Palin's Book = Going Bogus?

[kokonut]

Reba is queen of the pithy one-liners.

Reba's great! I like how she thinks and respond. Three cheers for Reba!

Ok. Back to Palin....er, the extreme outrage that she had the audicity to hire a ghostwriter.

 

[sallylou]

Let's not get back to Palin. She's irrelevant and boring. I'm not sure why this thread even exists because we've had this discussion on over threads.

 

[kokonut]

Well, I didn't bring this thread up. I guess people are easily shocked when it comes to ghostwriters.

 

[jillio]

If you will read the replies, you will find that, particularly in Palin's case, people were not shocked at all. In fact, being able to string enough coherent sentences together on her own to produce a book length document would have been the shocker.

 

[kokonut]

I guess that applies to Obama's book, too?

 

[jillio]

I guess that applies to Obama's book, too?

How exactly did you draw that conclusion? Palin reasoning?

 

[Jiro]

Reba's great! I like how she thinks and respond. Three cheers for Reba!

Ok. Back to Palin....er, the extreme outrage that she had the audicity to hire a ghostwriter.

yes. outraged! yes I know everybody has speechwriter, copywriter, ghostwriter, etc. But 4 months to complete a memoir book? c'mon....

Many books I've read takes months or years to write - certainly not 4 months especially for memoirs. Many memoir books were written by the person himself (herself) and then it is repeatedly reviewed, reworded, reorganized by professional writers as part of collaboration. I seriously doubt a major portion of the book was written by Palin. Ted Kennedy's "True Compass" took 5 years.

in other word.... "Going Rogue" is an intellectual dishonesty at work... IMO.

 

[jillio]

yes. outraged! yes I know everybody has speechwriter, copywriter, ghostwriter, etc. But 4 months to complete a memoir book? c'mon....

Many books I've read takes months or years to write - certainly not 4 months especially for memoirs. Many memoir books were written by the person himself (herself) and then it is repeatedly reviewed, reworded, reorganized by professional writers as part of collaboration. I seriously doubt a major portion of the book was written by Palin. Ted Kennedy's "True Compass" took 5 years.

in other word.... "Going Rogue" is an intellectual dishonesty at work... IMO.

Just goes to show...Palin doesn't have a lot to tell! Short, very short, memoirs.

 

[TWA]

I don't think Obama had a ghost writer (I could be wrong). He certainly had an editor, as every writer does, who probably had a substantial influence on the book, but that's a lot different than a ghostwriter. Editors strengthen and clarify the intended message of the author. They do shape and influence the narrative voice, but they do not create it.

With a ghostwriter, the so called "author" basically just talks to the GW in interviews and provides facts, then goes along their merry way. It is the GW who does all the actual writing, creates the narrative voice, etc. The subject matter might be Palin's life, but the book does not belong to her. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if she hasn't even read the manuscript all the way through.

Ghostwriting should be more openly criticized as the sham art form that it is. If you can't write your own book, don't write to begin with. I refuse to buy any book that is written by a ghostwriter.

 

[jillio]

I don't think Obama had a ghost writer (I could be wrong). He certainly had an editor, as every writer does, who probably had a substantial influence on the book, but that's a lot different than a ghostwriter. Editors strengthen and clarify the intended message of the author. They do shape and influence the narrative voice, but they do not create it.

With a ghostwriter, the so called "author" basically just talks to the GW in interviews and provides facts, then goes along their merry way. It is the GW who does all the actual writing, creates the narrative voice, etc. The subject matter might be Palin's life, but the book does not belong to her. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if she hasn't even read the manuscript all the way through.

Ghostwriting should be more openly criticized as the sham art form that it is. If you can't write your own book, don't write to begin with. I refuse to buy any book that is written by a ghostwriter.

Agreed.

 

[Jiro]

I guess that applies to Obama's book, too?

He wrote it. most of it... unlike Palin.

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Audacity-Hope-Thoughts-Reclaiming-American/dp/0307237699"]Amazon.com 20-seconds interview[/ame] with Obama

Q: How did writing a book that you knew would be read so closely by so many compare to writing your first book, when few people knew who you were?
A: In many ways, Dreams from My Father was harder to write. At that point, I wasn't even sure that I could write a book. And writing the first book really was a process of self-discovery, since it touched on my family and my childhood in a much more intimate way. On the other hand, writing The Audacity of Hope paralleled the work that I do every day--trying to give shape to all the issues that we face as a country, and providing my own personal stamp on them.

Q: What is your writing process like? You have such a busy schedule, how did you find time to write?
A: I'm a night owl, so I usually wrote at night after my Senate day was over, and after my family was asleep--from 9:30 p.m. or so until 1 a.m. I would work off an outline--certain themes or stories that I wanted to tell--and get them down in longhand on a yellow pad. Then I'd edit while typing in what I'd written.

Palin? I doubt it. More like some scribble here and there and Lynn Vincent (professional writer) pieced them together and wrote it for her... along with her rhetoric discourse and agenda.

now here - we both know who is the real writer in here...

 

[Jiro]

I don't think Obama had a ghost writer (I could be wrong). He certainly had an editor, as every writer does, who probably had a substantial influence on the book, but that's a lot different than a ghostwriter. Editors strengthen and clarify the intended message of the author. They do shape and influence the narrative voice, but they do not create it.

With a ghostwriter, the so called "author" basically just talks to the GW in interviews and provides facts, then goes along their merry way. It is the GW who does all the actual writing, creates the narrative voice, etc. The subject matter might be Palin's life, but the book does not belong to her. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if she hasn't even read the manuscript all the way through.

Ghostwriting should be more openly criticized as the sham art form that it is. If you can't write your own book, don't write to begin with. I refuse to buy any book that is written by a ghostwriter.

well-said! curious - how does one know if this book was written by a GW? Is it usually mentioned somewhere?

 

[jillio]

well-said! curious - how does one know if this book was written by a GW? Is it usually mentioned somewhere?

Unless they are attempting to perpetuate a fraud on the public, it should be mentioned in the liner notes.

 

[TWA]

As a writer, I have strong feelings about this.

Maybe a little irrationally so.

 

[Jiro]

Unless they are attempting to perpetuate a fraud on the public, it should be mentioned in the liner notes.

I thought so. I'll have to check out Palin's book to see if there's a mention.

 

[netrox]

No one can seriously think she can actually write?!?!

It's written by a ghostwriter.

 

[Jiro]

No one can seriously think she can actually write?!?!

It's written by a ghostwriter.

yes. That's what I wanted to point out.. hence "Going BOGUS!"

in my first post -

Palin's publisher says the answer is simple: hard work. "When she resigned as governor, she had a lot more time and was able to really devote herself full-time to writing the book," says Tina Andreadis, a spokeswoman for HarperCollins. "That's really all that there is."

BULLSHIT!

 

[TWA]

If a book says, "By Sarah Palin" and then below her name in small type it says, "With so and so" or it mentions a "co-author" or "written with" type of statement in the liner notes, it is almost always ghostwritten.

Editors or people who do not have a pivotal role in shaping the book but do still contribute are either not mentioned at all, or appear in the acknowledgment page.

 

[jillio]

As a writer, I have strong feelings about this.

Maybe a little irrationally so.

My writing only consists of research reports, psychological reports, and grant proposals, but I have objections, as well. It is an unethical misrepresentation in my book. Kind of like hiring someone to write your biography because you are not interesting enough to be a topic without having to pay someone to take an interest, lol. And not capable of writing an autobiography.

 

[Cowpuppy]

Which all brings us back to a previous post. Did Ted Kennedy write his own book? The aforementioned memoir? I would suspect Ted actually capable of writing his own book....plus the editors of course. but yeah....comparing ted's own writing...and palin. Like I said... Hollywood commercialism fraud. It's like she went to Hollywood to capitalize on immediate fame before it burns out. Where studios grovelled and put out a commercial 'pop culture item'. I mean....The ditzy doper Anna Nicole could probably out sell Ted.....duh....it speaks more of ditzy people's lurid interest than it speaks of intelligence.
In other words: it's apples and oranges. Trying to make something out of nada.
Now why does that ring a bell in my head???