What are the red flags of this scam?

You were contacted first — legitimate publishers and studios do not solicit unknown authors with acquisition offers • They claim a well-known publisher or streaming service selected your work — real acquisitions never begin with a cold call • You are asked to pay upfront: taxes, transaction fees, formatting, marketing, or 'studio option' costs — none of these are legitimate publishing fees • A follow-up caller poses as an editor or executive at a real named publisher to 'confirm' the deal — they are part of the same fraud • Fees escalate: after one payment, new charges appear before the book can 'go to print' or 'be optioned' • The company is vague about distribution, royalties, or contract terms, but very clear about payment amounts and deadlines • Real publishers pay authors advances — they do not collect fees from authors before publishing

What should I do if this happened to me?

Hang up or stop replying — legitimate acquisition offers are made in writing through a literary agent, never by cold call • Check the company name on Writers Beware (writerbeware.org), the Authors Guild, and BBB before paying anything • Ask the company for a reference to a real published title they handled — scam firms have none • Contact the named publisher directly using the number on their official website to verify any supposed interest in your work • If you have already paid, dispute the charges with your card issuer immediately and report to the FTC • Report to the FTC at https://reportfraud.ftc.gov and the FBI's IC3 at https://www.ic3.gov.

HIGH other Last reported: Sep 19, 2026 Share

A company calls to say your manuscript was selected by a major publisher — then demands fees

Q: Is this a scam?

Yes. This is a documented scam pattern. An unsolicited call or email says your manuscript was selected by a top publisher or movie studio — then demands upfront fees for taxes, processing, and contracts before your book can be released.

An unsolicited call or email says your manuscript was selected by a top publisher or movie studio — then demands upfront fees for taxes, processing, and contracts before your book can be released.

Also known as: vanity publishing scam, book publishing advance fee scam, fake literary agent scam, manuscript acquisition fraud, publishing fee scam

Already happened to you? Do this in the next few minutes

1 Call your bank or card's fraud line right now. Use the number on the back of your card — not any number from the message or caller. Ask them to stop or reverse the payment and freeze the account.
2 If you paid by gift card, wire, or an app (Zelle, Venmo, Cash App): contact that company immediately and report it as fraud. Acting fast sometimes recovers the money.
3 Report to the FBI at ic3.gov and the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov. The sooner, the better.

What to do right now

1 Hang up or stop replying — legitimate acquisition offers are made in writing through a literary agent, never by cold call
2 Check the company name on Writers Beware (writerbeware.org), the Authors Guild, and BBB before paying anything
3 Ask the company for a reference to a real published title they handled — scam firms have none
4 Contact the named publisher directly using the number on their official website to verify any supposed interest in your work
5 If you have already paid, dispute the charges with your card issuer immediately and report to the FTC
6 Report to the FTC at https://reportfraud.ftc.gov and the FBI's IC3 at https://www.ic3.gov.

Red flags

⚠ You were contacted first — legitimate publishers and studios do not solicit unknown authors with acquisition offers
⚠ They claim a well-known publisher or streaming service selected your work — real acquisitions never begin with a cold call
⚠ You are asked to pay upfront: taxes, transaction fees, formatting, marketing, or 'studio option' costs — none of these are legitimate publishing fees
⚠ A follow-up caller poses as an editor or executive at a real named publisher to 'confirm' the deal — they are part of the same fraud
⚠ Fees escalate: after one payment, new charges appear before the book can 'go to print' or 'be optioned'
⚠ The company is vague about distribution, royalties, or contract terms, but very clear about payment amounts and deadlines
⚠ Real publishers pay authors advances — they do not collect fees from authors before publishing

Already happened to you? Do this in the next few minutes

What to do right now

Red flags

Sources