Gathering Of Dedicated Scribblers discussion
***Authors Beware***
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Hi everyone,I just wanted to give the authors here a word of caution. It was actually pointed out to me by a fellow author that I had been the victim of a raiting scam. Currently my public works all show 10 - 1Star raitings submitted on April 9th and 10th. The author was the victim to a similar situation where they demanded money from her in order to remove their fake raitings.
I just wanted to inform those of you that have not run into an experience like this that it does exist and may happen. When (if you have not already) publish your work you may begin recieving emails telling you that they are beta readers or reviewers and you can send your book to them absolutely free (but not through amazon, or kindle, or mobi or any other file other than word.doc or .pdf).
They might also say something along the lines of, I have thirty thousand followers and they can influence your raitings. If you want to know more respond to this email. Then they attempt to acquire funds from you to grant you bogus raitings through fake profiles.
If anyone else has any similar experience please share them here. I believe the more we are aware of these things the better we can be prepared to help each other from becoming victims of these scams. It is difficult enough just being an indie author predators like these need to be made aware of and through a good community like we have here on SFF we can help protect each other even if it is only in a small way.
Thank you everyone,
ARod
Hello,Would you be interested if I tell you how to triple your book sales?
I had a quick look at the Amazon sales rank of your newly published book and realized that you have not made a considerable amount of sales. I also had a look at the cover and blurb of your book and realized that they could be better. A recent case study done on top 10 bestselling indie authors indicate that they started making sales right after changing the cover and synopsis of their book, WITHOUT investing a cent on traditional marketing methods.
If you are serious about learning how to triple your book sales, please respond to this email, thanks. On the other hand if you want to remain stuck where you are and enjoy your struggle secretly, you can ignore this email.
Junaid
marthasp6s@gmail.com
Hello,Mark here. I recently checked out your awesome book at Amazon. Do you like the idea of exposing your book to almost a million kindle book readers on social media? If you are interested in becoming the next bestselling author on Amazon, you can contact me for details (please ignore this message if you don’t want to get more reviews and sales for your book).
Mark Pablo
amzgrbooks645@yahoo.com
Hello,I am Mary Jane Anderson (you can call me just MJ if you wish). I have been reviewing books of various genres for a while. For more details, please respond to this message.
Regards,
MJ
janicewfork@gmail.com
Hi,
Hi MJ, just curious, why would I want more details about you reviewing books?
Sincerely,
ARod
Hello again,
Many thanks for your response. In order to submit your book for review, please visit:
http://iloveuniquebooks.com/
To contact me with any questions, please visit:
http://iloveuniquebooks.com/contact-me
Please DO NOT reply to this email. This inbox is not monitored.
Regards,
MJ
I have been reviewing books of various genres for a while. If you are looking for a high quality, comprehensive and honest book review from an erudite reader, you search ends here. For more details, please respond to this message.Regards,
Mary Jane Anderson
marthagfy96@gmail.com
Hi,My apologies if this is a duplicate message. I am a 23 year old student of English literature. I love reading new and exciting books. Right now I am on a break from college so I am accepting book review requests. I read all genres. If you want to get your book reviews please contact me.
Regards,
Cheryl Simmons
robertg101@gmail.com
crazy4books567@gmail.com
Hi,If you are looking for reviews for your newest book, I am willing to read and review it. You can send me a review copy to purelybooks767@gmail.com. I accept epub, mobi and pdf formats. I am also available as a beta reader.
Please email me your queries at purelybooks767@gmail.com. I don't login to Goodreads often.
Vena
P.S. I don't have a Kindle Unlimited account.
Hi,If you are looking for a professional editor who does not charge exorbitant prices, your search ends right here. For more information, please respond to this message.
Mary antarmaninnersoul@gmail.com
Hi,I want to review your book in exchange of a review copy. You can email me a copy at awesomebooks455@gmail.com. Please note that I am unable to download gift copies so kindly don’t email me those. Also, I don’t check messages here often so, if you have any questions please email me directly. Thanks
Hi,I want to review your book in exchange of a review copy. You can email me a copy at bookstomatch@gmail.com. Please note that I am unable to download gift copies so kindly don’t email me those. Also, I don’t check messages here often so, if you have any questions please email me directly. I am also a beta reader. Thanks
If You Want Amazon Reviews..."Larry L. Martin" patricidy6r@gmail.com
Hi,
I organize book review tours for Amazon authors. Are you interested in getting more reviews for your book? I have a large network consisting of more than 30K ACTIVE and FAST book reviewers. Additionally, I am also connected with 2,000 book bloggers. If you are looking for honest reviews for your book, I can help you.
Hello,Would you like to have your book reviewed by a professional and
knowledgeable reviewer? I am Mary. I have been reviewing and editing
books for a very long time. I am also a beta reader. I read and review
books from ALL genres. If you are interested in any of these services,
feel free to respond to this message for samples and testimonials.
Mary Jane Anderson
fatlossplrryo@gmail.com
Subject: Do You Want REVIEWS and Exposure For Your Book?Hi,
I am an organizer of Amazon book review tours. If you are looking for organic, honest book reviews on Amazon then my book tour is going to help you big time. I have more than 33K book reviewers and bloggers from various genres in my network. I target my book promos based on the genre(s) of the book and I accept books/ebooks/audiobooks from all genres. You can contact me for more details.
Charlotte K. Ham
docktradeg2@gmail.com
Subject: I'm an Amazon Book ReviewerHello,
I am going on break from college and will have 1 month of free time for reading. I would love to read some books! I am open to anything that is new and interesting, irrespective of genre! Please message me if you have anything for me to read and review. I can post reviews on Amazon and Goodreads. Thank you!
Cheryl Simmons
semiorbooks6@gmail.com
What a "coincidence" that most of those addresses are partly or fully made of random characters.Not something a reputable business - even a single freelancer - would have.
So what I'm learning is that these are all attempts to gain a pdf. or .doc so that they can place them on their pirate e-book sites. I don't think I would actually mind uploading a book or two to a 'donation' or free site. Since I am an indie author, it would be another avenue to generate reads and reviews. However, I do not like the way these individuals are going about it and therefore I wont be giving it to them. Although, if any of my friends on goodreads were to create such a thing, you could count on me to donate as long as funds generated went to a good cause and website maintenance.
Hello,Mary Jane Anderson here, with a Masters in English literature and a substantial experience in reviewing, beta reading and editing books as a professional. I have plenty of happy customers whose honest testimonials enrich my website. If you are looking for an erudite and professional book reviewer, beta reader or editor, you can connect with me for more information.
Regards,
Mary Jane
authorsrevyt87@gmail.com
Oh, wow. I just received a message like this. A random person offering to beta read my book. I haven't been active on here recently so I thought it was odd. I came to see if maybe she was a new member of the GoDs. Thank you for the warning!The name was Sheila Rutherford and it came through Goodreads:
Hi,
I would like to beta read your book. Please send me a copy to booksandbooks324@gmail.com. Thanks.
For any and all questions, please email (I am not very active on Goodreads). I am also a book reviewer.
From the contact form on my website:Name: Frances Ivy
Email: easybook789@gmail.com
Website:
Text: I have been trying to reach you for an author interview (text and video). Please let me know of your availability (date and time) at the earliest.
I'm quite sure a reputable person would add a link to -anything- that could prove their value/credentials.
I received exactly the same message, see below. Also suspicious is that the sender's profile is set to private.==== Suspect Message ====
Hi,
I want to review your book. You can email me a copy at booksandbooks324@gmail.com. I am also a beta reader and proofreader. Please note that I am unable to download gift copies; I don't have Kindle Unlimited either.
I don’t check messages here often, so if you have any questions please email me directly. Thanks
I received this email today, just days after posting info about my book and website in another Goodreads group. I did a quick Google on the email name and landed here. Thanks for letting me know it's scammy before I dipped a toe into those waters.Tomas wrote: "From the contact form on my website:
Name: Frances Ivy
Email: easybook789@gmail.com
Website:
Text: I have been trying to reach you for an author interview (text and video). Please let me know of y..."
Tomas wrote: "From the contact form on my website:Name: Frances Ivy
Email: easybook789@gmail.com
Website:
Text: I have been trying to reach you for an author interview (text and video). Please let me know of y..."
I got a different message from the same email address on my contact form (notice the different contact name given):
Name: Desiree Dahl
Email: easybook789@gmail.com
Comment or Message: I am facing problems checking out your website. I am unable to find any information regarding your book. I am hopeful that you can offer me some help. Very sorry for bothering you.
Not sure what their endgame is if I were to respond. I checked my website and it all looks fine to me.
Yeah, it's just a pitiful attempt to have you contact them. I guess the point is that if you contact them, their reply (which will likely try to sell overpriced services) can't be considered spam, since you asked for it.
Tomas wrote: "Yeah, it's just a pitiful attempt to have you contact them. I guess the point is that if you contact them, their reply (which will likely try to sell overpriced services) can't be considered spam, ..."True. It seems they scour this message board as well as I just got a few emails from the Mary Jane Anderson person and the college student lol saying they can review my book.
Yes (they) if it is a they, are very active. New authors are so full of passion and excitement having completed their first book that they present themselves as targets unknowingly. Out of the 3 million books published every year, each book has less than a 1% chance at receiving any attention. So a new author hungry for reviews and promotion is willing to spend money in order to gain these. What's unfortunate is that some of the spam mail will actually give an author 20 fake 5star reviews as promised but other scammers will copy and paste their book for free downloads to their subscription members. Not that paying amazon for advertising is any better a waste of money.
The book selling market is continuously dropping. With streaming services skyrocketing, even traditional publishers are showing declining numbers. A new era is arising where self publishers are responsible for all their self promotion which leads to the increase in spam. V-bloggers seems to be the way to go right now but they are realizing how valuable they are and increasing their prices as well. Either way its a pretty good self pub trap until you break through and gather your own following of readers.
I found this group by Googling the email address of my spammer! I got two messages, both here on Goodreads and on my website:message 1: by KristiJan 12, 2022 11:49PM
Kristi Sullivan If you are still offering copies, I would like to review your book. I can accept a copy by email: booksyumm AT gmail.com – pdf and epub. If your ebook is not available in either epub or pdf format, we can discuss an alternative. I also do beta reading. Please note that I am unable to download from Kindle. Thank you.
Krisi has her profile set to private as well.
And here's the spam on my website:
Author: Victoria Morris (IP address: 192.99.41.188, 192.99.41.188)
Email: easybook789@gmail.com
I am facing problems checking out your website. I am unable to find any information regarding your book. I am hopeful that you can offer me some help. Very sorry for bothering you.
My initial reaction to both was, "of course I'll send you epub copies!" Like someone else on here said, I'd LOVE to have a way to distribute free copies of my book!
But, I don't want to support piracy sites, either. They're run by criminals, and the money they raise from ads goes to fund other criminal activities. Plus, most of the books that are shared are from authors who do NOT want their books distributed for free -- or who are already distributing them for free through legitimate channels, like free books on Amazon and other sites, or free promotional periods on Kindle Unlimited. Distributing free books on legitimate sites means the free downloads go to help their sales and marketing efforts, and when you're an indie author, you want every free download to be counted.
Thanks for helping to spread the word and keep authors safe Maria!
https://accrispin.blogspot.com/Writer Beware
Everyone appreciates getting help with their writing and publishing efforts. There are many people out there telling writers what they should do, or at least consider doing.
Authors everywhere choose some programs or websites to endorse, and they send their readers on their way. Writer Beware has taken it upon themselves to warn writers and authors of scams, schemes, and fraud they should be avoiding in the writing world.
Founded in 1998, they have been around long enough to see a lot of shady things go down. They know what they're talking about.
Cheryl is back at it. She's changed her last name but is using the same email. Thank you to whoever posted first about her - I googled her email and this group came up! Hi I'm Cheryl. I am newer to the arc scene, but I love interacting with authors, I can read books quickly and enjoy all genres of stories. Feel free to respond to my message. Thank you for your consideration. I look forward to hearing from you :)
Cheryl Greenhill
Yep. I've had about 25 emails this last week that were all along those lines. Ive been reporting them as spam so I'll just carry on. Just posting to warn you all that even in 2024 these people are still at it. 🤦🏽🤷
So horrendous, lowest of the low, internet pirates, hackers, scammers. Them and banks. And estate agents.