It’s not me, it’s you – Finding an author’s voice

Aside from journalism, one of the professions that most commonly leads to a career in ghostwriting is acting. Why? Because actors are natural mimics. They get into the part of the author, thinking how they think, speaking how they speak and, of course, writing how they write. Finding the ‘voice’ of an author is crucial because a ghosted book must sound like something the author has written themselves.

Voice is simply what makes you, you. We each have our own individual voices, shaped by our personality, experiences and outlook on life. This voice is reflected in the way we speak and write. Say, for example, you asked two people to recount a dramatic event. Even if they were both there, and experienced the exact same things, they would inevitably tell the story of that day differently. One person might be keen to introduce the event by explaining the background and practicalities behind what happened. Another might jump straight into the drama, highlighting the incongruities and why it became a story worth sharing. These very different recollections tell us so much about the serious nature of the first narrator and the more playful and creative one of the second.

Getting the voice right is most important in the memoir or biography genre. This is, by definition, a summary of the author’s life experiences, written from personal knowledge. With a business, or how to, book, on the other hand, an author’s voice will be an important part of the outcome, but the manuscript will also feature clear and concise examples to help the reader understand the points being made.

When it comes to well-known authors, there is an extra layer of challenge to capturing their voice today. Their fans will already be more than familiar with it, thanks to social media, or regular TV appearances. The potential readership with have a very firm view about the true voice of their heroes. Ghostwriters mess with that at their peril.

Another potential hurdle is the newfound acceptance of online meetings, facilitated by the likes of Zoom and Teams, which have been a huge bonus to many professions, ghostwriting included. Most interviews with authors are only a few hours in length, but can take up an entire day once travelling is factored in. Now, ghosts can speak with authors and also have vital writing time, all in the same day. What, though, is the impact of online on voice? While the convenience and flexibility of remote interviewing cannot be denied, it is not perfect and certainly not so when it comes to capturing a voice. A face-to-face interaction is more dynamic and collaborative. We are also better able to pick up non-verbal clues, which, believe it or not, are essential to understanding the voice. It is for this reason that ghosts almost always want to meet authors face-to-face at least a few times, until they get to know them better and can comfortably switch to online.

One of the easiest ways for a ghost to get an author’s voice into their heads is to record them speaking. It is common practice for ghosts to record interviews and it’s not just so they can capture all the story details. I often listen back to the recordings as I write. It’s a handy way to refresh my memory about the author’s approach to life. You can learn a lot about someone by the way they tell a story, or present ideas, even the length of the sentences they use. And, of course, the words and phrases they revert to most.

There is more to voice than just the way we speak too. Voices represent our interests, passions, likes and dislikes. A really useful exercise is to ask authors to share the titles of their favourite books. The subject matter they gravitate towards says a lot about them: are they serious and academic, or do they have a lighter, more frivolous side? Similarly, it is helpful to learn about their influences. Are they more likely to be found on the football terraces on the weekend, or at the opera? It doesn’t tell a ghost everything, but it begins to build a picture.

Many authors are prolific writers. (They employee ghosts because they don’t have the time to write an entire book). Thus, it can be quite useful to read some of their past copy, whether it is a blog, or LinkedIn piece, or even a lengthy email. Once again, this gives vital clues to their turn of phrase and preferred writing style.

Once a ghost starts to write a book, it is helpful to share early drafts with authors and not just for the purpose of ensuring that they’ve understood the stories correctly and have the sequence of events correct. When authors read early drafts, they instantly pinpoint words or phrases that they’d never use. These are sentences that leap off the page and niggle away at their subconscious. And that is as it should be. Ghostwriting is an iterative process. Once a ghost is alerted to passages that don’t work, they can course correct and be sure to use words and phrases that the author would use.

Something all ghosts will need to get to grips with is how much they ‘correct’ an author’s style as they write the manuscript. Say, for example, the author litters their sentences with jargon. They may be used to conversing with a tech-savvy audience and use terms such as ‘UX’, ‘engagement rates’ and ‘disruptive’. Not all readers will be familiar with each one though, so there will need to be a conversation about either cutting back a bit on the jargon, or finding an elegant way to express it to the reader. It’s not changing the voice, but simply making it more accessible to a broad readership.

The art of a ghostwriter is to disappear into the copy. When an author shares their ghosted book with someone close to them, their friends and family should believe they wrote it. It is the real thing. That is the goal.