ghostwriter

Or ghost writ·er

[gohst-rahy-ter]

noun

1. a person who writes one or numerous speeches, books, articles, etc., for another person who is named as or presumed to be the author.

Word History and Origins

Origin of ghostwriter¹

An Americanism dating back to 1895–1900

Example Sentences

Often, collaborations involve a ghostwriter or co-author who does the majority of the writing, with minimal input from the celebrity.

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When she first called, B asked me to work as her editor, or ghostwriter.

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She said the packager dropped her in 2011 and handed over her unpublished eighth instalment to an anonymous ghostwriter, who went on to publish two further Vampire Diaries books.

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Despite this, Alloy hired a ghostwriter to write new novels and complete the “Vampire Diaries” series.

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Mullen meets with a potential ghostwriter sent hopefully to help with his overdue memoir.

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Related Words

• author 
• biographer 
• columnist 
• correspondent 
• critic 
• dramatist 
• editor 
• essayist 
• journalist 
• novelist 
• poet 
• reporter 
• screenwriter