A friend of mine called me today with incredible news. Her novel was going to be made into a movie and she would be going to Glendale, California for a meeting about it on December 19.

I was thrilled for her. I asked how it came about and she mentioned a podcast she’d done about a year ago where she’d answered some pre-written questions about her most recent book—her third semi-autobiographical, self-published novel. Somehow a media company had heard the podcast and became interested in shopping her book to movie studios for possible adaption to film and incredibly, DreamWorks was interested.

My friend is 80 years old and recently lost a kidney to cancer. Her husband has advanced Parkinson’s Disease. She’s led an unusually interesting and challenging life. She worked very hard professionally but kept up writing fiction as a hobby for decades. Having one of her novels turned into a film would be a dream come true. Truly. I cannot think of anything else that would be more meaningful to her at this point in time. She was so excited. Her main concerns were what she would wear to the meeting in California and who could take care of her husband while she was away.

Her daughter called while we were talking, so we hung up.

I was surprised (but not shocked), when she later confirmed (by e-mail) that her daughter had been right. It was a scam.

Imagine the emotions. From the highest high to…well…the way every single scam victim must feel.

Shocked • Embarrassed • Confused
Foolish • Upset • Betrayed
Misled • Angry • Frustrated
Disappointed • Let Down • Hurt

Thankfully, her daughter caught on early and no money had yet been requested or sent.

Here’s how ChatGPT summarizes this particularly cruel scam:

A book-to-film option scam is when scammers target self-published authors by pretending a major studio wants to adapt their book. They pose as agents or producers, build excitement, and then demand money for fake services like screenplay adaptation or representation. It’s a type of advance-fee scam designed to exploit hopeful authors.