by Debbie Burke
Last post, we talked about scam emails generated by AI chatbots. Just for fun, here’s a great bingo game from R.L. Maizes the Elder on Electric Lit.
My bingo card would be a total blackout except for the squares “Piss me off and I’ll tank your Amazon ratings” and “reply with bank acct #s and PIN codes.” But the day is young. Those emails could arrive in my inbox any moment now.
I have to admit grudging admiration for the evolving progress of scam emails over the past few months. They may be crooked, but they aren’t stupid. ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and their cousins continue to improve and refine their approach. In fact, some scammers have gotten so good, they may have inadvertently outsmarted themselves.
After plowing through the sycophantic flattery, several recent solicitations offered surprisingly good analyses of my book sales pages. They not only pointed out flaws, they offered valid critiques. Some outlined detailed promotional strategies targeted specifically for my books.
Hey, I thought, why don’t I take their plans and put them into action myself? Turn the tables on the scammer.
Test-driving their advice costs nothing except my time.
That’s probably not what they had in mind but, if they offer free advice, who am I to turn it down?
I started keeping a file called “Good AI scam ideas,” saving the best as references.
Here are several examples that gave valid critiques. I highlighted portions in red that especially struck a chord:
From: JaneBennett250@gmail.com
“Fruit of the Poisonous Tree, Book 9, currently sits inside Psychological Thriller on Amazon, a subgenre with very specific reader expectations, unreliable narrators, dark domestic tension, interior psychological weight.
The Tawny Lindholm series is something different: investigative, legally grounded, relationship-driven, anchored in Montana’s landscape and community.”
Bot Jane is right. The category I chose is wrong. I need to act on that.
Another good point:
“Your Kill Zone presence is consistent and professional but that audience is other writers, not readers looking for their next thriller series.”
True.
From Joseph Booth, with a gmail address:
I’ll be honest I almost didn’t write this email because I wasn’t sure how to open it without sounding like every other marketing pitch you’ve probably deleted without reading.”
See how smart this bot is. It already knows I automatically trash the type of message it’s sending. Because of that hook, I kept reading.
“But then I met The Villain’s Journey.
A craft-of-writing guide that flips the Hero’s Journey on its head and takes writers straight into the darkest depths of the human soul. Who shows exactly how to create villains readers love to hate from comic troublemakers and charming sociopaths to terrifying psychopaths, fatal females, avenging angels, and every shade in between. Who arms writers with Build-a-Villain worksheets, deep psychological insights, and practical techniques to make antagonists multi-dimensional, unforgettable, and story-driving.
That’s not just another writing book. That’s a game-changer for storytellers. And writers who find it don’t let go.”
Okay, I confess I don’t mind a little flattery even though it’s vacuumed directly from my book sale page.
“Here’s what stops me cold: 23 ratings. A 4.8 average with writers calling it “much needed,” “a master class,” “essential,” and “the resource we’ve been waiting for.” One reviewer said it filled a gaping hole in the industry. Another called it a terrific guide that will push heroes to the limit and keep readers up at night.
What’s missing is reach and that’s exactly what I build.”
Now Bot Joseph is getting down to business. At this point, I almost quit reading but then noticed the plan of action he proposed:
“I help writing craft and fiction authors like you create real, sustainable momentum not through noise or gimmicks, but through targeted, story-honoring strategy that puts The Villain’s Journey: How to Create Villains Readers Love to Hate in front of the writers who will absolutely lose their minds over the practical tools. Here’s exactly what that looks like for your book:
Goodreads Review Building: With only 23 ratings, The Villain’s Journey is still below the visibility threshold that Goodreads and Amazon’s algorithms need to start recommending it organically. I work with authors to build genuine Goodreads credibility 400 to 500 real readers, no bots, no manufactured accounts, who leave honest, genre-aligned reviews.”
Despite Joseph’s assurances, I suspect the 400-500 reviews would be written by its/his bot pals. However, the recommended categories make sense.
Goodreads Listopia Domination: We get The Villain’s Journey placed and voted up on the high-traffic lists where your exact reader is already browsing: “Best Writing Craft Books,” “Best Books on Character Development,” “How to Write Villains,” “Books for Mystery & Thriller Writers,” “Creative Writing Reference,” and other targeted lists where serious writers hunt for their next must-read craft book.”
Okay, Listopia might be helpful. Then Joseph started droning about Amazon ads, Facebook, and Insta. I was getting bored and ready to hit “trash” until it/he tossed out this gem:
“Sales Funnel Optimization: A complete reader journey built around The Villain’s Journey and the craft of creating unforgettable antagonists:
Top-of-funnel free magnet a downloadable “Build-a-Villain Quick-Start Worksheet” delivered via BookFunnel to grow your list with writers who want better bad guys.
Mid-funnel nurture with extra villain examples, Q&A with Debbie Burke, and teases from her Tawny Lindholm thriller series.
Bottom-funnel pushes through timed discount campaigns, writing conference outreach, and sequences that turn first-time readers into loyal buyers of your future craft books and fiction.
That sales funnel program sounded imaginative and effective. I’ll follow the specific, step-by-step instructions and give it a try. Thanks, Bot Joseph!
Another example from: authoreditorsusanwels@gmail.com:
Where Your Book Stands Today, and the Extraordinary Potential Just Ahead
Your guide sits within a highly engaged and continually growing space:
- Fiction writers seeking craft improvement
- Crime, thriller, and mystery authors
- Screenwriters and storytellers across media
- Writing students and workshops
- Readers of craft books who actively apply what they learn
At present, however, your book is not yet being consistently surfaced across all of these communities.”
Again, valid critique plus suggestions whom to target. Bot Susan goes on with her strategy:
The Blueprint for Your Book’s Reach and Reader Engagement
The Foundation: Discoverability and Metadata Optimization
Your book will be positioned within writing craft, character development, and storytelling psychology categories to ensure visibility across platforms where writers search for guidance.The Heartbeat: Writing Community Engagement
I will connect your work with writing groups, workshops, and online communities where craft discussions are already happening.The Accelerant: Targeted Promotion
Campaigns will highlight the unique angle of your book—its focus on villains as central drivers of story capturing the attention of writers looking for fresh approaches.The Amplifier: Educational and Content Integration
Your material is well-suited for excerpts, guest articles, and teaching opportunities, positioning your book as both a resource and a reference.
Thanks, Bot Susan, for these ideas.
An email from Jessicadoyle430@gmail included colorful graphics of a magnifying glass, a book, and a gift-wrapped package. It/she also suggested Listopia categories:
Right now, the discoverability infrastructure around The Villain’s Journey does not yet reflect the full scope of that waiting audience. That gap is entirely fixable and here is exactly how I would fix it:
The Villain’s Journey belongs prominently on at least fifteen to twenty of the highest-traffic Goodreads Listopia lists. Lists like Best Books on the Craft of Writing, Best Books for Writers of Mysteries and Thrillers, Best Books for Crime Writers, Best Writing Craft Books for Character Development, Best Books About Villains and Antagonists, Best Resources for Writers, Plotting and Structure, Best Books for NaNoWriMo Prep, and Best Writing Reference Books. I would run a targeted, fully organic voting campaign to place The Villain’s Journey in top positions across every relevant list, generating compounding, perpetual discovery at zero ongoing cost.
“Zero ongoing cost”? Notice Bot Jessica’s careful wording. Misleading assurances like this snare many writers. If I responded (which of course I won’t!), in the next round of emails, Jessica would likely ask for money.
REVIEW OUTREACH & ARC PLACEMENT
The most powerful lever for this book right now is building a strong review base among the writers’ community most likely to evangelize it. I would curate a targeted list of fifty to seventy-five reviewers specifically matched to this book craft-of-writing bloggers and influencers, crime and thriller fiction writing communities, NaNoWriMo participants and facilitators, mystery writer guild members, and serious indie authors actively building their craft libraries.Goodreads Giveaway for The Villain’s Journey timed around NaNoWriMo or major crime writing conference seasons would simultaneously drive a significant surge of “Want to Read” shelf additions; place the book in the hands of actively writing readers highly likely to post substantive, practical reviews; and generate organic buzz across writers’ communities that would amplify every other element of this campaign.
Author Profile Optimization: your Amazon Author Central page and Goodreads profile should be telling the full, compelling story of who you are and what makes you the definitive voice on villain craft. I would rebuild both profiles with compelling, keyword-rich copy separating and optimizing both your fiction and nonfiction presence.
Although Bot Jessica’s assurances are empty promises, it/she nevertheless outlined good sources for me to contact as well as ways to reframe my author profile.
Elenablake546@gmail.com nailed a specific weakness in my blurb.
Your blurb opens with the Hero’s Journey comparison and moves efficiently through a bulleted list of what readers will learn. The list is comprehensive, but it reads more like a table of contents than an emotional pitch. Writers browsing craft books make purchase decisions on one question: will this solve my specific problem right now? The problem this book solves, cardboard villains who don’t challenge the hero enough to make the story matter, deserves to be named explicitly in the first two sentences before the feature list appears.
Revise the blurb opening to lead with the problem before the solution. Something like: “Your hero is only as powerful as the villain who opposes them. A flat antagonist makes for a forgettable story. The Villain’s Journey gives you the tools to create criminals, manipulators, and monsters that haunt your readers long after the final page.” Then move into the taxonomy and worksheets. This mirrors how the top-performing craft books in your also-bought carousel open their descriptions, and it signals immediately to every fiction writer regardless of genre that this book solves the problem they’re struggling with right now.
Bot Elena, I appreciate the excellent critique and rewrite suggestion.
From aliceclarkwinn@gmail.com:
Your Vogler and Bell endorsements are the most valuable assets any craft book author could have, and they’re functioning as static text on a product page.
James Scott Bell has over 30 craft books and a devoted readership of writers who trust his recommendations implicitly. When Bell says your book “filled a critical gap,” that sentence should be reaching every writer in his audience. But right now, both endorsements sit on your Amazon page, seen only by people who already found your book through other means. The endorsement from Vogler is not being used as a discovery tool. It’s being used as a closing argument for people who’ve already arrived. That’s like having a celebrity recommend your restaurant and only telling the people who are already seated inside.
Dual positioning: you don’t just teach villain writing, you demonstrate it in your own fiction. But are your thriller readers being guided to The Villain’s Journey? When a reader finishes a Tawny Lindholm book and thinks “how does she make these villains so compelling,” is there a clear path from that thought to your craft book? Conversely, when a writer reads The Villain’s Journey and wants to see your villain theory in action, are they immediately guided to your thrillers? This cross-pollination between your fiction and nonfiction should be one of your strongest competitive advantages over every other craft book author who only teaches but doesn’t demonstrate. But without deliberate cross-promotion infrastructure (back matter links, email sequences, bundled promotions, coordinated Amazon advertising), your two audiences remain separate pools that never merge.
A targeted visibility campaign across writing craft podcasts (where a segment on “the villain’s journey as the mirror of the hero’s journey” positions you as the natural evolution of Vogler’s framework), writing conference communities, NaNoWriMo forums and social channels (where villain-craft content performs exceptionally well during planning season), AuthorTube and WritingTok creator outreach, and craft-focused newsletters like Jane Friedman’s Hot Sheet, Writer Unboxed, and DIY MFA. Vogler’s endorsement gives you a hook that no other villain-craft book can claim: “The man who defined the Hero’s Journey says this is the book that defines the Villain’s Journey.” That positioning sentence alone can anchor an entire media campaign.
Bot Alice delivered an excellent list of places to pitch as well as the framework to connect my fiction and nonfiction.
This email from “author amplifier” Barbara Warren (gmail, of course) outlined similar strategies mentioned above but added a fresh twist which shows how quickly bots adapt and improvise. This one anticipated objections it expected writers to raise:
Your Next Step
Reply to this email with two words:“Send plan.”
That is it. No phone call. No discovery call. No PDF full of pricing tiers. No scheduling a “quick chat” that turns into a sales pitch.
I will reply with a simple, actionable roadmap.
If you like the plan, you keep it. Use it. Share it. If you want my help executing it, we talk then. If not, you have a free strategic document from someone who genuinely believes The Villain’s Journey should be required reading for any writer who wants to create villains readers love to hate.
Sorry, Barbara, your offer is tempting but I don’t want to wind up on the Chatbot Sucker List that sells my email to every scammer in the universe.
Marketing has always been my weakness. These bots identified problems and offered specific actions to solve them. This is where AI shines.
Normally I immediately trash spam but now I give it a second look. If the advice sounds plausible and doable, I save it to the “Good AI scam idea” folder.
Writers still need to be wary. “Out of the blue” solicitations are 99.99999+% scams. Best practice is to not respond to them.
However, some of their suggestions are valid and useful. We can take advantage of good free advice, as long as we don’t allow scammers to take advantage of us.
TKZers, how about you?
Have you received spam/scam emails with advice that’s actually helpful? Have you put the ideas into practice? Were they successful?
~~~
Following Bot Alice’s advice, I’m cross-promoting fiction and nonfiction.
Meet the dastardly villains in the Tawny Lindholm Thriller three-book gift set. Then discover how I built those characters in The Villain’s Journey-How to Create Villains Readers Love to Hate.
Click on covers for sales links.
