A few days back Stranger Things star Millie Bobby Brown released her debut novel Nineteen Steps. However the actress has come under fire once again for using a ghostwriter's help for her book.
The novel is inspired by inspired by her grandmother, Ruth, who passed away in 2020. The book was ghostwritten by Kathleen McGurl but bears only Millie Bobby Brown's name on the cover.
Recently Brown shared a photo on her Instagram where she can be seen holding the book alongside Kathleen McGurl, with the caption: "I couldn't have achieved this without you!" In the comments many criticized Brown and argued that the actor was unfairly "claiming credit," emphasizing that McGurl's name "deserved to be on the cover.
McGurl, who has written and published more than 14 novels under her own name, explained the writing process on her personal website titled "A New Departure."
“I was sent a lot of research that had already been pulled together by Millie and her family, and plenty of ideas, and we had a couple of Zoom calls. And then I knuckled down and wrote the first draft, while Millie continued sending more ideas via WhatsApp. The book went through several drafts since then, as we refined the story."
Once it came to light that the Brown took the help of a ghostwriter, social media users proposed that McGurl's name should have been prominently displayed on the book's cover. Instead, there is a note inside the book that states "with Katherine McGurl."
On the flip side, some individuals came to the teenager's defense, saying that many celebrities utilize ghostwriters for their literary endeavors. One wrote, 'It's funny to me that a 19 year old female celebrity is getting so much hate when middle-aged male celebrities have been doing this for years.'
Check out some of the responses.
The way celebrities portray their books as being written by them when they’ve got a ghostwriter is infuriating. Why not be honest about it? Millie Bobby Brown was on The One Show last night, and there was no mention of anyone else behind it.
— 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐚𝐲 𝐒𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐫𝐢 𝐆𝐫𝐚𝐲 ⛤ (@courtenaywrites) September 12, 2023
Beyond bizarre.
“Come to our shop, meet a famous girl from the TV, buy a book she didn’t write & she’ll sign it for you.”
She could sign sandwiches that someone else made & the crowds would be just as big.
Meanwhile there are real writers whose books don’t get near the place. https://t.co/zsUgqSXH9v
— Tony Kent #TheShadowNetwork (@TonyKent_Writes) September 12, 2023
no hate to millie bobby brown specifically because all celebrities do this but when are we gonna talk about how disrespectful it is to hire a ghostwriter to write a book for you and then only put your name on the cover and not even mention the real author in any of the promotion
— o. (@wivesundrthesea) September 11, 2023
So Millie BB hasn’t written a book? It’s someone else. Why do celebs do this?
— Vix (@lillai23) September 12, 2023
Somehow i was oblivious of celebrity ghost written books, i was surprised millie BB wrote a book but then well, she didn't. It's super weird that the one that wrote the book isn't named on the cover. I mean she'll make money & it was her choice so good for her. But
— Laharle ⭐⭐⭐ (@afightsong) September 14, 2023
millie literally said to us last night that katherine mcgurl wrote the historic side of her book and she wrote the scenes in the stories of the stories her grandma told her? ghostwriting is when u get paid to write the book by a celeb with no credit
— laila ✧ (@remchaelisa) September 13, 2023
Re the Millie Bobby Brown thing, I’m not sure attacking a 19yo girl is the answer. She didn’t decide on her own how it was marketed and presented, just as she didn’t write it on her own. It’s on publishers to be more transparent about how these books are really produced.
— Anna Mazzola (@Anna_Mazz) September 13, 2023
Okay I keep seeing people dragging Millie Bobbi Brown for using a ghost writer. But the fact that we know the ghost writer was Kathleen McGurl bc it was mentioned in a press release & she’s written a blog about working with Millie is great. Most ghost writers get 0 credit.
— Rachel Amber Bloom (@dramadork884) September 12, 2023
why is millie bobby brown calling herself an author and acting like she wrote that book when it was written completely by a ghost writer
— gigi 🇵🇸 (@swtnerdaylight) September 14, 2023
https://twitter.com/zedadam/status/1701743630141260088
Set in the East End in 1942, the book, currently available for purchase, narrates the tale of an 18-year-old girl named Nellie Morris, who wants to wed her childhood friend, Billy. However, Nellie's life takes an unexpected turn when she becomes captivated by an American airman named Ray, and a tragic incident during an air raid shatters her world.
Speaking of the inspiration for the story, Brown told Today, "When I was younger, I couldn’t sleep and so I would crawl into her bed and I would say, 'Nanny, can you tickle my arm and tell me the stories about your childhood? And she would tell me these stories about her experiencing World War II."
What do you think about this latest controversy? Do tell us your thoughts in the comments section.
