21 Jul Prince Harry announces ghost-written memoir – but what does that mean?
Following what has been an eventful year for the royal, Prince Harry has announced that the publication of his memoir is set for release in 2022. His story is being ghost-written by JR Moehringer – a renowned writer of high-profile biographies. But despite the rising of number of people having their lives preserved, what does ‘ghost-writing’ mean?
One report shows that approximately 60% of biographies are ghost-written. Despite this, we often give the person who the story is about the majority of the focus, yet the people who help craft the words on the page are a significant part of the finished product. Selecting who the ghost-writer will be is also unique to every individual, and many people think Harry’s choice is a ‘statement of intent’ – an indicator that his memoir will be told candidly. This sheds light on the importance of selecting a ghost-writer who understands the direction of how the storyteller wants their life to be told.
Over the past year, a plethora of famous faces have decided to hire ghost-writers to document their stories – but they are not the only ones deciding to do so. Research from national biographer StoryTerrace reveals that over half the nation (51%) wish they could tell their younger self to document their life story, as they feel like most of it has been forgotten.
Rutger Bruining, Founder and CEO of StoryTerrace, discusses the ghost-writers behind the pen:
“Biography writing has boomed in the past year, which has seen high-profile individuals like Prince Harry and Will Smith announcing their own works. However, lots of people may not know that the relationship between the ghost-writer and the storyteller is really important. Ensuring that the ghost-writer understands the journey of the storyteller’s life is essential, and as a result, they often end up having a friendship that extends beyond the writing of the book.
When most people think of biographies and life stories, they often focus their attention entirely on the individual telling their story. While this is great, it is also interesting to look at the ghostwriter who helps to put the story together, turning it from intangible memories to words on the page.
At StoryTerrace, our writers come from a wide variety of backgrounds, but all share the same fundamental passion for helping people to capture their stories. We have now built a network of over 600 incredible writers, all of whom have helped document some moving stories of people from all walks of life. ​Clients are matched with a writer best suited to them, based on their background and personality, which makes the experience tailored to every storyteller.”
