Fellow writers, beware.
If something doesn’t feel right, trust your instincts. I nearly fell victim this past week to a scam artist. Fortunately, something about the sentence structure in her initial message (and subsequent emails) didn’t ring true to me.
Someone calling herself Rosaleen Kavanagh – presenting herself as a consultant for the Irish child-welfare organization TUSLA – messaged me via LinkedIn. She reached out ostensibly to ask me to ghostwrite an article about domestic violence and child abuse for a supposed upcoming conference in Chicago.
Why an Irish child-welfare organization would be hosting a conference in Chicago was the first alarm bell that sounded for me. She seemed apologetic when indicating they’d only be able to pay a dollar a word (!) for a 3,125-word article, because their budget was $3,125 (that was the second).
In my response, I asked several questions about the proposed article – how it would be used, whether it would be distributed to participants or read aloud as part of a speaker’s presentation; what audience level I should write for; and when she expected my first draft – none of which she actually addressed.
In her initial inquiry, she told me the audience would average 16 to 45 years, but in her followup email she indicated the audience would be employees, healthcare workers and physicians, and the article should be written according to MLA style, geared toward medical personnel.
She said she understood they’d have to send me half the amount in advance (I never request 50 percent payment up front!), and asked whether I preferred payment by certified bank check, certified bank draft or a cashier’s check (which she claimed she’d send upon receipt of my “agreement” to take on the project).
That set off more alarm bells. In my reply email, I said I preferred a check from the TUSLA office or a certified bank check. I also requested clarification about the intended audience and reiterated my previously unanswered questions.
Prior responses to messages and emails had come within half an hour, so when 40 minutes passed without a response, I grew even more suspicious. I revisited the original notification from LinkedIn and clicked on “View Rosaleen’s LinkedIn Profile.” I got a 404 error. Then, when I attempted to access the original message, it was mysteriously gone.
I posted a message similar to this on LinkedIn; so far two other women have replied, thanking me for alerting them to the scam and saying they had been similarly approached by Rosaleen Kavanagh.
Looks like I dodged a bullet. And I’m only out the $35.12 it cost me to order the MLA stylebook (which may actually come in handy someday). If something seems off – wonky sentence structure, vague deadlines, apologies for “only” being able to pay a ridiculous sum for a single article, offers to pay huge deposits via most likely bogus financial vehicles, or logistical red flags – don’t be afraid to push back and seek clarification. And if it seems too good to be true, it probably is.
About the Author:
Rita M. Reali is a two-time international award-winning author and longtime editor who most enjoys editing memoir, general fiction and romance, along with inspirational writing. She’s self-published five novels: Glimpse of Emerald, Diagnosis: Love, The Unintended Hero, Second Chances and Tender Mercies – the first five in the seven-volume Sheldon Family Saga. The sixth novel in the series, Brothers by Betrayal, is scheduled for an early 2024 release. Her first children’s book, The Purringest Kitty Finds His Home, is due out sometime in 2023. As a former disc jockey in her native Connecticut, Rita used to spend her days “talking to people who weren’t there” – a skill which transferred perfectly to her being an author. Now she talks to characters who aren’t there on “a little chunk of heaven in rural Tennessee.” Contact Rita.
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