A writer's social media post claiming to have ghostwritten Ankur Warikoo's second book in under three months went viral, prompting a response from the author-entrepreneur himself. Nishtha Gehija, a Chartered Accountant turned writer, detailed her experience in a LinkedIn post, highlighting her ability to ghostwrite books while maintaining a full-time job.
In a post on LinkedIn, she wrote, "I wrote Ankur Warikoo's second book in less than 3 months. I see hundreds of people struggling to even start their book. Others who are less smarter, more lazy and perhaps less qualified than them go on to write their books. While such smart folks blankly stare at the blank doc for years!!What is the difference?"
Further, she also spoke of using a roadmap to write and emphasised execution rather than intelligence. "I ghostwrite directly for a tiny tiny bunch of premium clients, I am opening consulting calls for those who want to write their book themselves. Book a call with me in my featured section," she wrote.
The post quickly went viral, leaving many social media users surprised to learn that Ankur Warikoo's books were written by a ghostwriter. One user shared a screenshot of the LinkedIn post on X, writing, "Wait! Really would want Ankur Warikoo to clarify this. The book is written by a ghostwriter?"
Mr Warikoo, whose books 'Do Epic S**t' and 'Get Epic S**t Done' became bestsellers, addressed the controversy sparked by Nishtha Gehija's claim. Responding with humour, he said, "Nishtha is lying in her post. She didn't write my second book. She wrote the first one as well," while also praising her efforts.
He clarified that the involvement of a ghostwriter was never a secret and credited Nishtha in his second book. Sharing a photo of the acknowledgement page, he highlighted the note: "Nishtha, the one who actually wrote this book. We spent three months on multiple Zoom calls."
Mr Warikoo elaborated that these calls were recorded, transcribed, and transformed into the book, calling it "an incredibly tough task which she did commendably well." He also noted that it was a paid assignment and confirmed that all his future books would similarly involve ghostwriters.
When questioned by a user about why he calls himself an "author" despite not writing the books himself, Warikoo replied, "Author seemed the easiest to me, to suggest that I also publish books. If you can think of a better description, let me know, and I will happily change it."
