Do I have sucker written across my face? It seems that way when my email inbox and DMs on many of my social media accounts are full of offers for more followers, better sales, and dazzling artwork. On top of that, I get regular phone calls for book marketing, pitches for Netflix and other streaming services (from the Philippines no less) and discounts on book publishing services.

Since I became a published author, I have found that we (as a community) are subjected to numerous scam artists. They see independent authors as easy pickings for these vultures. From marketing to artwork, beta readers, book publishers and editors, people are trying to make a quick buck on false promises of sales, followers, etc. I spend more time blocking people, reporting spam and junk mail, and cleaning out unnecessary emails to start my day. It’s a nightmare to contend with.

It’s a regular thing on Instagram. Instead of feedback or other comments on my posts, I get “PROMOTE IT ON” messages, pushing me to another marketing scam. Now, I’m getting follows from people with AUTHOR in their name but they promote marketing instead of talking about books. These scammers are changing their methods to make it easier to get at us.

Even artists are being used for scams. I have hired plenty of artists in my time, using their brilliant artwork to help promote my books on social media. I hired an artist to do work for my new book, Corsair and the Sky Pirates. I won’t mention their name because I am currently fighting them for a refund via PayPal Resolution. I asked them to do a drawing based on the images she provided as examples of her art. However, the final result was something akin to a middle school art project. Then, following a reverse Google search on the artwork she provided as “examples” to me, I discovered they belonged to someone else. That’s called fraud. It’s disingenuous and disgusting.

The emails are the worse. My inbox gets clogged with thousands of offers from what seems to be an endless stream of book promotion websites. It’s crazy as to how many different venues are being created on a daily basis to hoodwink independent authors desperate to generate sales. Some are trustworthy and worth it (BookBrush, AllAuthor, and IndieBookVault to name some I am involved with) but not most. It is a constant barrage of offers that’s insane.

I especially hate the phone calls. Someone from overseas with an unusual dialect wants to talk about promoting your book to Netflix producers and yet they don’t know a thing about you or your book. Plus, it’s always a “paid promotion” service, money up front, like Vanity Publishing. Never a good thing to grasp onto, and yet some desperate authors will fall for it.

So listen. If you find yourself being scammed, let the community know. We all need to support each other in stopping these fraudsters from using us to increase the size of their wallet. We have enough struggles with deadlines, writer’s block, editing and writing our stories. We don’t need any further aggravation.

Mark Piggott is an award-winning independent author of several fantasy/steampunk novels and short stories. A 23-year U.S. Navy veteran, his stories will take you from the shores of eternal Avalon to a dystopian steampunk future and other worlds.

The Forever Avalon fantasy book series—including Forever Avalon, The Dark Tides, and The Outlander War—are available online at Amazon and other booksellers. His fantasy steampunk novel, The Last Magus: A Clockwork Heart, is available through Lulu and other booksellers.

Cross over The River of Souls in a fantasy novella and the steampunk historical fiction, Corsair and the Sky Pirates from Curious Corvid Publishing. The Last Magus: Dragonfire and Steel and The Prometheus Engine: Book Four of the Forever Avalon Series, are coming soon. Stay tuned for more new fantastic stories from the imagination of Mark Piggott.