E. Mark Windle 4 May 2023. It goes without saying that compatibility between ghostwriter and client is a key factor in facilitating the production of a high quality biography. The writer’s remit is to relate a life story that is authentic, believable, and engaging, and reflective of a world according to their client’s perspective. InContinue reading “Good Fit or Conflict? Client-Ghostwriter Matching in Biography Writing, and When the Relationship Goes Wrong”
Category Archives: Commentary
Moral Code, or F**k it? Hancock, the Lockdown Files and the Art of Breaching Non-Disclosure Agreements
E. Mark Windle 4 March 2023 Right, let’s get this straight. The creation and implementation of a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) is to guard privileged trade or personal information. As such, it is one way of interpreting the UK’s Data Protection Act, which gives individuals and organisations the right to privacy, and control over how divulgedContinue reading “Moral Code, or F**k it? Hancock, the Lockdown Files and the Art of Breaching Non-Disclosure Agreements”
North Broad Street Records: Lovemasters “If You See Kate” / “Let’s Stay Together”
E. Mark Windle 2nd September 2022. As North Broad Street Records goes from strength to strength, September sees the arrival of the seventh vinyl release in their series of quality previously unissued soul recordings. NBS 007 takes us to the Windy City for two fine tracks by the group who previously gave us a northernContinue reading “North Broad Street Records: Lovemasters “If You See Kate” / “Let’s Stay Together”“
Keeping It Under Wraps. Data Protection for Biographers
E. Mark Windle 17 August 2022 As biographers, we are in a privileged position. Rarely do individuals expose their life story, or at least a significant chunk of it, in such detail to another party outside of their immediate family and social circle, perhaps other than in counselling (or to their confessor). Clients welcome usContinue reading “Keeping It Under Wraps. Data Protection for Biographers”
Radio Stations, DJs and the 1960s Nashville R&B Scene
E. Mark Windle 1 August 2022. Music historians will argue over the exact origins of the music industry in Nashville, although any stance depends on the genre under debate, and how far back one is willing to go. The predominance of country music is undeniable, with its roots planted in Celtic and European folk songsContinue reading “Radio Stations, DJs and the 1960s Nashville R&B Scene”
Nashville: From Charlie Romans to the Paramount Four
E. Mark Windle 14 December 2021 So, which floats your boat? I’ve been asked a few times now what the rationale was for selecting the particular artists and recordings in House of Broken Hearts: The Soul of 1960s Nashville. The intention of the book was not to be a panacea of Nashville soul music history; moreContinue reading “Nashville: From Charlie Romans to the Paramount Four”
What’s in a Name? Musings of a Ghostwriter
E. Mark Windle 9 March 2022 I wear several hats as a freelance writer. Over the years I’ve written music history books and other non-fiction, blogs and commentaries, and contributed to medical and nutrition science texts. There’s a chance if you are immersed in one of these niches that you may have even read someContinue reading “What’s in a Name? Musings of a Ghostwriter”
Redressing the History Books. The Soul of Music City
By E. Mark Windle, May 2021. Regarding what has been pretty much an obsession with writing about 1960s southern soul themes since I started over ten years ago, “House of Broken Hearts: The Soul of 1960s Nashville” was undertaken in an attempt to resolve a nagging omission. A fair chunk of my travels (both realContinue reading “Redressing the History Books. The Soul of Music City”
Giving Back: Soul Direction
E. Mark Windle Jan. 2021 By its very existence, the soul scene has a responsibility to hold safe the history of the music it reveres. In various ways, much has been done to achieve this end; and not just through the physical support of soul nights, all-nighters, weekenders and Sunday chill-outs. Numerous websites and socialContinue reading “Giving Back: Soul Direction”
The Carolinas: Of Piedmont Blues, Beach Music and Teenage Radio
E. Mark Windle 29 November 2020 Of course, history books are full of how African American racial and cultural identity was suppressed in the southern states of the US. Even North Carolina, often perceived as one of the more ‘progressive’ states of the South, was not entirely exempt from a reputation of hostility toward blackContinue reading “The Carolinas: Of Piedmont Blues, Beach Music and Teenage Radio”