Yesterday I got a phone message from “Jamie Brown” at Brokers AB, a “literary agency,” informing me that four major publishing companies wanted to buy my book for $250-400K. All Brokers AB wants in return is a 12% commission on the sale. Wow, how exciting! I googled Brokers AB, and learned they also do business as “WGA Publications,” and even have the audacity to list the Writers Guild of America website as part of their company. They are based in one of those “WeWork”-type shared offices in Oxnard, CA. I called them back today… and played along for a while before questioning their entire, idiotic scam. Here is the entirety of the phone call.
Great work on scammers
As I previously wrote, I’d been contacted by an “independent literary agent” who offered to rep one of my nonfiction books (which had been a trade best-seller in the 80s). I then got a Skype call from a… gentleman, who identified himself as an editor with “Simon and Schuster Books” and said he wanted to purchase rights with a $200,000+ advance. Both had strong, unidentifiable foreign accents. Now, it just happens that there is no “Simon and Schuster Books” — Simon and Schuster is an LLC with no such imprint… I keep getting random calls offering to rep “my book” but they almost always refer to that particular one, when probed, although a couple calls mentioned a professional book I published a few years ago, whose publisher keeps promoting it and for which there is no mass market. Scammers work hard!
I got lots of calls from a Mr George Davis of Broker’s A.B. telling me that Universal Studios was interested in my books, and were willing to pay up to $500k for the rights to use my books in future projects.
I agreed to let him make the deal, and he’d get 12%. He then tried to pitch me on purchasing a “theatrical trailer,” that they’d create on my behalf. I explained to him, that if Universal Studios was inquiring about my books, then why would a trailer be needed?
I then got a call from a Mr Peter Kramer, who according to Google is indeed an exec with Universal Studios, and he loved my books, and told me that Mr Davis was his contact, and to work with Mr Davis and we could get the deal finalized.
A week later, Mr Davis’s number is disconnected and Mr Kramer isn’t answering his phone.
You’d think false impersonation is a crime of some sort?
Yes, I do. But good luck going after these people. They are in the Philippines. You’re lucky you didn’t give them any money.
I enjoyed this so much. I get a call weekly from someone, with a similar accent, wanting to send me a plastic Medicare card. All I have to do is provide my Medicare number. Today I took a queue from you. I kept them on the phone asking questions. They finally hung up. Thank you for the smile.
Oh my gosh! Please don’t stop sharing these phone calls, “Esther”!! One of the things that slays me is that none of the calls you’ve shared are from people with a decent grasp of the English language! It was so funny when she told you that she was located in Oxnard. You then asked her if that was is Northern CA or Southern CA. There was a pause. She knew she had a 50/50 chance. But, ding, ding, ding – she guessed Northern CA.
Great call Lee!
Take care
Friend of Mary Miles Minter
This was more fun than a barrel of Nigerian princes, Lee!
Brilliant, sir! Thank you on behalf of all civilized folks.
Thank you Lee, I got an email from Brokers AB, and I found your You Tube. I won’t be phoning them now. You saved me a lot of time and stress.
All I could do was laugh.. great work. I was also contacted by BrokersAB on a book I put out in 2011. Someone named Akisha Smith and the supposed executive director of Yucca Publishing tried to contact me. Number was private, they left no call back number so I immediately went to Scam Alert..haha
Thanks, Lee. Funny and informative.
They tried asking again for my father, who I’ve told them multiple times, died almost a year ago. They then tried the “Can you hear me” trick, to get me to say the word, “yes”. If I had said it, the recording would be manipulated by them, in order to give them permission to print my father’s book.
Why do you keep talking with them? Just hang up and block the number. I only talk to them when I want to record the conversations and expose their ridiculous scams.
I Eric Wilkins have seven sci-fi novels published by Omni-book publishing. It’s been 10 years and I’ve never received a dime for any of my novels. I get calls daily from scammers like this trying to rip me off more than I already have been. Self publishing is a rip off. I dare anyone to name a self publishing company that is not a scam.
Thanks Lee.
I was very close to being scammed by them.
They’ve been calling and leaving me messages for a couple years now. I knew they were scammers. Thanks for the video of them!!