The following email was sent to one of our accounts recently, and we wanted to post it. If you are a poet or writer, beware of these kinds of things!

Hi there,

 My name is Wilhelmina Bachmeier and my late friend has always followed your poem. In his will, he left something for you and we got your email from his diary which he might have gotten from you or other sources. I am been told to execute his will and that is why you are been sent this message now. I am in the USA and if you want to talk about this, send me an email acknowledging this message or your contact number, if you can. I can also send my phone number if you wish to call me.

We’re not sure if someone is harvesting writers’ names, but we wanted to be sure to pass this info along to you, just in case! This scammer knows enough to associate us with poetry, but there are some clear signs that make this fishy. Vague references (who is the “late friend”), no first name, and something related to a will strike us as red flags.

Writers must always be vigilant. That’s why we do so much research before we refer our writer-clients to any literary agents or editors of literary jourals. And for those of you who are not yet clients, we hope our blog helps!