--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The trouble with being a ghostwriter or…" description: "\"The trouble with being a ghostwriter or artist is that you must remain rather anonymously without credit. If one wants the credit, one has to cease bei..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/48f/bob-kane-25123_art_the-trouble-with-being-a-ghostwriter-or_1356478.png" --- # The trouble with being a ghostwriter or artist is that you… ![“The trouble with being a ghostwriter or artist is that you must remain rather anonymously without credit. If one wants the credit, one has to cease being a ghost and become a leader or innovator.” quote by Bob Kane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/48f/bob-kane-25123_art_the-trouble-with-being-a-ghostwriter-or_1356478.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/48f/bob-kane-25123_art_the-trouble-with-being-a-ghostwriter-or_1356478.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/48f/bob-kane-25123_art_the-trouble-with-being-a-ghostwriter-or_1356478.png) > “The trouble with being a ghostwriter or artist is that you must remain rather anonymously without credit. If one wants the credit, one has to cease being a ghost and become a leader or innovator.” [Bob Kane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-kane/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Ghostwriters and artists often stay anonymous, and seeking credit may require shifting to leadership or innovation roles. **In simple terms:** Anonymous creators lack credit; leadership brings recognition. Key Takeaway Consider moving from behind‑the‑scenes to visible roles. Themes creativity recognition career Mood thoughtful inspirational Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - publishing - media - entrepreneurship Key Concepts authorship leadership innovation Questions to Reflect On - Are you willing to stay anonymous for art? - What steps lead to visible leadership? A Different Perspective Credit may not always be attainable despite effort. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Credit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/credit/) [Ghost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ghost/) [Innovators](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/innovators/) [Leader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leader/) [Leadership](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leadership/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [I'm not the type of guy who wants the credit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyronn-lue/i-m-not-the-type-of-guy-who-wants-the-credit/) [Tyronn Lue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyronn-lue/) > [“Making a concerted effort to trade your short-term gratification for a longer-term payoff. Whereas everyone else wants to get credit and be “respected,” you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-ferriss/making-a-concerted-effort-to-trade-your-short-term-gratification-for/) [Timothy Ferriss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-ferriss/) > [“I’d collaborate with my clones, because I’m a team player who wants all the credit.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/i-d-collaborate-with-my-clones-because-i-m-a-team-player-who-wants/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [No person will make a great business who wants to do it all himself or get all the credit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-carnegie/no-person-will-make-a-great-business-who-wants-to-do-it-all-himself/) [Andrew Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-carnegie/) > [No man will make a great leader who wants to do it all himself or get all the credit for doing it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-carnegie/no-man-will-make-a-great-leader-who-wants-to-do-it-all-himself-or-get/) [Andrew Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-carnegie/) > [“No shame in having a ghostwriter," Storm said. "Some of the best books published every year are penned by talented writers whose identity the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-castle/no-shame-in-having-a-ghostwriter-storm-said-some-of-the-best-books/) [Richard Castle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-castle/) > [I think that the celebrity memoir as a genre is looked upon as a lesser form. One of my missions as a ghostwriter has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-liftin/i-think-that-the-celebrity-memoir-as-a-genre-is-looked-upon-as-a/) [Hilary Liftin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-liftin/) > [Well, unlike a lot of authors, I will be the one to cop to having a ghostwriter. I've always written with someone else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendy-williams/well-unlike-a-lot-of-authors-i-will-be-the-one-to-cop-to-having-a/) [Wendy Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendy-williams/) > [So I had a ghostwriter, they call them, or somebody who is an experienced writer, to help. I've got the ideas in my head,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-boxleitner/so-i-had-a-ghostwriter-they-call-them-or-somebody-who-is-an/) [Bruce Boxleitner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-boxleitner/) > [In 1999, I had my back against the wall, and WWE had a ghostwriter working on an autobiography for me. He was halfway through,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mick-foley/in-1999-i-had-my-back-against-the-wall-and-wwe-had-a-ghostwriter/) [Mick Foley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mick-foley/) > [Nas is one of the Greatest Ever. Never has and never will need a ghostwriter. That man’s pen and legacy is without question.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-electronica/nas-is-one-of-the-greatest-ever-never-has-and-never-will-need-a/) [Jay Electronica](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-electronica/) > [“Nothing to say. I used to be a ghostwriter for a publisher.’ ‘Medieval stuff?’ ‘Eighty-page love stories. You have this guy, untrustworthy but good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-vargas/nothing-to-say-i-used-to-be-a-ghostwriter-for-a-publisher-medieval/) [Fred Vargas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-vargas/) > [It implies a slight failure as a writer that you are reduced to being a ghostwriter for the money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-harris/it-implies-a-slight-failure-as-a-writer-that-you-are-reduced-to-being/) [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) > [“The nastiest kind of writer is a ghostwriter, who bears people’s children in their body for money.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-moonzajer/the-nastiest-kind-of-writer-is-a-ghostwriter-who-bears-people-s/) [M.F. Moonzajer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-moonzajer/) > [I’ve taken on some of the emotional weight of the stories I’ve worked on. I was writing about a very difficult time in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-liftin/i-ve-taken-on-some-of-the-emotional-weight-of-the-stories-i-ve-worked/) [Hilary Liftin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-liftin/) ## More by Bob Kane > [It's been 25 years now, and truthfully, time sometimes blurs the memory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-kane/it-s-been-25-years-now-and-truthfully-time-sometimes-blurs-the-memory/) [Bob Kane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-kane/) > [If Bill Finger created Batman, where is Bill Finger's byline on my strip? It is conspicuous by its absence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-kane/if-bill-finger-created-batman-where-is-bill-finger-s-byline-on-my/) [Bob Kane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-kane/) > [I didn't have the time to literally write and draw the strip at the same time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-kane/i-didn-t-have-the-time-to-literally-write-and-draw-the-strip-at-the/) [Bob Kane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-kane/) > [What I read is so distorted that I cannot believe that the person they are talking about is myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-kane/what-i-read-is-so-distorted-that-i-cannot-believe-that-the-person/) [Bob Kane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-kane/) > [This sounds like my autobiography, but I thought this would be a good time to sound off about myself, as I think that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-kane/this-sounds-like-my-autobiography-but-i-thought-this-would-be-a-good/) [Bob Kane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-kane/) > [Although Bill Finger literally typed the scripts in the early days, he wrote the scripts from ideas that we mutually collaborated on. Many of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-kane/although-bill-finger-literally-typed-the-scripts-in-the-early-days-he/) [Bob Kane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-kane/) > [Batman has been acknowledged as a legend in my lifetime.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-kane/batman-has-been-acknowledged-as-a-legend-in-my-lifetime/) [Bob Kane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-kane/) > [I intend to explode the myths about myself and get down to the real truth about the legend that is Batman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-kane/i-intend-to-explode-the-myths-about-myself-and-get-down-to-the-real/) [Bob Kane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-kane/) > [To me, it's not work. When I draw and I write, I find it relaxing. It's not like 9-to-5, where a man goes to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-kane/to-me-it-s-not-work-when-i-draw-and-i-write-i-find-it-relaxing-it-s/) [Bob Kane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-kane/) > [It took them a while to catch on that Batman would be the greatest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-kane/it-took-them-a-while-to-catch-on-that-batman-would-be-the-greatest/) [Bob Kane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-kane/) > [Much is written about the Batman because he is publicly exposed in print. Very little is known personally about his creator, because I haven't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-kane/much-is-written-about-the-batman-because-he-is-publicly-exposed-in/) [Bob Kane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-kane/) > [I was involved with the Batman. There are two sides to every story. Now you've heard my side.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-kane/i-was-involved-with-the-batman-there-are-two-sides-to-every-story-now/) [Bob Kane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-kane/) > [In the Golden Age of Batman, I penciled, inked, and lettered my strip by myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-kane/in-the-golden-age-of-batman-i-penciled-inked-and-lettered-my-strip-by/) [Bob Kane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-kane/) > [When I first drew him I had eyes in there and it didn't look right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-kane/when-i-first-drew-him-i-had-eyes-in-there-and-it-didn-t-look-right/) [Bob Kane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-kane/) > [The New Look of Batman is more illustrative and realistic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-kane/the-new-look-of-batman-is-more-illustrative-and-realistic/) [Bob Kane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-kane/) [Explore all 23 Bob Kane quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-kane/) ## More Art quotes > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) Taf Teh > [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/) [Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/) > [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/) [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/) > [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) [Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The trouble with being a ghostwriter or artist is that you must remain rather anonymously without credit. 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