In my last post on indie author scams, I dissected a sophisticated email that fooled me for several seconds—a fake Macmillan representative offering to help the memoir I wrote about my late wife reach more readers. Today I want to step back and look at the bigger picture: why indie authors like us are such attractive targets for scammers, and what categories of fraud you need to watch out for.
This isn’t comfortable territory to explore. Nobody wants to admit they’re vulnerable to manipulation. But understanding why scammers specifically target indie authors is the first step toward protecting yourself—and your bank account.
The Perfect Storm of Vulnerability
Here’s the uncomfortable truth: indie authors represent an almost perfect target for scammers. We combine several traits that make us exceptionally vulnerable to manipulation.
We’re isolated. Unlike traditionally published authors who have agents, editors, and marketing departments to consult, we’re making critical business decisions alone in our home offices. When that email arrives promising to solve our biggest marketing problem, we have no one to reality-check it against.
We’re hungry for validation. We’ve taken the enormous risk of putting our creative work into the world without the blessing of traditional gatekeepers. Deep down, many of us wonder if we’re good enough. When someone claims to have read our book and loved it, that hits our emotional sweet spot.
We lack industry knowledge. Most of us came to indie publishing from other careers. We know our craft—we can write—but we don’t necessarily know what publishing services cost, which marketing tactics work, or how the industry actually operates. This knowledge gap makes it hard to distinguish legitimate services from scams.
More Facts that Make Us Vulnerable
We’re desperate for readers. We poured months or years into our books. We believe they deserve an audience. When someone promises to connect us with thousands of readers who are “actively searching” for exactly what we’ve written, we want to believe them. God, do we want to believe them.
We operate on shoestring budgets. Unlike traditional publishers with marketing departments, we’re funding everything ourselves. This makes us susceptible to “affordable” offers that promise big results. A $500 marketing package sounds reasonable compared to hiring a real publicist for $3,000+ per month.
We’re time-pressed. Between writing our next book, maintaining social media, managing our existing titles, and living our actual lives, we’re stretched thin. The promise of someone else handling our marketing while we focus on writing is incredibly appealing.
Scammers know all of this. They’ve profiled us carefully. They know exactly which buttons to push.
The Major Scam Categories Targeting Authors
Let me walk you through the most common scams you’ll encounter as an indie author. Understanding these categories will help you recognize variations when they appear in your inbox.
Category 1: Fake Publishers and Vanity Press Scams
These operations claim to be traditional publishers interested in your work, but they’re actually vanity presses charging you thousands for services you could get elsewhere for hundreds—or free.
How it works: You receive an email or letter expressing interest in publishing your book. They might reference specific details from your manuscript to seem legitimate. Eventually, they’ll reveal various “required” packages you need to purchase: editing ($2,000-5,000), cover design ($1,500-3,000), marketing ($3,000-10,000+).
Red flags:
- They contacted you first (real publishers don’t cold-email authors)
- They charge authors money (traditional publishers pay authors advances)
- They promise guaranteed bestseller status or specific sales numbers
- Their “editing” and “marketing” packages are mandatory
- The contract grants them all rights while requiring you to fund everything
The truth: Real traditional publishers acquire books through agents or their submission processes, they pay authors advances, and they fund all production costs themselves. If someone claiming to be a publisher wants money from you, they’re not a real publisher.
Category 2: Review Manipulation Services
These services promise to get you dozens or hundreds of reviews on Amazon, Goodreads, or other platforms—reviews that violate platform policies and can get your book removed.
How it works: For $50-500, they’ll deliver 10-100 “verified” reviews. Some create fake accounts, others use purchased books to generate “verified purchase” reviews, still others operate review exchange networks that Amazon explicitly prohibits.
Red flags:
- They guarantee specific numbers of reviews
- Reviews appear within days of payment
- Reviews use similar language patterns or generic praise
- Reviewers have purchased dozens of unrelated books in different genres
- Service operates through private messages rather than legitimate websites
The truth: Amazon’s algorithms detect coordinated review campaigns and will delete them—and potentially remove your entire book listing. The risk far outweighs any temporary benefit. Those four legitimate reviews on my memoir? They’re worth infinitely more than forty fake ones.
Category 3: “Marketing Guru” Consultants
These operators position themselves as publishing industry insiders who can unlock secret strategies for success—for only $1,000-5,000 for their exclusive course or consultation package.
How it works: They cold-email you with personalized observations about your book’s failures (wrong keywords, poor categories, weak description). They offer a “complimentary audit” that identifies numerous fixable problems. Then they pitch their premium service—a course, consultation package, or “done for you” service that promises to solve everything.
Red flags:
- They contacted you first with flattery followed by criticism
- Their pricing is vague until you’re “qualified” for their service
- They can’t provide verifiable case studies with real author names
- Their “proprietary system” is secret until you pay
- They create artificial urgency (“only taking 5 clients this month”)
The truth: Real publishing consultants work through referrals and reputation. Their websites include case studies with real names, real books, and verifiable results. They don’t cold-email strangers. And their advice—while valuable—isn’t secret. Most legitimate strategies are documented in Jane Friedman’s blog, the r/selfpublishing subreddit, and numerous other free resources.
Category 4: BookBub Imposters and Promotion Scams
Scammers create services that sound similar to legitimate promotional sites like BookBub, but deliver little or no value for hundreds of dollars.
How it works: They promise to feature your book in newsletters with “hundreds of thousands of subscribers” or submit your book to “exclusive reader communities.” The reality: they might send one poorly-targeted email blast to a list they purchased, or simply post your book on their low-traffic website.
Red flags:
- Prices significantly lower than legitimate services (real BookBub featured deals cost $300-2,000)
- Guaranteed acceptance (real BookBub rejects most applications)
- Vague descriptions of their “subscriber base”
- No verifiable results or sales data from previous promotions
- Payment through PayPal “friends and family” to avoid refunds
The truth: Legitimate promotion services like BookBub, BookSends, and Freebooksy have transparent pricing, documented reach, and straightforward application processes. If a service promises “better than BookBub results for a fraction of the cost,” it’s lying.
Category 5: The Amazon Ads “Expert” Trap
This one’s trickier because Amazon advertising is legitimate—but many “experts” offering to manage your campaigns are incompetent, overpriced, or both.
How it works: Someone offers to manage your Amazon ad campaigns, promising profitable results within weeks. They charge $500-1,000 setup fees plus monthly management ($300-800) plus your actual ad spend. After months of losses, they blame your book, your cover, your pricing—anything except their incompetence.
Red flags:
- Guaranteed specific sales numbers or rankings
- Refusal to show you real-time campaign access
- Vague explanations of their strategy
- Contracts that lock you in for 6-12 months
- Setup fees that are non-refundable even if campaigns fail
The truth: Amazon ads can work, but they require patience, testing, and optimization. A legitimate consultant would start with small test budgets ($150-300 for the first month), give you full access to campaign data, and set realistic expectations about learning curves. Based on research I’ve done, most authors are better off learning to run ads themselves than paying someone else—at least initially.
What Legitimate Services Actually Cost
Since scammers often prey on our ignorance about industry pricing, let me give you realistic numbers for legitimate services:
Professional editing:
- Developmental editing: $0.02-0.06 per word ($1,000-3,000 for a 50,000-word novel)
- Copy editing: $0.01-0.03 per word ($500-1,500)
- Proofreading: $0.008-0.02 per word ($400-1,000)
Cover design:
- Professional premade covers: $50-300
- Custom original design: $300-2,000
- High-end custom work: $2,000-5,000+
Book formatting:
- Ebook formatting: $50-300
- Print formatting: $100-400
- Combined packages: $150-600
Marketing and promotion:
- BookBub featured deal: $300-2,000 (depending on genre and category)
- Legitimate promotional sites: $25-100 per promotion
- Professional publicist: $2,000-5,000+ per month
- Amazon ads: You set your own budget, typically start with $150-300/month for testing
Website development:
- Basic author website (template-based): $300-1,000
- Custom design: $2,000-5,000+
- DIY with WordPress: $50-200 for hosting and theme
If someone is offering services significantly below these ranges, ask yourself why. Either they’re inexperienced (fine if disclosed), incompetent (not fine), or planning to deliver substandard work (definitely not fine).
And if someone is charging significantly above these ranges? They’re either highly established with documented results, or they’re overcharging because they can get away with it.
The Psychology of the Pitch
Understanding how these scams work psychologically helps you resist them. Let me break down the manipulation tactics.
The validation hook: “I just finished reading your book and I was genuinely moved…” This triggers your need for recognition and makes you more receptive to what follows.
The specific observation: Mentioning actual details from your book or Amazon page proves they did minimal research, making you think they’re legitimate professionals rather than mass-emailers.
The identified problem: “With only 4 reviews…” or “Your keywords aren’t targeting…” This creates anxiety about something you already worried about.
The exclusive solution: “I’d love to offer a complimentary positioning audit…” This positions them as the answer to your newly-amplified anxiety, and the word “complimentary” lowers your defenses.
The artificial scarcity: “I only take on 5 clients per month…” This creates urgency and makes you feel special if selected.
The social proof: “Readers of Joan Didion and Mitch Albom are actively seeking…” This makes the opportunity feel legitimate and potentially life-changing.
Every element is calculated to bypass your rational thinking and trigger emotional responses: fear, hope, inadequacy, ambition.
How to Actually Evaluate Services
Here’s my practical framework for evaluating any publishing service before you spend money:
Step 1: Google them extensively
- Search “[service name] scam”
- Check Absolute Write Water Cooler forums (writers discussing scams)
- Look for complaints on Better Business Bureau
- Search for reviews on indie author subreddits
Second Step: Verify their claims
- If they claim industry experience, search for their LinkedIn
- If they mention specific results, ask for verifiable examples
- If they reference client success, ask for names of authors you can contact
Step 3: Compare pricing
- Get quotes from multiple services
- Check if pricing is transparent on their website
- Compare against the realistic ranges I listed above
Fourth Step : Ask for references
- Legitimate services will provide names of recent clients
- Contact those authors directly and ask about their experience
- If they refuse to provide references, that’s your answer
Step 5: Check the contract
- Read it completely before signing
- Look for hidden fees, automatic renewals, or cancellation penalties
- Never sign contracts with guarantee clauses (no one can guarantee book sales)
Step 6: Trust your gut
- If it feels too good to be true, it probably is
- If you feel pressured to decide quickly, walk away
- If they get defensive when you ask questions, that’s a red flag
The Services You Probably Don’t Need (Yet)
Here’s something nobody tells new indie authors: most of us don’t need professional marketing services for our first few books. What we need is to learn the business.
I’m 77 years old and I learned to format ebooks using Anthemion’s Jutoh. I learned to create decent covers using AI prompts to ChatGPT. I learned basic marketing by reading free resources and experimenting with small budgets.
Could I have paid someone to do all that? Sure. But then I wouldn’t have learned the skills I need to sustain a long-term publishing career. Every dollar I saved on my first books is a dollar I can invest in smarter marketing for future books—marketing I now understand well enough to evaluate properly.
The scammers want you to believe you can’t succeed without their expertise. The truth is that most indie authors who achieve sustainable success learned to do most of it themselves first, then hired help strategically once they understood what they actually needed.
What To Do When You’re Unsure
You’ll encounter offers that aren’t obvious scams but still make you uncertain. Here’s what to do:
Post the email or offer to r/selfpublishing: The community has seen every variation of every scam. They’ll tell you if it’s legitimate or not.
Wait 72 hours before deciding: Scammers create false urgency. Legitimate services will still be available in three days.
Ask in author Facebook groups: Groups like “20BooksTo50K” and “Wide for the Win” have thousands of experienced indie authors who can evaluate offers.
Default to skepticism: In indie publishing, if you don’t understand how something works or why someone is offering it, don’t buy it until you do understand.
The Mindset Shift That Protects You
The most important defense against scams isn’t knowledge—it’s adjusting your expectations.
Accept that building an author career takes years, not months and accept that your first book probably won’t be a bestseller. You need to accept that marketing is a learnable skill, not a mysterious art. Accept that you’ll make mistakes and waste some money figuring things out.
Once you accept those realities, the scammers’ promises lose their power. Quick fixes, secret strategies, guaranteed results—these only appeal to people who haven’t accepted the long-game nature of publishing success.
I’m attempting to revive my writing career at 77 years old. I know it’s going to take sustained effort, continuous learning, and strategic experimentation. That knowledge makes me nearly immune to scams because I’m not looking for shortcuts anymore. A long life around publishing has also sharpened my cynicism to a razor’s edge.
The scammers are counting on your impatience, your insecurity, and your ignorance. Eliminate those vulnerabilities and you eliminate their ability to manipulate you.
In my next post, I’ll shift from defensive strategies to offensive ones. Instead of focusing on what not to do, I’ll lay out what you should do—the legitimate, bootstrap-friendly marketing approaches that actually work for indie authors willing to invest time instead of money.
Because the real tragedy isn’t that scammers exist—it’s that desperate authors waste money on scams when legitimate free and low-cost strategies are available.
Hey, I’m 77 and I’ve Got Stories…
Stories about what it’s like to navigate life at this age (spoiler: it’s weird, wonderful, and occasionally terrifying). And stories about collaborating with AI to write books in ways that would have seemed like science fiction when I started putting words on paper. Stories about the daily realities, unexpected surprises, and hard-won wisdom that comes from three-quarters of a century on this planet. If you’re curious about authentic aging, writing innovation, or just enjoy good storytelling from someone who’s been around the block, subscribe to my weekly newsletter “Old Man Still Got Stories.” I promise to make it worth your time.