ghost
Loading your saved state.
ghostwriter
A person who writes a text on behalf of and in the name of another person, without being named as the author themselves.
Die Autobiografie des Stars wurde von einem professionellen Ghost geschrieben.
The star's autobiography was written by a professional ghostwriter.
This word is a loanword from English and is used in German only in the special meanings of ghostwriter and game feature. In German, it does not refer to a supernatural spirit.
Für einen Geist im Spukhaus würde man im Deutschen das Wort „Geist“ verwenden, nicht „Ghost“.
For a ghost in a haunted house, German would use the word 'Geist' (ghost/spirit), not 'Ghost'.
'Ghost' is a modern, rather colloquial word that is common especially in media, publishing, and gaming. In more formal contexts, the full form 'Ghostwriter' is often preferred.
In der Gaming-Community weiß jeder, was ein Ghost ist.
In the gaming community, everyone knows what a ghost is.
In this meaning, 'Ghost' is a short form of the full term 'Ghostwriter'. The idea is that the actual author remains in the background like an invisible spirit.
Viele Prominente engagieren einen Ghost für ihre Memoiren.
Many celebrities hire a ghostwriter for their memoirs.
When words like 'Rennspiel' (racing game), 'Bestzeit' (best time), 'Runde' (lap), or 'fahren' (to drive/race) are mentioned, 'Ghost' refers to the transparent recording of a previous performance in a video game.
Ich konnte meinen eigenen Ghost aus der letzten Runde nicht schlagen.
I couldn't beat my own ghost from the last lap.
author
'der Autor' and 'der Ghost' can both have to do with writing a text. The author is normally named as the writer and is visibly behind the text. The ghostwriter writes a text for another person but is not named as the author. The words can be confused because both may actually write. The important difference is visibility: with an author, the name is included; with a ghostwriter, usually not.
Für die Rede engagiert der Politiker einen Ghost, damit der Text professioneller klingt.
The politician hires a ghostwriter for the speech so that the text sounds more professional.
Wegen der neuen Ausgabe nennt sie den Autor noch einmal im Gespräch.
Because of the new edition, she mentions the author again in the conversation.