My day started with exciting news. It was a long and gushing email from popular Australian breakfast radio show host Sally Sara saying she was following up on a previous conversation (huh? wot?) and would love to interview me about my 2009 book, This Restless Life, on her program.

“I remain genuinely enthusiastic about the opportunity to feature your work and to welcome you to an upcoming author conversation. I believe your insights and experience would make for a thoughtful and engaging discussion, and I would be delighted to work with you to create an enjoyable experience for both you and our audience,” she wrote.

How bizarre, I thought. My book came out in 2009, I had not spoken to Sara about an interview, and I knew from years of listening to her program that it covered politics in depth but not out-of-print books published almost 20 years ago.

As the day went on, I wondered if I’d been scammed. If it was a genuine request, why did the email come from a gmail account and not one connected to the ABC?

But scammed for what? What would a scammer want from an author? What would be their ask?

I was thinking all this as I was lacing up a pair of gold trainers that I had bought second-hand from Depop. They were........

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