Q – 

Hi Angela,

Hope you are well.

Just looking for some advice

Would the below be a scam email?

Thanks.

---

—– Forwarded Message —–
From: James Patterson <jamespatterson.info@gmail.com>
To: (REMOVED BY WRITERSWEEKLY)
Sent Tuesday, 30 June 2026 at 13:24:19 BST
Subject: Re:

Hi,

I’m reaching out because your Amazon profile was recently recommended to me. There’s a raw honesty and uniqueness in your writing style that really stands out it’s the kind of “pulse” the industry is currently looking for.

I actually tried to have my Scouting Team add you to my internal 2026 Reading Circle shortlist, but the entry was rejected by our auditors. To be blunt: the work is being “ghosted” by the retail architecture.

If you have another story you’re currently working on or one you’ve already published, I’d be glad to include it in our review list. I’m not looking for a formal pitch; I’m much more interested in the heart of your story and what inspired you to write it.

You can find more about my work and my focus on character-driven suspense right here:

https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B000APZGGS

If you’d like to chat more, feel free to share the title or a link to where I can find it. I’m also happy to share a bit more about my own process and books like the Alex Cross series or my recent psychological thrillers if that helps

Best,

James Patterson

Author | Thriller & Crime Fiction

Character-Driven Suspense | Psychological Thrillers

---

A – 

Hi Andrea,

It’s a scammer pretending to be the international bestselling author, James Patterson. I can assure you that James Patterson does NOT reach out to authors in this manner, and he doesn’t use a gmail email address. 😉

See:
“Celebrity Author” Impersonators Are Fooling Unwary (Real!) Authors

Most celebrities have their own websites with a contact button. Those go to their reps, publisher, or someone else. Those folks are usually happy to confirm that, yes, the email you received was indeed fake. (They always are.)

RELATED

• How I Was Scammed Out of $13K by “8 People” Using Gmail Email Addresses – By M.M. Lorenzo
• How Angela Got a Facebook Scammer’s 3 Bank Accounts Shut Down! – by Brian Whiddon, Managing Editor
• 1 PERSON PRETENDING TO BE 4 PEOPLE: How Multi-Tiered Publishing Scams Work
• “Pay Up Because You Don’t Have 10 Reviews Yet!” Scammers are Pretending to Be Amazon – by Donna Deines
• The Impostor in My Inbox: A Close Call with a Literary Scam – by Josephine Strand

HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT SELF-PUBLISHING A BOOK?

Angela is not only the publisher of WritersWeekly.com. She is President & CEO of BookLocker.com,
a self-publishing services company that has been in business since 1998. Ask her anything.

ASK ANGELA!