The Publishing Parasites: Watch Out for Scams

P.T. Barnum once said that there is a sucker born every minute. I’d like to expand on his thoughts by adding: And there is an asshole born every second.

I apologize for my language, but I’m damn mad. Lately, the number of scammers invading my inbox is growing out of control. I am constantly targeted by people claiming to be with legendary, traditional publishing houses like Little, Brown, Random House, and HarperCollins.

These jerks promise massive, completely unrealistic advances—ranging from tens of thousands to millions of dollars—or “100% royalties.” The catch? They want $5,000, $6,000, or $7,000 upfront from you to kickstart the process.

🚨 The Automated Flattery Trap

Modern scammers are way more sophisticated than in my younger days. Thanks to AI, these scum don’t just send generic spam anymore; they use automated tools to scrape a book’s description, title, and metadata to generate hyper-specific praises designed to make an author feel validated.

Here is a real example of an email I recently received from a woman claiming to be “Kate Whitfield” at Allen & Unwin:

Subject: Inquiry regarding Catharsis: One Woman’s Journey to Healing

Dear Tinthia Clement,

I hope you’re doing well. My name is Kate Whitfield, and I am a Senior/Commissioning Editor at Allen & Unwin. While my primary focus is children’s and young adult books, I also pay close attention to distinctive nonfiction voices…

When I came across Catharsis: One Woman’s Journey to Healing, I was deeply moved by the simplicity and sincerity of the premise. What particularly caught my attention was the decision to tell such a personal journey through both words and illustrations… Natalia Lavrinenko’s involvement as illustrator also particularly interested me…

[The email continues with several paragraphs of deep, butt-kissing praise about the themes of trauma recovery, healing, and solidary.]

Warm regards,
Kate Whitfield
Senior Editor (Books for Children & Young Adults) – Allen & Unwin

How To Spot Scams

First off, I wouldn’t trust “Ms. Whitfield” as far as I could throw her. The book she is referring to, Catharsis, is my deeply personal account about surviving sexual assault. It is absolutely not, I repeat NOT a book for children or young adults. The automated system just saw the word “illustrations” and blindly assigned a Children’s/YA template to it.

I have another scammer posing as a Little, Brown representative who has been hounding me for weeks. I tell her to go away and she, like toe-nail fungus, just keeps reappearing. Give me a break!

How to Protect Yourself as a Writer

Scammers will always exist; that’s just the reality of living in a world with other humans. However, we can protect ourselves by remembering the golden rule of traditional publishing: Money always flows to the author, never from the author. If a real publisher wants you, they pay you. If they ask for thousands of dollars upfront for marketing, printing, or editing, it is a scam. Period.

How to Protect Yourself as a Human

Keep in mind the old saying: If it’s too good to be true, it probably is.

Never give money to ANYONE. Okay, maybe your sister, but never someone who you’ve never met. Unless, of course, you’re buying candles from Yankee Candle. That’s perfectly fine.

How You Can Help Indie Authors

If you want to support real art and real writers, you don’t need thousands of dollars. You just need to do this:

• Buy our books
• Leave honest reviews
• Spread the word to help other readers find our stories

And watch out for scams. Just because a sucker is born every minute, you, and I, don’t have to be one of them.

🛡️ Where to Check Before You Sign

If you ever receive an email that feels even slightly off, do not rely on your gut alone. Head over to Writer Beware, a phenomenal watchdog site sponsored by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association (SFWA). They maintain an updated database of active vanity press schemes, impersonators, and fraudulent agencies targeting indie authors.

What do you think?
As an indie author, reading community support is what keeps me going against these grifters. If you’ve ever discovered an indie book through a review or word-of-mouth, let me know in the comments—I’d love to hear what brought you to our stories!