All We Have Are Our Love and Our Guts, Baby…and They’re All Over the Road
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Loading ...I need to open this up by saying how humbled I was yesterday by the amount of emails, direct messages, phone calls, and texts that came in to see how I was doing in light of some things that were said about my profession and business. I want to thank you all for your support and love. My community lifted me up and for that, I am entirely grateful.
When I decided to write about what I do for a living last week in my blog, there were no defenses up. It was not a post defending my profession at all; it was simply one to inform you on how I run my particular business. It was to inform you of how I work one-on-one with my clients to package THEIR message. This was a direct-result post following a national magazine interview on the subject of ghost blogging. This, however, has not been the beginning of the debate. A few months back, Jason Falls interviewed me for an article he was doing on the same subject entitled, The Ethics, or Lack Thereof, of Ghost blogging. I would like to mention a few things from this article as well as a quote by me.
“Doug Karr, an outstanding Internet marketing consultant and social media thinker in his own right, wrote in reaction to my aforementioned talk, “Ghostblogging isn’t a dirty word nor is it a dirty profession, it’s an incredible one. A great ghostblogger investigates the source and accurately writes the posts on behalf of them.” He continues, “As long as the premise of those blog posts are your message, why would anyone care that someone else typed it up?”
Jason goes onto say,
“I know what Doug is shooting for here, but there’s a big difference in someone who takes dictation and writes for you. I would stipulate that if the named author is actively involved in writing the piece — dictating outlines, emphasizing points to cover and actively editing the document — I have much less of an issue and would consider the writer a copywriter/editor rather than a ghost writer.”
Similarly, Lindsay Manfredi of Linzstar, who blogs for several clients and bills herself as a ghost blogger, told me this:
“I don’t encourage my clients to hide, I am simply assisting in the bigger picture. Ultimately, it’s their ideas that are being blogged. And I also have clients who write their own, give it to me to edit and expand on, and then post away to the community they are marketing. Everyone is different, and everyone has a say. At least that is how I operate my business.”
Back to Jason:
“Still, there are some fantastic and talented writers out there not only writing materials for companies and their executives, but selling their wares as “ghost blogging,” or “ghost writing.” They are honest, ethical, genuine people earning a living loaning their talents to those who don’t have the aforementioned time, acumen or intelligence to compose pieces for their audiences.”
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, as a ghost writer, I work with my clients. I always will. I am not just handed someone’s blog admin and told to “go for it.” I hold my clients accountable to sending me ideas and points, and I create the content around it. Once again, THEIR content.
Chris Brogan wrote a piece today in his newsletter about authenticity. He says the following:
“Authenticity and transparency mean being clear about what matters to you, being clear about your intentions, being open about what you’re asking of your clients, your employees, everyone in the circle around you. There are times when matters are meant to be handled in private.
There are many circumstances that don’t belong in the bright light of the public, not least of all on the internet. Examples can be anything from helping an employee find drug treatment solutions, to loaning money to a struggling entrepreneur. There are many situations that deserve to be kept between the parties that matter.
Authenticity isn’t about raw, open exposure. In my mind, it’s about presenting the story the way it is. It’s about being clear about goals. It’s about sharing all sides of the equation, and it’s about trying to be consistent.”
I have always been, and will always be clear in what it is I do. I built my business brand around me and my passion of music. Kyle Lacy and his company, Brandswag, helped me with branding and web design. When I came into corporate Indianapolis over two years ago, I was completely freaked out on whether or not folks would accept me because of my nearly full sleeves. Here I am, this tattooed girl, who plays in a rock band, and has this grand idea to incorporate rock n’ roll into business. Hence, social media rock star. Indianapolis…the people and the businesses here have been amazing, accepting, and so gracious. I love this city.
At the end of the day, I have a beautiful, 5-year-old daughter to support, a community to lift up, a business to run, and music to create. I will not stop doing what I do because I am extremely passionate about it. After all, “all we have are our love and our guts, baby.”
Opening title credited to “Traffic,” by the band Bitch and Animal
24 Responses to “ All We Have Are Our Love and Our Guts, Baby…and They’re All Over the Road ”
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Lindsay Manfredi, writer, ghost blogger, and social media rock star, founded Linzstar, Inc. in 2009 to help small and large companies create a more effective and profitable online presence. read more
Lindsay Manfredi
You are a gift to this city and our shared community.
Thank you for being who you are, inspiring us to take the high road, and for playing it BIG.
Rock star, indeed.
Rock on sister. Keep up the good work.
You know we love you.
I’m all for the ghost blogging but you know how I feel about ghost “Twittering.”
I’ll never understand why people have quarrel with ghost blogging. A large percentage of businesses hire copywriters to create static content for their corporate web sites all of the time. This has become a very acceptable means of providing content to consumers.
Ghost blogging is parallel with copywriting. The only difference is that you’re constantly providing content to the consumer.
You provide a service to fulfill a task that most people don’t know how to do themselves. You are a rock star.
Lindsay – YOU ARE AWESOME!!!
Keep on doing your thing girl – all the negative people in this world will just have to sit back and watch your star rise!
God used Holy-Ghost Bloggers to write the Bible, so people need to get over their made up social media rules.
God has a special place in heaven for all his Ghost Bloggers.
Amen
What you’re doing is a service. Some folks might not choose to use the service. For those folks to then stack on a big fat “you’re doing it wrong” (google that phrase. I’m starting to rank for it) is a bit silly, really.
Know what? There are LOTS of roads to the finish line. You’re entitled to your own opinions, but to just come out and condemn someone for their approach strikes me as a bit silly.
I could defend it, but I won’t. Your clients aren’t upset. The readers of those blogs aren’t upset. Everyone is getting a perceived value.
Seems like a non-issue with some righteous thrown on top.
Those who are against ghost writing should be against hiring as well.
Does anyone have a problem with business owners not creating the product he/she sells? Now, what if that business owner hired someone to create the product and another to sell it?
Business success is about carefully navigating the fine art of supply and demand. There’s no need to apologize.
Keep on rocking.
As a writer who has ghostwritten roughly 55 personal columns for five executives in my current job, I find this a rather strange dust-up. I spend hours researching the material, then work diligently to write in the voice of the executive. This is no different from writing speeches for the CEO in my past job. You learn their personal style, research the facts, give them the ability to edit and refuse the comments and then deliver a credible article or speech. Some leaders know what they want to say, but don’t know how to express it in writing. Why do you think celebrities hire writers to help them ‘polish’ their books? It’s because that individual knows how to write. I appreciate your efforts and fully agree with the previous comments: this is a non-issue looking for a chance to become an issue; after a ghostwriter comes along to polish it up!
I don’t see any difference between ghost blogging and speechwriting for the President or copyrighting ads for Microsoft.
Your talent is taking the client’s msg and communicating it to the world. I was once in a partnership where I was the only 1 of the 3 principals who could write coherently. So, guess what, I would write ANYTHING going to the outside world, with mutual consent, of course. We hire and utilize skill sets we lack.
I think the problem is when celeb tweets are presented as “authentic” and fans feel cheated. Once read a post under Tiger Woods name that was CLEARLY written by an ad agency! Too cute, clever, and blatent reference to sponsor.
I stopped flwing him then. If it had been done properly I would never have doubted it was Tiger.
Keep helping get your clients’ msgs out!
As a blogger you are PUBLISHING. This is no different in the print publishing world. Do you think Oprah or Derek Jeter wrote their own book?
Get over yourselves people. Let Lindsay do her thing. Three years from now (maybe less), this won’t even be a conversation worth having.
At my company (Fathom), our clients come to us because we know how to dig down deep, pull out their mojo and package it up like it was always there (because it always is) – and sometimes, we do this work behind the curtain, kinda like “ghost consulting.” But, tucked away or out in front, we’re never doing this work without 100% interaction with our client.
Lindsay,
I have followed your posts on this subject and have to say that you have done a great job of presenting yourself here and I applaud it. In fact I can even say that I have started to question MY beliefs about this subject after your posts.
For me, and I will never allow myself to be called an expert, guru, (insert other super duper title here) ghost blogging needs to be defined, as there are multiple types. Some – I think are the same as hiring a PR spokesperson or such. Others – I think are just a way for someone too busy or lazy to actually do it themselves to tack their name on something for positioning, SEO, or otherwise.
I think that when we define the sectors (are you blogging on behalf of a company/as a paid employee or such – or – are you penning posts and such for a CEO that doesn’t get it or doesn’t have time for the above mentioned reasons) you will have a clear support or disapproval of the masses.
Just my 2 cents – great post again.
MAtt
I come here via Chris Brogan Tweeting about his comment. I’ve been all over this ghost-blogging “debate” for years.
I’ve not been much for the holier-than-thou purist attitude toward a medium, blogging, that hasn’t existed in popular form for very long. What standards? What purity? The precedents you laid down in your posts apply, and apply well.
In a former life, I was a radio news producer. Part of my job was to write scripts for the anchors, and I damn well better know how to write in their voice and in their style– which was a real challenge. Yup, I was a (disclosed, in a way) ghost-writer. Noone spit on me– unless I wrote the word “particularly” into a script. Once anchor had a hard time saying that and gave us crap is we used it.
You strike me as someone who approaches this work honestly and openly. I’m not going to judge. More power to you.
The real question here is not whether or not what Lindsay does is right. She believes it is, and many of us support her. Rather, it is how much she could change her behavior for it to become wrong.
Integral to her process today is knowing the client. She interviews them and they discuss ideas. She researches key points and crafts posts. Clients provide feedback and final approval. This is not pure writing, but a collaboration. She is the voice for the brand of others.
But take all that away, and the ghostwriter truly becomes a incorporeal being. If Lindsay were to recruit clients and then provide copy without a conversation, without approval, without interaction, she would merely be a font of content. This theoretical skill is both impressive and terrifying. Only the most adroit writer could sufficiently emulate a client without a word of feedback. This same non-existent ghost simultaneously proves that publication without attribution enables anyone to appear infinitely capable. That’s the fear of ghostwriting: if you don’t talk to your clients, how do readers know if they are consuming the words of the wise or merely the rich?
@robbyslaughter
When I reflect, in later years, on ghostgate ‘09, I won’t remember the ridiculous vituperation that spawned it, but rather the grace and maturity shown in response.
grace and maturity, absolutely.
thanks or demonstrating it, Linz.
It’s crazy how people are inventing all these rules for social media that don’t even align with the rest of the publishing or entertainment world.
All I have to say is… if the President isn’t writing his own speeches, then why should ghost blogging be an issue?
@susan: It’s only an issue if readers care. Your blogs all say: “Written by Susan.” But what if they *actually* were written by a certain rock star? Would your readers be upset?
Wow. Thank you all for your contribution and responses. I hope this issue is put to rest. It’s time for me to start blogging about how to be the best ghost writer/blogger you can be for your clients. Since I’m on this path, you’re on this path, and the many more that will follow, it’s just best to do it right. Yes?
Thank you again. No, SERIOUSLY. Who knew?…
Seriously, I can’t even believe this whole issue – it’s ridiculous! Lindsay you ARE a rock star. Keep doing what you’re doing – you’re amazing!!!!
If ghost writing is done the right way, and all parties are happy, then what is the problem?
I don’t seem one.
Rock on!
@aflander
Lindsay-
Kudos to you! Your response is both professional (odd we place a priority on professionalism huh?) and passionate. Always remember as we rise to the top of anything you pursue their will be those who hate your success!
Bryon
It’s crazy how people are inventing all these rules for social media that don’t even align with the rest of the publishing or entertainment world.
All I have to say is… if the President isn’t writing his own speeches, then why should ghost blogging be an issue?
@susan: It’s only an issue if readers care. Your blogs all say: “Written by Susan.” But what if they *actually* were written by a certain rock star? Would your readers be upset?