girlfriend, Molly, who is a theatre major here at the UW. She needed to write a reflection/review paper after she saw the musical “The Bachelors.” This was easy for me to write about because I was familiar with her voice, her writing style, theatre in general, and the actors and show that we saw. If I were not familiar with these things, the task would have been far more difficult. Imagine if I had to write a paper in biology or chemistry, something completely out of my realm. Not only would one have to master the tendencies of the author, but one would also have to become familiar of language that is specific to the subject. That can take a lot of time and a LOT of energy, as many who ghostwrote for those with different subjects can attest to. When we started our study of ghostwriters, I thought they were cheap copy-cat artists, someone who just wrote down what was said into a tape recorder and added fluff to it with signature catchphrases. Now I realize that ghostwriting is far more complex. It is more like a cover band. You can’t show up and play the set without learning the music, but you also have to have an appreciation for the band’s history, the stories behind the musicians, the likes-dislikes of the musicians, the fan followings, etc. It’s the same thing with ghostwriters. Not only do you have to worry about pleasing your reader, but you have to please your author as well. This is an interesting dynamic that I have never explored, but I believe that it would be wise for academia to discuss it more often with students.
I am debating currently whether or not I should go to law school. But if I don’t go to law school, what would I do with myself? I’ve worked in radio and sales, so my skills revolve around being a wordsmith. Perhaps I could be a ghostwriter. Something that I’ve been curious about that wasn’t addressed in the articles, I believe, was the issue of how a company trains ghostwriters. Do they have specific divisions for various genres? Is there training in certain fields to make the ghostwriter sound credible? Or is it more like a scene from the old black and white movies…a newspaper editor barking out assignments to his reporters, telling them to cover the junior high bake sale and the other to go interview the mayor. I would assume that they would prefer someone with a background. Maybe there are agencies with specific genres of ghostwriting, like sports, history, pop culture, etc. That would make the most sense.
Don't forget the good behind the ghostwriting as well. It isn't all about going out and putting a celebrity's book out and making millions. There are good people who help those who are new to the country or language fill out forms, or help the disabled with their taxes, etc. It doesn't have to be a product of pop culture. As a political science student, I want to base my senior thesis on the idea of congressional casework and its relationships between constituents. In other words, I want to help government and the taxpayers get more out of each other. Currently caseworkers field calls from people that need help on issues like social security, medicare, immigration, the justice department, etc. But not enough people are educated properly (and it doesn't require going to college) about how their government works and what level of government does what. Often, we receive letters from lawyers trying to push things forward. Why not take my ideas and combine them? Not only could we fill in the information gaps that result in constituent frustration and ultimately, apathy, from the public (thinking government doesn't do anything for them), but we could also use ghostwriters to help folks fill out the forms! Sure, some forms need lawyers (maybe that's why I should go to law school, a ghostwriting lawyer), but not everything requires legal counsel. We could boost satisfaction, improve efficiency, and strengthen democracy! Now THAT'S change you can believe in!
I am going to go out on a limb here and say that I appreciate ghostwriting. I actually want to learn more about it, because it may be art in itself. Someone who is a ghostwriter must be tremendously gifted in social settings. You have to pay attention to what people do and how they do it. You have to know mannerisms and speech patterns, etc. I do think that it is possible to become disenfranchised. If it is your work and you are putting someone else’s name on it, then maybe they will take advantage of you. But imagine it from a different view. If you were a fan of the Packers, wouldn't you love to be Brett Favre’s best friend for a while and write his life story? Wouldn’t that be the ultimate honor? I am very happy we studied this topic. I respect the wordsmiths of the world. Perhaps some day this might be something for me.
2 comments:
What I have been gathering from readings other people's wall posts is that the assignment was easy for people who personally knew the person who they were ghostwriting for. I know my friend and future roommate, Alex knows his brother, Joe knows his girlfriend. In class Courtney said it was foreign to her because she had to pretend to be people that she had never met before, such as students and teachers writing for the school newsletter. Successful ghostwriting must be very time consuming since the ghostwriter and author should get to know each other well enough to pick up on writing mannerisms. It seems like it would be quicker to just write a piece yourself instead of hiring someone else to do it for you. Therefore, people who hire ghostwriters are less lazy than I once thought they were.
It's nice to hear that this assignment actually got you thinking of possible career moves. I think it's awesome that it actually had a bigger affect on someone else and I think Scot would be proud that his assignment actually surfaced these thoughts. What I have found between experiences is that it was difficult to stick with how the person would write without including what they sound like. However Joe, you are very familiar with who you were writing for and what you were writing so I have also found that it was also easy for many people who were comfortable with what they were writing about.
Post a Comment