In times of economic distress it seems that the preoccupation with other peoples’ lives intensifies. Celebrity couples, and even their celebrity babies are cashing in on the frenzied curiosity of the public. It seems that writing an autobiography is the “in” thing to do, and we are buying into it. You have to admit that the allure of peeking into someone else’s life is somewhat tempting, but we can all accept that the celebrity culture is getting a bit out of hand.

Celebrities have infiltrated our news to the point that we no longer read or watch real news. And now they are flocking to the bookstands. Recently Amy Winehouse, 24, turned down a book deal for an autobiography to be written about her. Smart girl, said she was too young to even consider writing one and when she did she would write it herself. Although the troubled singer has been through a great deal who, at the age of 24, can even consider writing their life story? Unless it’s part of a 4 part series…let’s watch that idea catch on for the young starlets.

Prince just came out with a photographic autobiography (no comment on that one), Madonna’s brother came out of the woodwork and is suddenly an expert on the life of his sister. There is no doubt that writing about oneself, or a celebrity is a boost to the ego, let alone to the profit margins of the lucky publisher who gets the rights to the book. Cash cow or not, it seems as though the bookshelves may be overflowing with celebrity biographies for some time to come.

If you are one of the few lucky enough to be a party to the frantic effort to churn out such a biography, then congratulations…build your career. There is no easier book to sell, or publicity to get, than to write about a celebrity as our fascination with his or her life grows with every mistake he/she makes. Fiction is a hard sell, but the almost surreal non-fiction books about favorite celebrities whose lives we can preoccupy our own with are easy meal tickets.