In this week's edition of Endnotes, we take a look at Tiffany D. Jackson's The Scammer, a nail-biting thriller. In its review, PW says "Jackson’s signature chilling prose presents action-filled and fast-paced plotting rife with tension."
Here's how the book came together:
Tiffany D. Jackson
“I came up with this idea after reading about the Sarah Lawrence sex cult scandal back in 2022, where a student’s dad moved into her dorm and started taking over other students’ lives. I really couldn’t understand how something like this could happen, and I ended up going down a rabbit hole about cults. The biggest challenge was writing and revising the novel postpartum. I felt like I couldn’t remember words, which is a pretty important part of the process.”
Jenny Bent
“Tiffany called me when she was looking for new representation, and we had a long call where I fangirled about her books. She had a shift in editors during the process, since Ben Rosenthal left to start his own imprint, but Rich Thomas at Harper was very good at making sure the transition to her new editor, Jen Ung, was smooth and efficient.”
Jennifer Ung
“Tiffany is known for keeping readers on their toes, and this book is no exception. And so much of the editorial process focused on making sure all the thrilling twists she had planned were set up to land with as much impact as possible. Tiffany brings her best to every book, so there was very little for me to help with.”
David Curtis
“Since this book centers a group of students becoming entangled in a story of manipulation, I wanted to hire an artist who could go beyond just illustrating the main character. Kingsley Nebechi has a great talent for conceptual storytelling with illustrations that include multiple characters. It didn’t take many rounds of sketches for Kingsley to deliver beautiful cover art that conveys a story of malicious control.”
