Finding out which celebrity books were ghostwritten is a bit of a hobby of mine. Yes, I know it is very exciting when the biography of a hugely famous person lands, especially if you have admired them for years. It’s natural to relish cracking it open and diving right on in to devour their inner-most thoughts. Me? I flick straight to the acknowledgements. I’m looking for the tell-tale signs that a secret co-writer was involved. Euphemisms like ‘thank you to Jo Bloggs for ordering my thoughts’, or ‘this book couldn’t have been written without the help of Pen Master’. Some celebrities hide the name of their co-writer so artfully it can be quite the detective exercise. But, I usually get there in the end.

Which celebrity books were ghostwritten?

Are you intrigued? Perhaps my hobby is not that daft after all. To whet your appetite further, let’s look at some of the most famous examples.

Prince Harry – Spare

Spare became one of the UK’s fastest-selling non fiction books ever, with 400,000 copies sold, across all formats, on its first day. Harry was very open about working with ghostwriter JR Moehringer. Indeed, the co-writer even wrote a lengthy piece for The New Yorker describing how the path towards penning the memoir was anything but smooth. One would imagine this was sanctioned by the named author.

Donald Trump – The Art of the Deal

Art of the Deal - a rare sighting of a ghost’s name on the cover

Tony Schwartz appears to have embraced being one of the world’s best-known ghostwriters, known for his role in co-writing the 1987 bestseller The Art of the Deal. While he has since said collaborating on the book was one of the biggest regrets of his life, he has made a name for himself as a TV pundit relating what he believes the former US president is really up to.

Millie Bobby Brown – Nineteen Steps

Celebrity books aren’t just memoirs, as this example from Millie Bobby Brown proves. This coming-of-age story, set in the war-torn East End of London in 1940, was inspired by the actress’s family history, but written with the help of professional co-writer Kathleen McGurl. There was a backlash at the time, because McGurl’s name was not on the cover, but the named author was very open about the collaboration.

Paris Hilton - Paris: The Memoir

For euphemism hunters, this is a classic of the genre. In the acknowledgements of this glittering tale of celebrity life, Hilton thanks ghostwriter Joni Rodgers who ‘helped me find my voice’.

Michelle Obama – Becoming

Far be it for me to stir any inter-marital rivalry, but word is that there was a little competition between the Obamas over their respective books. Barack Obama has resolutely insisted that he did not use a ghost for his three bestsellers; Dreams from My Father, The Audacity of Hope, and A Promised Land. However, the former president let it slip that his wife’s hit memoir Becoming was written with a co-writer. The name of the ghostwriter has yet to be revealed.

Miley Cyrus – Miles to Go

You are, it seems, never too young to pen your memoirs. To be fair, at 16-years old, as she was when Miles to Go was published, Miss Cyrus had already sold millions of albums and created an on-screen phenonium with her Hannah Montana character. It’s little wonder she turned to ghostwriter Hilary Liftin to pen her book.

Keith Richards – Life

The memoir is a brilliant read, with sex, drugs, and guitar riffs galore. The story behind it is incredibly entertaining too. Ghostwriter James Fox talks of Richard’s insistence on playing loud music through out each interview (a nightmare when using a recording device), erratic timelines, and having to ‘catch him like a salmon’ to even pin him down to speak. At the end of the exercise, Richards made his co writer read the entire book aloud to make his edits.

Why do celebrities use ghostwriters?

Celebrities don’t have to write books. They are, of course, already famous. But, it is part of the package. The brand. It keeps them at the top of our minds. Of course, they are busy with the day job though, doing whatever it is they are famous for. It makes sense to share their story with a professional who can go away and write it up for them in the most compelling way.

Professional writers are more important than ever today. Thanks to social media, everyone’s thoughts and actions are out there, every moment of every day. Celebrities can’t serve up a diet of the same old stories. It wouldn’t be authentic and fans would hate it. For their books, they need to work with a ghostwriter who will help tease out some interesting, fresh material.

Do a lot of celebrities use ghostwriters?

Truth be told, my hobby of trawling acknowledgements is a bit of a daft exercise. Figures are hard to come by, because ghosts are not supposed to exist and publishers don’t like to disclose details. However, even conservative industry estimates say that more than 80% of celebrity books are ghostwritten. The true figure is most likely in the ninety percent bracket. In actual fact, most books by famous people were created with the help of paid professionals.

How do celebrity ghostwriters work?

Writing a book with a celebrity is like ghostwriting a book with any other author. Perhaps there is the added proviso (taken to the extreme in the case of Keith Richards above) that famous people can be a bit more elusive. Their schedules change at a moment’s notice. I have had my fair share of arriving for a scheduled interview, only to be sent away because the person in question has been whisked off somewhere. It is part of the job.

To break it down though, the process would be as follows:

Initial interview to cover the scope of the story
The ghostwriter may write an chapter-by-chapter plan that will be agreed with the celebrity author, publisher and PR team
Interviews will begin. The length and timing of the interviews will depend upon the celebrity’s schedule
First chapter drafts will be produced between the interviews and shared with the team
The final manuscript will be passed to the celebrity and team for edits and eventual approval

What’s it like to ghostwrite a celebrity memoir?

Who wouldn’t want to write one of these?

My own experience is that most celebrities are nothing like the people they appear to be in the public eye. Very often, it is an act. Part of a carefully constructed brand. It can be quite refreshing to get behind the personae and dig into what they are really like. Plus, the joy of being a ghost is, you can ask them absolutely anything. That is what you are being paid to do. Who wouldn’t like a chance to do that?

Do celebrity ghostwriters get credit?

As per above, if they do, it is not always obvious and rarely on the front cover. Many publishers feel quite strongly about only having the celebrity name on the front cover. They are the brand after all. Thus, the presence of a co writer is generally only noted in the acknowledgements. Occasionally, although this doesn’t often happen, there is no nod to a ghost at all.

Do celebrity ghostwriters get royalties?

This is another of the publishing industry’s best-kept secrets. It is rare that the presence of ghostwriters is announced, but even more rare to hear about a royalty cut. My own experience is that most ghosts don’t get a share of royalties, usually getting a flat fee for their work. Once the book is written, their involvement, and remuneration, is over.

Do celebrity ghostwriters have to sign non-disclosure agreements?

Oh yes. Generally, the more famous the celebrity, the more pages of NDA to sign.

Have any celebrities written their own memoirs?

For full disclosure, it’s important to say that there are a few celebrities who have written their own books. As well as former president Barack Obama, mentioned above, other notables are Matthew McConaughey, Sharon Stone and Dave Grohl.

How much does a celebrity ghostwriter get paid?

Fees vary hugely. JR Moehringer is reported to have had a ‘seven figure deal’ for Spare. This fee is matched by a handful of other significant celebrities – mostly in America. This is not the norm though. The average celebrity ghostwriter might get £70,000 to £100,000 for a collaboration. However, some publishers pay ghosts less than £10,000 to ghostwrite books for lesser-known celebrities.

Who is the highest paid ghostwriter?

There’s a group of around 25 or so ghosts in the world who can command fees in the high six figures, but JR Moehringer probably takes the crown for the highest paid ghost. It’s not a bad way to make a living either, since it can take celebrity ghosts six months to a year to write a book.

By Teena Lyons

Which celebrity books were ghostwritten? Thousands of memoirs are penned by secret co-authors