Ghost stories

Ghost stories

When it comes to writing fiction a lack of talent is no longer a bar to publication. Naomi Campbell had a series of chats with an unattributed ghost writer and lo! the not-so-ugly duckling produced Swan. Martina Navratilova did the celebrity novel bit rather more honestly with an equal billing for her ghostwriter and more active involvement in The Total Zone, a thriller exposing the tensions of the tennis racket which is paperbacked this week. The champion's hardback sales dwarfed those of la Campbell, but then so did Teach Yourself Carpet Weaving. In the wake of Navratilova's success, there are unattributable rumours of eagerly awaited fictional debuts from scores of British media giants including: Sparkplug, an utterly unmonotonous expose of Formula One from Nigel Mansell; Sincerity, a ruthlessly compassionate story of a lowly TV researcher who smiles through the tears before becoming Controller of the BBC (Esther Rantzen); and Dunes, a sex-drenched saga of golden sands, purple passion and orange skin from Britain's latest prose temptress: Judith Chalmers.