The Strange Emails That Started Arriving After I Published My Book

“A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes.”

— Mark Twain

One thing I did not expect when publishing my books was the number of unusual emails that would suddenly start appearing in my inbox. They often arrive out of the blue, usually with a friendly message that says something like:

“I recently came across your book and thought the concept was creative and helpful.”

At first glance, it sounds flattering. Someone found the book and someone liked the idea. Maybe they want to help promote it. But after receiving a few of these messages, it becomes clear that something else is going on.

The Email Sounds Almost Professional

Recently I received another email about one of our books - Bye-Bye, Boobies: A Rhyming Story About Weaning from Nursing. The sender said they had discovered the book and wanted to share “two quick promotion ideas” that could improve visibility and reader engagement with families who are going through the weaning process.

The message looked professional at first glance. It included a the person's title, a website link, and even a Facebook profile. But there were several small clues that made me pause.

Clue #1

The email came from a Gmail address rather than an actual company domain. 

Clue #2

The website link looked unusual and did not point to a recognizable business site it looked almost like an affiliate link address. Of course, I would never click on a link from an unknown person but it's a good reminder to think before clicking on links.

Clue #3

The message also did not mention my name at the top of the email nor anything specific about the book itself that wasn't found on the blurb or the book page.

This is a pattern many independent authors eventually notice that most of theses emails follow.

Why Direct Email Feels Different

One reason these messages can feel convincing is that they arrive by email rather than through social media. Comments and direct messages on Instagram or Facebook are easier to ignore. They often look like obvious spam or quick promotional pitches.

Email feels different. Someone had to take the extra step of finding your contact address and writing directly to you. It creates the impression that the message was written specifically for your book that they have referenced in their message.

In reality, many of these emails are still part of automated outreach campaigns. The book title may be pulled from a database and inserted into a template message.

Even so, the extra step of sending an email can make the message feel more thoughtful and personal than it actually is.

Why These Emails Appear

Once a book is published and distributed through platforms like Amazon or IngramSpark, it begins appearing in online catalogues and book databases. Marketing services often scan those databases looking for new titles. When they find them, automated messages are sent to the author email listed in the book’s metadata.

In other words, the sender probably did not discover the book by reading it. They likely found it in a database.

Over 10,000 Books are Published Daily

Another reason authors receive so many promotion emails is the sheer number of books being published. Estimates suggest that more than 10,000 new books are released every day worldwide when traditional publishing and self publishing are combined. That means thousands of new authors appear in publishing databases every single day.

Marketing companies know this and know that authors are always looking to stand out from that crowded market. Many of them scan those databases looking for newly published books and then send automated emails offering promotion services. In other words, the message probably did not arrive because someone discovered my book. It likely arrived because my book appeared in a catalogue.

The “Two Ideas” Usually Offered

Most of these emails lead to one of two standard services.

Paid Review Campaigns

The first is a paid review campaign. Authors are offered a way to place their book in front of readers who will supposedly leave reviews. This can, in some cases, be against the terms of service of your book distributor so be sure to check that fine print.

Mailing List Promotion

The second is a promotion through a mailing list, Facebook group, or newsletter that claims to reach thousands of readers that are unique to the niche that your book falls into.

Both services typically involve paying a fee, often hundreds of dollars.

Book Club Features Offered

Another interesting option that comes through emails is the sender will use a real book club name (so when you search you can find it) or set up a book club to match their email first with a Private Facebook Group or other similar group. They will say that you need to provide money for each member to receive a copy of your book to review and you can't just send them author copies. Or, the other fee that they will ask for is room rentals or refreshments for the meeting where they will be discussing your book. 

The Same Person Contacted Me on Goodreads

Not long after the email arrived, the same person posted a “question” on my Goodreads author page. The message was not really a question. It simply said something along the lines of: “Quick idea for Bye-Bye, Boobies.”

Goodreads Profiles

Goodreads requires users to have an account before posting a question to an author. That means the sender had a profile, a username, and a profile image. When I clicked on the profile, I could also see similar messages posted to other authors with their book title's changed. In other words, the account was not a reader asking about the book. It appeared to be part of a broader outreach effort aimed at multiple self-published authors.

Why This Happens

Marketing services often look for newly published books in online databases such as Goodreads or retail catalogues. Once they find them, they reach out to the author through whatever contact points are available. That can include email, social media, or even the question feature on an author page.

For authors, it can feel surprising at first. But it is simply another example of how visible a book becomes once it enters the publishing ecosystem.

Do Unsolicited Paid Services Work?

For some books this may occasionally lead to a few sales. For many others, the results are a often financial loss with no return at all and people post about these all the time in the forums and groups for self-publishing. 

Plus, for our books like this, niche parenting titles, are especially unlikely to benefit from broad marketing lists that are not targeted to families so it's important to investigate exactly who they are claiming will see their campaigns.

Why I Choose to Ignore Unsolicited Marketing Emails for Bye-Bye, Boobies

For my books, the readers who matter most are mothers, families, libraries, and professionals who work with young children. Those readers rarely discover books through mass marketing emails. They find books through word of mouth, library collections, recommendations from other mothers, and trusted professionals. Because of that, paying for broad promotion campaigns does not make much sense for this type of book.

A Reminder for New Authors

If you publish a book, you will probably start receiving emails like this too. Some will promise reviews. Others will promise marketing campaigns. A few will sound very convincing. It is always worth slowing down before clicking any links or paying for promotion services. What I've noticed as pretty standard in the publishing forums is that if someone is contacting you to sell you their service, it's likely not going to work as well as if you had contacted them - just like the door-to-door salesmen who stop by.

Sometimes the best decision is simply to close the email and return to the work that matters most. Writing the next book.

You can explore all of our current titles on our Books Page.

If you'd like to help share our works, visit our Libraries Page for circulation details and ISBNs.

Our books are available through major retailers including Chapters, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop, and Waterstones.