Roman Polanski’s ‘Ghost Writer’: Dead On
Posted on 13 May 2010 by Karen Risch
Last night, I went to see The Ghost Writer at my local indie film house here in my small town. There were maybe 10 people in the theater with me, which is just how I like it … except that when I laughed at certain lines in this movie (maybe they weren′t supposed to be funny?), I was alone in it, rather obvious and exposed.
My biggest chuckle came when an over-eager publisher cut an already crazy-fast deadline in half. Rewrite a really boring 600-page manuscript into a page-turner in one month for $250,000? Well, okay, if you put it like that. Now do it in two weeks? Even though Ewan McGregor’s character (referred to only as The Ghost, never by name) doesn’t even crack a smile, I couldn’t help myself.
HA, HA, HA!
But here’s the thing: this movie’s dead on in its portrayal of the sometimes unpleasant side of being a ghostwriter. That’s why it’s so funny in spots: the hilarity of truth, although I wonder if many people will appreciate how remarkably well this movie captured it.
The ridiculousness of a rush job, certainly. But also the weirdness of “selling” yourself based on past successes, which may or may not have anything to do with your own talent. The awkward, forced intimacy of the first meeting with the client-author. The lopsidedness of inserting yourself into someone else’s life, delving into their past and getting inside their head while revealing very little about yourself. The odd interactions with a client′s professional staff, who seem to both welcome you and suspect you of something kind of skeevy. The strange relationship you can develop with the spouse, who probably has similar feelings to the staff’s, and then some.
The Ghost, to the ex-British Prime Minister’s wife, Ruth: “Didn’t you ever want to be a proper politician?”
Ruth: “Didn’t you ever want to be a proper writer?”
The Ghost: “Ouch.”
How many times did my mother ask me when I was going to start “really” writing books? Too many to count, my friend, too many to count.
The film even gets the nuts and bolts of ghostwriting correct. The Ghost explains to his client how it will work: we’ll talk, I’ll find a way to turn what you say into prose, I’ll add transitions and other passages in your voice. I’ll record the conversations and have them transcribed for my reference. I’ll do some independent research to verify facts and build a better story.
That independent research gets The Ghost in trouble in this movie, providing the starter for the political intrigue and explaining the mysterious death of his predecessor (as well as yet another good reason I’ll probably never take on the job of writing a political memoir).
Last week, I finished ghostwriting a book and am awaiting marching orders from the publisher’s editor about our next stage, revision. Hope they give me more than two weeks.
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