Ankur Warikoo reveals whether his recent book was also ghostwritten

Author-entrepreneur Ankur Warikoo made headlines earlier this year after he reacted to a viral LinkedIn post by a ghostwriter who claimed to have written his books. To everyone’s surprise, Warikoo confirmed that she had not only written just his debut, but also his second book.

After the launch of his latest book, Build An Epic Career, Warikoo spoke to IndiaToday.in as addressed the elephant in the room: did he write this one himself? Well, you will soon figure this out along with several other anecdotes that the author shared regarding the art of articulation of words, the role of artificial intelligence in the writing landscape, and several other interesting subjects.

Here are excerpts from Ankur Warikoo’s interview:

Q: Let’s get straight to it: Is Build An Epic Career ghostwritten too?

A: Yes, and no. I have been creating content now for 20+ years – in the written form on my blog, LinkedIn, Twitter, and in video form on Instagram and YouTube. So, the best use of my time is to find a curator, guide them through the journey of curating my content across years, compile and structure it, if needed, and stitch disconnected parts in my tone of voice. And that’s what I have done for all of my books and will continue to do for all of my books.

Q: In a recent podcast interview, you said, “The world has no shortage of students, but a shortage of good teachers.” How do you think your upcoming book, Build an Epic Career, attempts to bridge that gap, especially since it’s written with Gen Z in mind? What message would you like to give to the ed-tech or author community about embracing the mindset of this new generation?

A: The problem isn’t always what was being taught, but how it was delivered. When we remember our favourite teachers from school or college, it is rarely because of what they taught. Instead, because of how they taught. And I think that’s what is missing, in classrooms when it comes to teachers, and in books when it comes to authors.

I feel most authors write books to feed their egos, to project a certain self of theirs that they have fallen in love with, and to try and convince the world that they are super smart. And unfortunately, most people live with the belief that smartness equals complexity.

I write for an audience that doesn’t read as much or has never read. And if my attempt is to make them read, I cannot be sitting in my own head, looking at myself in the mirror, and patting myself on how awesome I am. Nobody cares. Instead, I need to step into the shoes of my reader and ask, how would they want their book to be?

Which is why I will never, by design, win any literary award. Because the discerning reader would hate my books. They are disconcerting. Unstructured. Blasphemous, if you will, challenging every notion the book industry has held onto for decades. Which is also why I’ve been the most surprising bestseller in recent times.

Q: As someone who covers the trending section, my observation of you as a content creator is that you’ve always advocated a scientific use of analytics and content articulation to resonate with audiences online. What are some moments that made you realise your USP in the content creation space?

A: I believe that the true strength of content creation today lies in data-backed empathy. We are blessed to be living in an era when human emotions can be read through bits and bytes. I have 16M+ followers across social media. Imagine if I had to sit down and understand them? It would be impossible. But it is possible today. I will admit that my training in science has helped me tremendously.

One instance I can recall is early on when I saw that my YouTube videos on personal finance were shared a lot on WhatsApp. And a fair share of my viewers come from WhatsApp. Which told me that personal finance is not so personal for my audience. They don’t just consume, nod, and do something about it. They actually share it with their friends and family, to tell them, look, this is something we all ought to know.

From that day, I started to treat every video on YouTube not as personal video consumption but instead as a shared consumption.

Not surprisingly, as I grew bigger, people who met me IRL told me that they watch my videos on their TV while having dinner with their family. I had replaced the 9 pm news or KBC!

Q: One of the most talked-about issues in the writing world today is AI usage. Many writers and freelancers have shared their frustrations about clients or editors rejecting their work due to AI detectors flagging it, often leaving them unpaid despite the effort. As a creator, author, and someone who works with a team of writers, what is your take on this?

A: I tweeted about this sometime back.

Those who use AI to create, will suffer.

Those who use AI to elevate, will prosper.

That’s what I do, and that’s what will separate the winners from everyone else in the future.

Q: What would your advice be for young writers? How would you encourage them to build a brand, either of themselves or for themselves?

A: When it comes to writing – my simple mantra is – write everyday. Do not set a goal to write a book. Set a habit of writing everyday and a book will emerge sooner than later.

BUT, selling a book is much harder than writing one.

So, don’t just stop at writing. Publishing a book that no one reads is the most unfair treatment you can give to yourself as a writer. As a writer, you have a moral responsibility to ensure that your words reach your audiences.

Please share your journey as you write. Not just the good parts and the wins. But the hard parts are as well. Be authentic. In this fake world, authenticity shines.

Q: Is there any message you’d like to share with the readers of your new book? What should they expect from it, and in what major way do you think it might shift their career outlook? How is it relevant to them?

A: It is the book that I wish I had read when I was 24, confused, insecure, ashamed, and dejected. I felt like I would never win, because the playbook of “go to college, get a job, earn well, and die” had failed for me. And I didn’t know of any other playbook. This book is not going to tell you what you should do next. This book will tell you how to think about your next move. It is a book about career mindset, not career options. Because in a rapidly changing world, what you want to do might soon be irrelevant. What you need then is a model on how to figure out what you could do next.

Author Warikoo has written four books: Do Epic Shit (2021), Get Epic Shit Done (2022), Make Epic Money (2024), and Build An Epic Career (2025).

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