Is it ever worth reading the Afterword, the bit at the end of a book that explains how it came into being? Below is an excerpt taken from Porcelain, the coming-of-age memoir written by musician and DJ, Moby:
“When I first talked to a literary agent about writing a memoir I mentioned that it would be really fun to hire a writer.
My literary agent said: ‘You’re descended from Herman Melville. You need to at least try to write the book on your own.’
And happily, it turned out that I love to write. Settling down and spending hours, and ultimately months, reinhabiting my past and writing about it is like heaven to me. It’s narcissistic time travel.”
Why write anything yourself unless you have the time? When asked to predict how long a future task will take, we tend to be optimistic. That article you promised to your professional body, will be delayed, ignored and then forgotten as life gets in the way.
Is writing a good use of your time? Unless you are a professional writer, you may not be playing to your strengths.
Do you have the expertise? Rather than struggle, Elton John recognised he needed help with writing lyrics and paired up with Bernie Taupin.
Why write it yourself when you can get me in? As a ghostwriter, I can take your story, write your blog posts, web copy etc for you, and you can take all the credit.
All I ask is the writing room from one of my favourite films, The Ghost Writer. Ewan McGregor plays the part of a ghostwriter hired to write the memoir of the former British Prime Minister.
The film opens with a ferry docking in the gloom and proceeds to get darker and darker as the ghostwriter becomes increasingly suspicious about the project he’s taken on.
The only complaint I have about the film is that he doesn’t spend nearly enough time in this room. Who cares about uncovering secrets, I mean why would you ever leave this room?
Read more about my dream home, the Ghost Writer Movie House
