What Is Ghostwriting?
Ghostwriting: When a writer writes something for someone based on the other person’s own experiences. The writer will write under the person’s name. Ghostwriters are usually hired by celebrities to write autobiographies if they are too busy or not talented enough to write their own. For example, celebrities like Dennis Rodman, Madonna, and Lee Iacocca have all used a ghostwriter before.
Another common question is how do you know if a book is ghostwritten. How often is a book ghostwritten? Most of the time you would not know if a book is ghostwritten. Often times, however, an author who is writing a series of books will die or stops writing before he or she gets the chance to finish the series. When this happens, a ghostwriter will be hired to finish the series in which case, you would most likely know if the book is ghostwritten. You can also make assumptions based on the person the book is being written about. It's estimated that about 60 to 80 percent of nonfiction books are "ghosted", or ghostwritten.
So many have different opinions on ghostwriting, which has aroused many controversies. Here is one that you should think about and create your own opinion on.
Controversy: If a book is written by a writer who says that they are someone they’re not, then isn’t that cheating?