20 tips to help protect yourself from possible publishing scams.

Recently, I met with a lovely lady who had been scammed out of almost 10 grand for a ‘publishing package’ from some company in the US. After a little digging, I found the business is actually on a blacklist and their social media hasn’t been updated in over a year. But it’s not clear if they’re still taking money or not from hopeful writers.

This breaks my heart. I’m working on my own novels alongside being a professional book editor, so I’m hearing stories from concerned authors all around the world. And the publishing industry is rife for scams! Anyone can set up a website and social media accounts claiming to help get you published.

Same in the entire creative world as a whole. Because we want the praise, we want the accolades, we want to know that what we’re writing or painting or creating is worth something and has value to others. And, unfortunately, these companies know that and use it to scam unsuspecting authors and creatives.

If a supposedly professional ‘publishing company’ drops into your inbox or slides into your DMs or sends you an email full of compliments, then it’s hard not to bask in the warmth of their praise!

So, I want to do something about it! Even if this only helps a few aspiring authors, we can make the change together. Share this post with author friends. I’ll update this blog post when I hear anything new, and please get in touch if you’ve heard anything that might help others.

Here are just a few scams I’ve seen or heard about:

• Fake or vanity publishers promising the world with overpriced, stuffed packages filled with a lot of things you can do yourself or get cheaper or much higher quality elsewhere. Amazon KDP is literally free to set up an account!
• Fake book cover designers stealing real designs from genuine designers to make their portfolio look impressive and book clients.
• Inexperienced editors and proofreaders just using tools like Grammarly and ChatGPT to do the work.

While I’m a pro editor, I’m also pitching my own YA novel and self-publishing two others. So, I’m on both sides of the fence. I totally get how your manuscript is your baby. Of course you want to find a great editor/proofreader/cover designer/formatter/publisher.

So I thought I’d share some useful tips. Now, just one of these might not indicate someone is a fake. But if there are a few signs, then I’d steer clear. Always do your due diligence and trust your gut.

1. Start looking early & take your time deciding. No professional should be trying to hard sell you into booking them when you’re not ready and don’t have all your questions answered yet. It’s a bit like booking a tattoo artist; the really talented ones are booked well in advance. If someone is ready right away and pushing for the sale, it might be a red flag. Not always, of course. Occasionally, I have a space open up because a current client needs a bit extra time – life happens. So I’d consider this along with various other factors.

2. Do you research & due diligence. Just because someone’s name was tagged in a post or they were ‘recommended’ in the comments doesn’t mean you should trust it. Could be someone recommending their friend/family or I’ve even heard of people setting up fake profiles to recommend themselves! If they are being tagged a few times and you can also find testimonials elsewhere that’s a good sign. But keep digging…

3. Have they got a legit website? That alone is not enough. But ask for a website link and have a look around. A professional website should generally have a multiple pages with info about the business, a portfolio, contact info & social media links, (and potentially a blog and even a press section). Where possible, contact via the website rather than social media.

4. Remember, anyone can knock up a quick site. So check if it’s new or been around for a while. There are actually websites/tools you can use to check how old a website is! Not only has my blog been up since 2015, but my website shows as live going back many years.

5. Can you get on a call or meet up with them? If possible, arrange a call/video call/meeting with the person. Most scammers will want to hide behind emails. I won’t even consider taking on a client without having a call or meeting with them. Plus, it’s a nice way to see if you’re a good match since you could be working together for months or even years! I’ve worked with one of my oldest clients on 10 books together over many years.  Of course, accessibility may be something to consider here and not everyone is able to meet in person or chat on a call. So don’t disregard someone who could be brilliant just for this one point. Remember, we’re looking for green flags as good points as well as red flags for bad points.

6. A good portfolio? Again, might need to do a little digging this this one. As I mentioned, anyone can take a screengrab and shove it in their portfolio pretending they created something or worked on it. Can you match them as the actual professional connected to that book elsewhere online?

7. If you’re looking for a book cover designer, for example, one extra check is to screengrab one of their book covers and do a Reverse Image Search. See if it pops up on other products or books. I saved one of my clients from paying for a ‘design’ that was actually a free template from Canva just in time, so she was able to get a refund and find a genuine designer.

8. Same goes if you’re considering using a pre-made template from a site like Canva Great for mocking up ideas, but I don’t recommend doing this for your actual cover as lots of others will have the same idea and use the same template. If you are considering doing this to DIY your own covers, screenshot the template you like and do a Reverse Image Search. It’ll likely come up that image has already been used elsewhere and if it hasn’t (yet), it probably will be at some point. One of my editing clients had used a lovely template on Canva until I showed her that at least half a dozen other authors were already using the same one, some in the same genre!

9. Can you find positive reviews on their FB business page, LinkedIn Testimonials, Google Reviews? Check a few places. I don’t have 100s of reviews because I work 121 with my author clients and projects last months, even years. Plus, I have repeat clients, several have worked with me on trilogies or multiples of them over many years. But you can still find glowing reviews for me online.

10. Are they happy to provide or sign a contract? Again, this doesn’t mean anything on its own as anyone can download a free contract from the internet. And if you’re in a different country with different laws or you don’t have their address or you wouldn’t be able to afford a lawyer then it might not do much for you if things go wrong.

11. Proper invoice? Is there an actual business name and it’s a business bank account? Now, some freelancer and small business owners do use their personal bank accounts or are new and not officially set up yet. If you’re looking for a newer editor on a budget then you might find this is more likely the case. Still, make sure you get an actual invoice and the payment option is legit. If someone is pushing you to do a bank transfer with no invoice, then take a pause.

12. Do you feel rushed? If the person is pushing you to book in and send a payment immediately, as ‘spaces are super limited’ and that kind of language then take a breathe and do your research. Yes, it might be true that they only have 1 spot available and you might need to make a decision quicker than you expected. But every single time, I would rather miss out on something potentially great than get rushed into being scammed. It’s probably different for me as a book editor than say, a formatter where interaction with the author client is limited and it’s a quicker process perhaps. I work with hands-on authors, interact a lot, and it can be months of working together. So I really need to know that we’ll get on, which is why I’ll do a 121 vetting interview with an author in-person or a video call, maybe a follow-up call, emails back and forth, and try to be as sure as possible that we’re both confident and excited to work together. Trust your gut.

13. Deposit or payment in full before a contract has been signed or you haven’t spoken to them in person/on a video call. This one varies and shouldn’t be solely how you decide. Some editors who are more experienced, like myself, get booked up months in advance and require payment prior to start date. But I have the proof of work to show prospective clients.

14. Does the ‘voice’ sound the same across all of their communication, from emails to DMs to the contract. Not so much that their branding all looks matchy-matchy – because some smaller businesses just don’t have that pinned down yet – but does it just sound like the same person consistently?

15. If it’s a service where you’ll be working together, especially over a longer period of time, are they trying to get to know you and asking you questions? Or does it just feel like they’re trying to get the sale no matter what? That’s not a good sign…

16. Can you find their name in writing groups. You could search the editor’s name in a few FB writing groups. See if they’ve been sharing advice & answering author questions. Are they being helpful & kind? Disclaimer, I just deleted all of my personal social media, so I’ve no idea if my old comments with all the advice I’ve given in tons of FB authors groups will still show up. I’m just starting to do this with my business page, so we’ll see how it goes as I love sharing advice. Also, many freelancers are small business owners and/or a one-person band, so might not have loads of time to do this. But it can be worth having a look for this along with a few other points on this list.

17. Can you click through from their portfolio to find their clients’ books available? Not every business owner is tech-savvy, so they might not have this function. But you should be able to search on Amazon to find the books that the editor/proofreader/book cover designer has worked on. You should be able to find their past work somewhere. My clients sometimes list me as the ‘editor’ in the byline on Amazon, name-check me on their social media, and mention me in the inside cover of their acknowledgements (acknowledgments for US readers).

18. Have they got repeat clients? Last year, I wrapped on the finale in a trilogy for a Scottish client who 1st booked me in 2018. This year, I was hired again for books 8 & 9 with a repeat US client. If customers are coming back again and again, it’s usually a good sign. However, it could also be a friend or family member. Or maybe that customer booked a package! So check a few other things on this list so you feel more confident.

19. You could even try to contact a few of their previous clients. My author clients talk about me, they like my posts on social media and tag me in theirs, I meet up with them when I can. They are so kind. However, I won’t hand out contact details for previous clients for confidentiality. But I am easy to find and look up, and so are my clients’ books. Even so, keep in mind people are busy and might not always appreciate you sliding into their DMs with a paragraph of questions. And just because someone doesn’t take time out of their day to reply to you about their cover designer, if you’re considering the same one, doesn’t mean the designer isn’t great.

20. Do your own research. Ask for a call/video call or go for coffee if possible. It’s a partnership where you may work together intensely for weeks or months, maybe even on multiple projects over years. My mantra is usually: would I happily wander around a book shop and have coffee with this person?