Indemnification Clause Issues - ghostwriter wants credit

I'm in a difficult situation and trying to figure out my next steps.

ghostwriter wants credit. I've been dealing with this for about 13 weeks now and the situation isn't improving.

The contract was signed 17 months ago. I have a copy of the original agreement. The total amount in dispute is approximately $23,000.

Am I overthinking this or is this a real legal issue worth pursuing?

I see this constantly on this sub.

I eventually got results by escalating/manager. It took 1-3 months but was worth it.

I work in this industry and unfortunately this is very common. The good news is that when people actually push back with legal representation, companies usually settle.