Q –

Since my book was published, I have received strange offers by phone and e-mail 24 hours a day. One so called “literary agent” claims Harper Collins Publisher would publish my book if I could prove it would sell in bookstores…so I should shell out $5,000 to put 1,000 copies in NY area bookstores to sell just 200 copies to prove to the editor at Harper Collins that my book is sellable in bookstores.

This is a scam, right? I get so many offers like this one, which came with copies of Harper Collins letter of intent….signed by their editor. This “book evaluation” came from Daniel Brooks, “literary agent.” I have also had Duke Morgan do an interview of me for another one of my books and then use this to try to get me to pay for approaching “overseas investors.” So many “book agents” call or e-mail me with strange offers that now I find the whole industry disturbing.

The five mainstream literary gods of publishing having so much over-control of what reaches the American public and the outrageous scams that approach independent authors…a sort of madhouse now!

A – 

Wow! You’ve been hit by the trifecta of scammers!

• The “literary agent” is fake.
• The offer was fake.
• The Harper Collins letter of intent was fake.

They are all scams. Regarding the copies for bookstores, that’s not how it works. Bookstores buy copies. Author never have to that!

Block all of the scammers’ phone numbers on your phone and block their emails as well. If you respond to just one, they share/sell your information with countless other scammers.

And, regarding the big 5 publishers, please see:

AUTHOR ALERT! The Traditional Book Publishing Industry is DYING FAST!

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