FREE delivery Friday, September 15. Details

Or fastest delivery Monday, September 11. Order within 1 hr 12 mins. Details

Only 1 left in stock - order soon

$$23.00 () Includes selected options. Includes initial monthly payment and selected options. Details

Payment

Secure transaction

Ships from

April Book Store

Sold by

April Book Store

Returns

Eligible for Return, Refund or Replacement within 30 days of receipt

Details

Payment

Secure transaction

We work hard to protect your security and privacy. Our payment security system encrypts your information during transmission. We don’t share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others. Learn more

Ships from

April Book Store

Sold by

April Book Store

Returns

Eligible for Return, Refund or Replacement within 30 days of receipt

This item can be returned in its original condition for a full refund or replacement within 30 days of receipt. You may receive a partial or no refund on used, damaged or materially different returns.

Read full return policy

FREE delivery September 14 - 19. Details

Select delivery location

Used: Good | Details

Sold by Break Time Books

Access codes and supplements are not guaranteed with used items.

Have one to sell?

Sell on Amazon

Other Sellers on Amazon

Added

Not added

$23.00
& FREE Shipping

Sold by: PARADISE 30

Flip to back Flip to front

Listen Playing... Paused You're listening to a sample of the Audible audio edition.
Learn more

See this image

Follow the Author

Fay Faron

Rip-Off: A Writer's Guide to Crimes of Deception (Howdunit) Paperback – January 1, 1998

by Fay Faron (Author)

4.7 35 ratings

Part of: Writer's Digest Howdunit (1 books)

See all formats and editions

Price

New from

Used from

Kindle

"Please retry"

$5.99

—

Paperback

"Please retry"

$23.00

$1.18

Kindle
$0.00 Read with Kindle Unlimited to also enjoy access to over 4 million more titles $5.99 to buy
Paperback
$23.00

23 Used from $1.18 3 New from $23.00 1 Collectible from $17.29

{"desktop_buybox_group_1":[{"displayPrice":"$23.00","priceAmount":23.00,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"23","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"00","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"SF%2B%2BFBkB2%2Fae7RpSKii6cwhTa0nAwFz%2FTRwSvJ7h9V1A4ZN5K3%2B4A1rsrv3yuoUhBIHk7vutPllJFAzX1nDIxUVaZJxwHpzMkXRJAnWRRmkpKYZsQQBpruB5aVRzv1%2FvBhCJ%2Fws8MuqENgxm3Eyfh2NdWxjnt%2FxHoj%2BynkXlgynW0akNKC3drh9mXx7AWmn1","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"NEW","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":0}, {"displayPrice":"$5.15","priceAmount":5.15,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"5","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"15","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"SF%2B%2BFBkB2%2Fae7RpSKii6cwhTa0nAwFz%2FrRX6pFSMH%2FE4EDav6NSqBTkEgElEpHHr7zUcA8YJ8ngLVrPn1Syn0dFs5fbGmWJm5GhIVQ55Vokp5Em3j%2BxggGAz7m0Ur%2BK4j5B6I9gNgId%2Frg2hd3XLW%2BrqVGv4ZLCIwlhbukBX9Uwl%2FKL2cx7Fdw%3D%3D","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"USED","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":1}]}

Purchase options and add-ons

From street level shell games to high stakes real estate swindles, professional PI Fay Faron profiles the con artists, the cons and the victims. Designed for authors who need the facts for realistic narrative, here is the lowdown on scams.'

Part of series

Writer's Digest Howdunit
Print length

232 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Writers Digest Books
Publication date

January 1, 1998
Dimensions

6 x 0.75 x 9.25 inches
ISBN-10

0898798272
ISBN-13

978-0898798272
See all details

Frequently bought together

Rip-Off: A Writer's Guide to Crimes of Deception (Howdunit)

$23.00

Only 1 left in stock - order soon.

Ships from and sold by April Book Store.

+

Amateur Detectives: A Writer's Guide to How Private Citizens Solve Criminal Cases (Howdunit)

$18.32

Get it as soon as Saturday, Sep 16

Only 1 left in stock - order soon.

Sold by FindAnyBook and ships from Amazon Fulfillment.

+

Private Eyes: A Writer's Guide to Private Investigating (Howdunit Series)

$14.14

Get it as soon as Friday, Sep 15

Only 1 left in stock - order soon.

Sold by Positive Tutors and ships from Amazon Fulfillment.

Total price:

To see our price, add these items to your cart.

Try again!

Details

Added to Cart

These items are shipped from and sold by different sellers.

Show details Hide details

Choose items to buy together.

Elaine Raco Chase
37
Paperback
38 offers from $2.94
Anne Wingate
59
Paperback
84 offers from $1.68
Serita Deborah Stevens
144
Paperback
68 offers from $2.63
Hal Blythe
24
Paperback
63 offers from $1.35
Greg Fallis
41
Paperback
36 offers from $1.68
Mauro V. Corvasce
32
Paperback
43 offers from $1.68

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Something tells us we would be naïve to believe this book would appeal solely to mystery writers. Detective Fay Faron, syndicated newspaper columnist ("Ask Rat Dog") and author of Missing Persons, has written a primer sure to turn any novice (writer, of course) into a scam expert. Rip-Off removes the mystery from such cons as the pigeon drop, Latin lotto, Gypsy-sweetheart scams, guaranteed-prize mailers, charity scams, bait-and-switches, biz-op scams, the Texas twist, identity theft, carny cons, chain letters, psychic hotlines, three-card monte, Ponzi schemes, 809 phone numbers, and gambling stings. Faron's writing advice focuses on identifying the basic traits of perps and pigeons (60 percent of pigeons are seniors, but we're all susceptible), defining the lingo (drag broad, shaky mom, mish roll, etc.), and counseling writers to "tell the story from the point of view of the victim." --Jane Steinberg

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Writers Digest Books (January 1, 1998)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 232 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0898798272
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0898798272
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 13.3 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.75 x 9.25 inches

Customer Reviews:
4.7 35 ratings

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Videos

Help others learn more about this product by uploading a video!

Upload your video

Important information

To report an issue with this product, click here.

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.

Fay Faron

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Fay Faron established The Rat Dog Dick Detective Agency in the San Francisco Bay Area in 1982. Her syndicated column, “Ask Rat Dog” was syndicated by King Features in 1992 and ran in over 60 newspapers nationwide. Faron moved to New Orleans, Louisiana in 2001, staring up an online company, Market2Editors, which helped writers launch their own syndicated columns.

In 2012, New Orleans City Council named Faron “Ferrygodmother of New Orleans” for leading the charge that saved the Canal Street ferry.

In 2019, she was awarded Marquis Who’s Who’s Lifetime Achievement Award for her career as a private investigator. She now spends her days writing, editing and zipping around the city on her moped.

Customer reviews

4.7 out of 5

35 global ratings

5 star
4 star
3 star
2 star
1 star

How customer reviews and ratings work

Sort reviews by

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Dr. Signe A. Dayhoff

Informative and fun to read

Reviewed in the United States on June 23, 2019

Verified Purchase

While I have read a number of books on confidence games, this one is written from the perspective of a real-life detective and writer with a chuckle-worthy sense of humor. Comprehensive, the book categorizes cons by type and gives full examples of how they are played out. Useful for anyone wanting to be aware of such games for self-protection, these games are, more often than not, based more upon gaining someone's trust than upon the targeting the greed of the mark (victim-to-be). The book is especially useful for any writer who wants to include con games in their storyline. What is particularly clear is that anyone of us could be vulnerable no matter how alert and/or smart we think we are because these manipulations target our emotion, desires, and conflict. They evolve rapidly requiring immediate decision making such that there is little time to be rational, analytical, and reflect upon them. If you haven't read any other books on con games yet, be sure to start with this one.

Helpful

Jim M.

There are better sources

Reviewed in the United States on August 15, 2000

Verified Purchase

The Howdunit series is a wonderful resource for writers. These books can save hours of legwork and research. Unfortunately Fay Faron's book does not really belong in the series. This is not to say it's a bad book. If you are interested in con games and want to protect yourself, it is as good as most of the other books on the market that cover this topic. As a research tool, however, it falls woefully short. Most of the cons are given only the most rudimentary descriptions, and some (such as the notorious shell game, which is still prevalent on the streets of major cities) are not mentioned at all.
The book does well with some modern con artists, such as the Travelers, but is completely devoid of historical information. Certainly in a book for writers, some mention must be made of the great con artists of this century; people such as The Yellow Kid, Limehouse Chappie, Buck Boatwright, and Charley Gondorff. Remember, not everyone sets their fiction in the present day.
The author plays it close to the vest when it comes to her sources. Certainly a book such as this should have an extensive bibliography, but this one only lists a few books. There are some notable omissions from the list, the worst case being the absence of The Big Con by David W. Maurer. Written in 1940, Maurer's book is still the best resource for information of how con games are played, and the book I would recommend it over Rip-Off to any aspiring writer interested in writing about con games.

42 people found this helpful

Helpful

atexasmarine

Idea book, reference book

Reviewed in the United States on June 24, 2020

Verified Purchase

A good reference book for concepts and accuracy when writing books or stories about private investigators. I have not written on this subject, but I will. I find in reading this series that I get more ideas for other kinds of writing in the pages of unrelated books. This is one of them.

Helpful

great con guide for ppl who just don't know anything

Reviewed in the United States on January 4, 2014

Verified Purchase

I don't rob steal or kill but i write about it and i love this Howdunit guide to ripoffs
As i myself have never done something so elaborate I wanted to write about it and the Howdunit series layman's terms helps me to understand the grift very well.
highly recommend for all writers as an essential resource guide

Reviewed in the United States on September 2, 2013

Verified Purchase

The book met my expectations. Rip-Off is is a useful tool when writing and gives the reader the right information.

Helpful

Ned Barnett

One of a series of books that "gets it done" for crime fiction writers

Reviewed in the United States on May 13, 2017

Verified Purchase

This series of books is superb for mystery/thriller/crime writers. I recommend all of them wholeheartedly.

Helpful

Richard A. Herman

Helping writers get it right

Reviewed in the United States on December 13, 2012

Verified Purchase

As anyone who watches TV and movies knows, writers frequently don't get it right. books of this series are valuable tools to writers to whom accuracy is important. I highly recommend it.

Helpful

Patricia Darlene McClendon

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United States on January 25, 2017

Looks interesting.

Reviewed in the United States on October 3, 2014

I liked the book.

Reviewed in the United States on September 21, 2004

I thought this was, overall, a pretty good book. Faron, who ran her own private investigation agency for many years, gives a good overview of rip-offs of all kinds. If I want more detailed information on a specific kind of scam, there are other sources I'd likely use (most probably, talking with one of my police contacts), but I liked the overview this book gave me in that it got me thinking about a few directions I might go in my own writing.

The Writer's Digest "Howdunit" series, of which this book is one, tends to be based on giving people a little bit of information on a lot of topics, and I think this book lives up to that goal. It's not, as a previous reviewer pointed out, an in-depth reference book full of original research. But, for what it sets out to do, I think it succeeds well.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

Amazon Customer

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United States on October 3, 2014

Good reference.

Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2015

Not helpful at all! Forget it....

Reviewed in the United States on July 22, 2002

When I ordered this book, I was hoping for more than a cursory look at some of the great scams and cons throughout history. It fell woefully short in many respects. It seems to me that Ms. Faron has learned all she knows from watching a Discovery Channel special or movies, such as The Sting, Traveller, or Paper Moon. It provides nothing in the way of original insight or research. The author's writing style is disjointed and confused. It jumps between subjects quickly without segues. I can see how non-writers can be interested in this book, but as it sells itself as a guide to help an author with character and plot development, I expect a little more than "You might want your character to do this..."
I do admit that the title is fully fitting. Ms. Faron has conned us buyers.

27 people found this helpful

Helpful

Buy new: $23.00$23.00 FREE delivery: Friday, Sep 15 Payment Secure transaction Ships from April Book Store Sold by April Book Store Returns Eligible for Return, Refund or Replacement within 30 days of receipt

Buy used: $5.15

Other Sellers on Amazon

Follow the Author

Rip-Off: A Writer's Guide to Crimes of Deception (Howdunit) Paperback – January 1, 1998

Purchase options and add-ons

Frequently bought together

Customers who viewed this item also viewed

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Product details

Videos

Important information

About the author

Fay Faron

Customer reviews

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Buy new:

$23.00

FREE delivery: Friday, Sep 15

Payment

Secure transaction

Ships from

April Book Store

Sold by

April Book Store

Returns

Eligible for Return, Refund or Replacement within 30 days of receipt

Buy used:

$5.15