How to Spot a Scam Email: Red Flags Every Author Should Know
You’ve just received an email that sounds too good to be true: a publisher who found your book, an influencer who wants to collaborate, or a “marketing rep” promising visibility. But before you click on ANYTHING or reply, it’s time to put on your detective hat. Why might you ask? Because it’s likely a scam. The old saying “if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is” applies heavily to promotional opportunity emails.
“If you haven’t already examined the anatomy of an AI-driven scam, start with our case file: Autopsy of a Scam. Then come back here for a hands-on lesson in email sleuthing.”
We will examine some Big Red Flags (BRFs) that you can use to quickly identify and discard those tempting scam emails that we all wish were truly legitimate.
*Affiliate links are used in this article. The Mystery Review Crew is an Amazon Affiliate and, as such, earns from qualifying purchases. See our privacy policy and disclosures for more information.
How a scam email starts:
The first clue arrives quietly. No fingerprints. No fanfare. Just a polite ping in your inbox.
- A “publishing scout” claims to have found your book online.
- A “marketing rep” offers exposure to thousands of readers for a small fee.
- A “review coordinator” wants you to click a link to claim your spot.
They all sound legitimate. They all look professional. However, behind that digital mask lurk scammers using one of the oldest tricks in the book, email deception.
In our last case, AUTOPSY OF A SCAM: Dissecting The AI Pitch That Hooks Authors, we cracked open the anatomy of a con and discovered how artificial intelligence and social engineering are being used to bait writers.
Now, in How to Spot a Scam Email: Red Flags Every Author Should Know, we’re analyzing how email addresses, domain names, and hidden “fingerprints” reveal whether that message in your inbox is genuine… or just another plot twist from a scammer.
Grab your magnifying glass, detective. This time, the clues are in the headers.
First clues are in the scam email header:
First and foremost, take a moment to really look at the email address. Is it from a Gmail, Yahoo, or Hotmail address? Is it spelled correctly (e.g., @gmail.com vs. @gmail.co)? If it’s from one of those addresses, it’s a BRF, and 90% likely it’s a scam. Hover over the email address to see the full address if it’s too long to show in the preview.
But it’s from PENGUIN! Oh really? Let’s put our detective hats on and take a look. Does it say na**@****************se.com, spelled CORRECTLY? Or na**@*rh.com? That might be legitimate. However, if it includes the name at penguinauthorhouse.com or if they’ve added a @gmail or .co at the end, it is a false and known scam email address.
Quick BRF’s in the scam email address:
- Free email domains (Yahoo, Hotmail, Gmail) – anyone can get a free email, which is why it’s essential to have a Domain-based email.
- Misspellings, extra dots, numbers in addresses, or using co instead of .com.
- Use of personal vs. company email inconsistencies.
Scammers frequently use well-known entities, such as Penguin Random House, to establish a sense of trust and legitimacy. They often link out to different areas of Penguin Random House’s website to add credibility. To check those links before clicking on them, simply hover over them and look at the bottom of your screen to see WHERE that link will actually take you. Though if you’ve noticed the email address already meets our detective BRF criteria, just save yourself the headache and DELETE the email.
The Devil’s in the Domain: Why a legitimate domain-based email matters
What is a domain-based email, and why is it important? First, it is a way to establish the sender’s credibility. A domain-based email reduces the risk of a scam email to the recipient. Publishers/marketers invest time and money into establishing a website and “brand” identity, something scammers are not typically willing to do.
It has a domain-based email address, so it must be legitimate, right? Nope, I wish that were the case. Domain-based emails are no longer as difficult to obtain as they once were. One way to quickly determine if a domain is real or fake is to perform a WhoIs search on the domain, i.e., mysteryreviewcrew.com.
You can go to https://www.whois.com/whois and enter our domain name (the address that appears between the @ symbol and the .com on an email), and see when it was created. If a domain is less than a month old, it’s highly likely that it’s a scammer who has set it up recently.
With a domain-based email address, it is easier to perform a “WhoIs” lookup to verify the owner of the email address and domain, as well as their location. It also offers an added SEO (Search Engine Optimization) benefit, reinforcing a brand identity.
*Owning your own domain is like having your nameplate on the office door. It tells readers and collaborators they’ve reached the real you — not a con artist wearing your name.
The Message Within the Message: Spotting Suspicious Content
How can you spot the BRFs in a scam email based on the content if everything else looks legitimate? It boils down to an author’s arch nemesis: Grammar, tone, and old-fashioned car salesman tactics; think pushy, time-sensitive, limited-time offers.
Take this scam email titled Book Club Girl, from bo*************@***il.com, with the official Book Club Girl logo as the sender’s profile image, fellow Author Anita Dickason, received as an example:
Dear Anita Dickason,
The Jennifer Hart Book Club would be honored to feature you in an Author Spotlight Event on Tuesday, October 21, 2025, to discuss your thrilling mystery, Murder with Wine: A Tori Winters Mystery.
Your gripping novel pulls readers straight into the intrigue of Granbury, where what begins as a spine-tingling ghost tour turns into a dangerous web of murder, deceit, and suspicion. With Tori Winters at the center of a conspiracy that could destroy her, your story masterfully blends suspense, scandal, and atmosphere, leaving readers questioning every character and motive.
Our members would be excited to learn more about your inspiration for the Tori Winters series, your process in weaving suspenseful plots with unexpected twists, and what readers can anticipate as her journey continues.
Event participation includes:
- Selection of Murder with Wine as our official monthly read
- A dedicated discussion event with 25–50+ engaged readers
- Promotion of you and your book to our 1,000+ members across Meetup, email, and social media
- Event highlights and photos shared afterward to amplify your visibility
To confirm participation, please let us know by October 7, 2025.
We look forward to celebrating your work and sharing Murder with Wine with our community.
Warm regards,
Jennifer Hart
Founder, Jennifer Hart Book Club
This sounds legitimate and like an amazing opportunity, right? It’s personal, “Dear Anita Dickason”, it’s book specific, “your thrilling mystery, Murder with Wine: A Tori Winters Mystery.”, and they seem to have read the book based on their short little breakdown of the key points, AND it’s from a legitimate, well-known author.
Based on that, what are the BRFs?
- The dates. This email was sent on September 24th, 2025, for Anita to be eligible for their OCTOBER book club pick. If you’ve been an author for a while, you probably realize that most book clubs pick their book well before the first of the month; some do it a year in advance.
- That they wouldn’t provide links to their social media, which supposedly has 1,000+ “avid readers.” And no website was given either.
- That they used Meetup as one of their “social media” sites is notable, as Meetup is known for being a platform used by scammers to lend legitimacy to their targets.
- By doing a simple Google search for Jennifer Hart Book Club (never clicking on ANY links this “Jennifer Hart” sent over), you can easily see that the Jennifer Hart Book Club does not show up in any search results page. In fact, when you look up Jennifer Hart Book Club, you can see she was a part of Harper Collins Book Club (called: Book Club Girl), and they have a pinned post saying there is a known scam going around using their brand identity.
- The flattery. Let’s face it, we all want to hear that our story is great, a master piece even, but when emails start out with this… You can be assured that they are most likely stroking your ego to get you to let down your guard.
In a follow-up email with this “Jennifer Hart,” Anita Dickason engaged in scam baiting with this person, and they did ask for money. So, another BRF.
Protecting Your Identity: BRF Preventive Measures for Authors
Now you know what BRFs to look for, how can you better protect YOUR email from getting scammed? If you have a newsletter, you probably remember how, in late 2024, all email newsletter providers began requiring a domain-based email for sending newsletters going forward; do you understand why they did this now? You may have already completed the first step of protecting yourself and your readers if you got a domain-based email at that point.
However, to add more protective layers:
- Turn on two-factor authentication (2FA)
- Use a separate email address for your newsletter signups/newsletters than you do for your professional correspondence.
- Add an official “Contact” page or section to your website so readers (and other authors) can easily verify the email address you actually use.
- If someone says they got scammed by you, report it to your email provider.
- If you suspect a scam, share it with trusted author networks or sites like MRC. So, we can help get the word out and prevent others from getting hurt by it.
Case Closed: But Keep the Files Open
This case may be closed. However, scammers are constantly evolving, so we must keep our detective hats on and nose to the ground as we detect new ways scammers are using AI to target us more efficiently; as we saw in this article and in the Autopsy of a Scam, AI is making emails more and more personal than we’ve ever seen before.
Are you an author or reader looking to learn how you can help? Simply share this article with others to help them spot the BRFs in scam emails, and hopefully, you can spot them in your day-to-day email reading now, too!
Be sure to watch for our next article in this series: How scammers use fake social media accounts to impersonate authors and lure fans.
Quick BRF reference:
- If the email promises fame, fortune, or ‘exclusive opportunities,’ it’s most likely a scam.
- Is it from a free email address? It’s most likely a scam.
- Can you verify the sender’s identity beyond the email? If you can’t, it’s most likely a scam.
