What This Author Says Prince Harry Has To Do To Avoid A Negative Response To His Memoir

Things have just been getting much worse for Prince Harry as far as his relationship with the rest of the royals goes. Possibly even more significantly, his popularity with the general populace has been sinking like a stone, too.

The Oprah Winfrey interview, coming shortly before the death of his grandfather, not only saw a significant drop in his approval ratings in the UK, but according to UAE-based newspaper The National, it did some damage in his newly-adopted home of the U.S. as well.

The July 2021 bombshell announcement that Harry would be penning a tell-all memoir did nothing whatsoever to mend fences with the Windsors. As palace insiders have told the Daily Mail, the general reaction is one of "shock and fury," as well as "emotional turmoil." One anonymous source went on to say "'This is the no going back moment – the final nail in the coffin of the Royal Family's relationship with Harry."

While some courtiers think it's possible that Harry's dad will someday be able to forgive him, they think his older brother is so over his sibling's shenanigans. As one source put it, "William believes [Harry's] behaviour is shameful and tasteless." While his family relations may seem like a lost cause, is there any way Harry can keep his book from tanking his public opinion rating? Well, according to one author, that may depend on the man who's really writing it.

Behind nearly every best-selling memoir is a good ghost. No, not like Casper, but a ghost writer: the person who takes the celeb's often disorganized reminiscences and weaves them into a cohesive narrative

e. According to Page Six, Harry's ghostwriter is J.R. Moehringer, a Pulitzer-winning journalist who's previously penned (or pixeled) the memoirs of tennis star Andre Agassi and Nike co-founder Phil Knight. Such talent doesn't come cheap, though. As the Daily Mail reports, Harry reportedly received at least $20 million in advance money for his book with a million of that going to his top-tier ghost.

While Moehringer himself is remaining mum on the subject of the upcoming royal tell-all, another prominent ghostwriter, author Andrew Crofts, spoke with the Daily Mail to caution against one major misstep Harry – or his ghost – could make. Harry, he warns, could come across as "sounding bitter and settling scores," and says the ghost will need to try to steer him away from this. 

Croft does say, though, that Harry, a man he describes as "rich, powerful, famous and damaged," makes for a ghostwriter's dream subject. Lots of juicy stuff there, and he's not afraid to spill it \- nor does he have a partner who's inclined to reign him in. Basically, it's pretty much up to Moehringer to determine whether Harry's words have him come across as a hero or a heel.