I know this book was first published seven years back, but I didn't get a chance to read it until now. I have finished reading the the entire series. You can find the reviews here.
Anyways, I discovered just a few days back that Girl Online was actually ghostwritten. For those who don't know, getting a book ghostwritten means hiring one or multiple writers to author your book for you, but isn't given credit for their work. This concept was probably designed for people who have a book idea, but don't know how to go about writing the story. The writers get their fee in return for their work, which will depend from person to person.
Some people believe that Zoe Sugg, the author of the series did write a major part of Girl Online, but still many think that only the idea was hers. I personally loved the idea behind the books. I won't go into the details of the plot, but I'll say that the synopsis was different from most books that I have read. I admit that a major reason why I picked it up was because the books are so hyped and well known.
Personally, I think that if Zoella payed the writer of the book well, she doesn't have to be trolled. After all, many people take help for writing their books.
There have been comments saying that ghostwriting is cheating and the concept should be banned. As I said, if you stick to the basic idea, it's not cheating. Ghostwriting is an industry and a profession. People earn their living writing without getting their name printed in books. It is an industry in demand and people depend on it.
So even after knowing this, why did people troll Zoella? These are the possible reasons-
- She lied- When you initially pick a book, a reader doesn't even consider the possibility that the author might have taken some help to write it. So when they found that she got some ghostwriters to write it for her, the first thing that thought is 'she lied'.
- She Used Her Fame- Zoella's book was the fastest-selling book of 2014 and it broke the record for highest first-week sales for a debut author since records began. This was mostly because of her fans from YouTube and they would naturally feel betrayed when they realized that she hadn't written the book on their own.
Many celebrities use ghostwriters while authoring their books, but a major reason why Zoe was singled out was because of the marketing. I watched a few of her old videos and realized that she had indicated that she had written the whole thing entirely on her own which lead to the controversies.
If I were to write a novel and needed some guidance, I'd get a professional writer to work alongside me, but give them credit. But I get it. This isn't about me.
Mary Kom is an Indian boxer who wrote her autobiography Unbreakable in 2013 with Dina Serto. She has stated this inside and I respect her for that. Sugg could have completely avoided all the trolling if she just hadn't made it look as if it was written by her.
Final thoughts- This book is definitely worth reading. Don't judge the author, read it for the content and chances are that you will like it, though I don't guarantee anything.
Comment with what you think of this book and/or your views on ghostwriting. See ya soon.
Saloni Porwal
Comments
Post a Comment