8 More Solid Ghostwriting Examples

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As I wrote last week, everything is ghostwriting—or at least, so many types of writing without attribution are forms of ghostwriting.

Here are eight more you might not realize.

1. Professional apologies or public statements. It might be easier to list a famous person who hasn’t had to make a public apology than list those who have had to, but I found Chrissy Teigen, Justin Timberlake, Tiger Woods, Hugh Grant, Justin Bieber, Bill Clinton, Kristen Stewart, Reese Witherspoon, and Kanye West.

When a company or celebrity issues a statement after a scandal, it’s often ghostwritten by crisis communication experts. I tried to find proof that any of the above-mentioned people used a ghostwriter but couldn’t. It is, however, safe to say that crisis communications companies exist and that celebrities have used them.

Here are some hints: If the language sounds scripted, formal, generic, or corporate, if the tone clashes with a person’s typical public persona, if the person apologizing looks like he or she was coached, if the words are vague and don’t specifically address the scandal, or if the person speaks passively, chances are the person used a ghostwriter.

2. Eulogies. Death is painful, and sometimes people grieving a loved one may turn to professionals to help them write a eulogy, though it’s read as if from the heart.

I found some examples of people ghostwriting eulogies. Barack Obama was known to work with speechwriter Cody Keenan for emotionally resonant speeches. For the funeral of Sen. Edward Kennedy, Keenan confirmed the two worked together.

Members of Britain’s royal family typically have their speeches ghostwritten by a team of palace aides and government advisors, so it’s very possible that both King Charles III and his brother Prince Andrew’s speeches eulogizing their mother Queen Elizabeth II were ghostwritten.

3. Forewords in books. One might not think of this one because books very often say, “With a Foreword by (Name).” Yet sometimes that name has used a ghostwriter. Sometimes a celebrity “writes” a foreword for a book they endorsed, but the actual ghostwriting was done by the author or someone else.

If celebrity books are ghostwritten, then it would make sense that forewords would be, too. Famous people often don’t have time or aren’t writers themselves, so they need ghostwriting for the same reasons others do: help get their ideas out.

4. Wedding speeches. Think everybody who gets up at a wedding wrote their own words? Think again! Ghostwriting is often used to help couples write vows they claim as their own. I’ve personally never written for a bride or groom, but I have written for parents, best men, and maids/matrons of honor.

My process is always the same: I talk to them about the bride or groom and collect stories that typify that person. I always say, “If you could tell one story that, when everyone hears it, they’ll say, ‘Yeah, that’s so (name),’ what story would that be?” I typically need about an hour of their time to craft a three- to five-minute speech.

5. Standup comedian material. I remember an old “Howard Stern Show” conversation in which Jackie “Joke Man” Martling claimed he paid Rodney Dangerfield in jokes. Then I found a Facebook video in which Martling said Dangerfield paid him $50 a joke.

Two other examples I could find were Jim Gaffigan and Kumail Nanjiani. They both had their wives write them jokes. 

6. Letters from executives in annual reports. The “Letter from the CEO” in a company’s annual report is typically written by the investor relations team, not the CEO.

The reasons for this are numerous and perhaps obvious.

  • CEOs have extremely demanding schedules and limited time. They delegate the writing process to focus on core business strategies.
  • Not all leaders are skilled writers. Ghostwriters can transform complex business ideas into clear, engaging, and eloquent narratives.
  • Ghostwriters ensure that a CEO’s message is consistent and on-brand across all communication channels, including annual report. A ghostwriter interviews the CEO to capture their authentic voice and personality.
  • During a public relations crisis, a trusted ghostwriter can help craft a thoughtful and rapid response. The way, the CEO and PR team can create communication that maintains or restores public trust.
  • Corporate communications departments often employ ghostwriters to ensure public-facing materials are legally sound and polished. This practice protects executives from publishing poorly written or legally problematic content.

I found several examples of CEOs of companies in India using ghostwriters.

7. Religious sermons or homilies. Just when you thought your clergy member wrote his or her sermons, along comes Backstory Preaching with an article about sermon ghostwriters. Yes, they exist, and yes, they do it. In some faith communities, religious leaders use prepared sermons written by others or purchased from databases.

But what Backstory Preaching really rails against is clergy members taking credit for sermons they didn’t write themselves. Backstory Preaching wants the clergy to attribute.

In all my years of attending services, I can’t think of a single sermon that didn’t include the clergy member attributing something to someone else. This is basic stuff.

8. Testimonies or success stories. Brands often ghostwrite customer testimonials or success stories, sometimes based loosely on real feedback.

This is one I’m very familiar with. I have a testimonial page on my website, and after every project, I ask if the client will write a testimonial that I can place there. Everybody says yes, but most never write one. They tell me, “You write it and I’ll sign it.”

So, here’s a dirty little ghostwriting secret: That testimonial might not be in the client’s words. However, in my case, I always write something and let them read it to make sure 1) it captures how they really feel, and 2) it’s in words they would use if they had written it.

There you are: nineteen examples (over two posts) of writings that you might not have thought was ghostwriting but is.

Feel free to read and check out my other posts related to ghostwriting. Go to leebarnathan.com/blog.

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