The Ghost

[Hawkman]

Why not gift a tear to the ghost,
who, despite his handle, isn’t dead
but just condemned in anonymity
to give illiterate celebrity a voice.
He doesn’t really have a choice,
for though his talent’s recognised
his name’s unknown to those who
read his words. They just want to
hear about the vulgar strumpet
from Big Brother

who mouthed off at some other sod
about something-or-other.

The general public seem to be
infatuated with the cult of fame.
For them all art is just a game
whose referee must always be
a face they’ve come to know
on some kind of TV show.
Is it just a corporate ploy, ensuring
that the sales are guaranteed,
or is the public naturally inclined
to endless gossip, something
they can share at bedtime,
over a milk posset, or a cup of tea.

No one wants to publish
what the ghost might call his own
as he’s never had a credit
on the box or radio.
No glitzy cover ever saw his name,
in bold and gold,
emblazoned on the front for all to see:
it’s such a shame, deprived of fame,
a ghost is all he’ll ever be.

[hillwalker]

A plea on behalf of the ghost writer I'm assuming, who churns out mindless fodder on behalf of those 'celebrities' who manage to 'write' a new autobiography every 18 months or so.

It does tend to waver from prose to poetry in a couple of places, as does the rhyme, but it is an acerbic observation on the state of book publishing when most tomes on the best-seller list are vanity pieces intended to promote the so-called-career of some 'Z-list' nonentity.

Power to the writer.

H

[Jerrybaldy]

I have to admit to little surprise that it was Hill's comment on Ghost writer that lead me down the right path. Having re-read I almost deleted as it is all there, but what the hell.

I am not sure the ghost writer should be celebrated though as he sold out to the cash. As for the dumbing down and celebrity lists, I couldnt agree more.
As for your words in the expression, faultless and as enjoyable as ever Hawk.
cheers
JB

[Hawkman]

A plea on behalf of the ghost writer I'm assuming, who churns out mindless fodder on behalf of those 'celebrities' who manage to 'write' a new autobiography every 18 months or so.

It does tend to waver from prose to poetry in a couple of places, as does the rhyme, but it is an acerbic observation on the state of book publishing when most tomes on the best-seller list are vanity pieces intended to promote the so-called-career of some 'Z-list' nonentity.

Power to the writer.

H

Hi hill, and thanks for reading and commenting. You are of course correct in your identification of subject. I'm not sure that I'd agree that it wavers from poetry to prose though. The style is free form and plays with internal and external rhyming, which is something I do quite often with free verse, although the metre is inconsistant in this one.


I have to admit to little surprise that it was Hill's comment on Ghost writer that lead me down the right path. Having re-read I almost deleted as it is all there, but what the hell.

I am not sure the ghost writer should be celebrated though as he sold out to the cash. As for the dumbing down and celebrity lists, I couldnt agree more.
As for your words in the expression, faultless and as enjoyable as ever Hawk.
cheers
JB

Hi JB. I'm not sure what you might have thought it was about other than a ghost writer :D

I can't agree that the ghost is a sell out though. He's just an anonymous bloke who does what he does in order to earn a crust. Believe me, there's no dignity in starving in your garret, (whatever the romantics might claim). Robbing the moustrap of a crumb of cheese or licking the inside of a marmite jar whilst huddling over a candle to keep warm ain't no way to live. Anyway, who's the bigger sell-out, a starving ghost or JK Rowling? :D

Thank you both again for reading and commenting. pity there aren't more of you out there :devil:

Live and be well, H