Ghosting: A Double Life

A fascinating but frustrating autobiography of Jennie Erdal herself and her relationship with her employer, “Tiger”, a very individual London publisher. The narrative starts really well with a parallel telling of Jennie’s provincial Scottish upbringing and her meeting with Tiger in 1981, her appointment as Russian editor, subsequent selection and commissioning of translations and then her move to the editing of Tiger’s interviews. Throughout this she skilfully integrates her thoughts about language, translation and then ghost writing. There is also an enlightening description of their meeting with Leni Riefenstahl, reflecting on the ambiguity of Leni’s artistic achievement, given her links to the Nazi regime.

About half way show more through the book (in 1994), Jennie is asked by Tiger to ghost write a romantic novel, then ghost write a further novel, a regular weekly newspaper column and magazine articles. This is interesting, as Jennie sets out the difficulties of ghost writing especially those arising from a woman ghost writing for a man, and her financial necessity for doing the work. However Jennie realises the moral ambiguity of her work, which she does touch on, but does not sufficiently analyse for me. This is the frustrating weakness of the memoir, with it having seemed clear sighted up until this point. She is honest, but it doesn’t feel like the whole truth. We also never understand quite why Tiger acts as he does, but then perhaps Jennie never quite works this out.
To end with an apposite quote:
Autobiography is unreliable. A lot of what we remember is designed to protect us from painful truths. As is a lot of what we forget, or choose to forget. show less

Fascinating account of being a ghost writer for a fascinating and infuriating boss.

I get the feeling this book would be very entertaining if the author ever revealed who the real-life "Tiger", her megalomaniac boss, is. I also get the feeling that most people in the (European) publishing world probably know exactly who he is. Since I don't, I read the book with the decided feeling of the one who isn't in on the joke. Tiger comes across as a jackass, and the author (Ms. Erdal) seems to be in a passive-aggressive codependent professional relationship with him. Okay, but why should I care?Structurally, I found it extremely odd that the author continually rambled on tangents about her childhood that seem to have nothing to do with her experiences ghost-writing. Perhaps to justify why she stayed in this mess of a show more relationship, I suppose. To sum up, this book isn't really about an interesting experience ghost-writing. It is a very average book about a boring woman and a horrible boss. show less

Loved the prose, loved the tone, loved pretty much everything about this.

just bogged badly

(BookCrossing, 30 July 2011)

As someone whose job it is to write for other people, on their terms and in their voices, a lot of the time, I was very interested to read this account of a ghost writer’s very heavy engagement with her craft. She ends up writing everything for her single client – letters, reviews, columns, non-fiction books … and then two novels! I now know where I, personally, would draw the line; I have been asked about writing fiction with people before, and I have turned them down – now I am committed to doing that! But as someone with more inside knowledge than presumably many of her readers, I did find her accounts of the process authentic and fascinating, and it would certainly prove interesting to anyone less show more aware of the processes and emotions. I would like to state here that I have never lounged by a pool with any of my clients, nor have I written the kind of material that will mean I have to release this book in the pub, and, sorry clients, but I’m not installing a fixed telephone line for any of you! show less