I am not the original poster. This is a repost.

The original poster is u/ceaseblogging. Originally posted 5 years ago on r/legaladvice.

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I write a pseudonymous blog. Someone posed as me and got a book deal. I've been ordered to hand over my website. [Feb 19 2017]

https://www.reddit.com/r/legaladvice/comments/5uzlut/i_write_a_pseudonymous_blog_someone_posed_as_me/

For the last three years, I've written a parenting blog under a pseudonym. It started out small, but over time I've developed a decent sized audience. It's not huge, but it's respectable. I write entirely about my family and my life.

A completely surreal thing happened this week and it's escalated to the point that I know I need to contact an attorney. But it's a long weekend and I can't seem to get in touch with anyone. I'm hoping to get some advice here in the interim.

Earlier in the week, I started receiving a couple emails from readers congratulating me on my book deal. This came as news to me, because I've never tried to get a book deal. I asked the readers where they heard this, and they pointed me towards a couple news releases that ultimately led back to a small publishing outfit. According to the publisher, my pseudonym will be writing a book on parenting, life, and other topics. Also according to the publisher, my blog would be moving to a new site to better integrate with the book. It reeked of rebranding.

I immediately contacted the publisher and basically asked "what the fuck??" Within a day, I received a cease and desist email from a law firm on behalf of the publisher. From the letter and a few follow up emails, this is what I have pieced together:

Some deranged person decided to claim that THEY were the one who wrote under my pseudonym. This person contacted the publisher and worked out a book deal. This person told the publisher that I was a paid ghost writer who occasionally helped with posts and managed the website. This person warned the publisher that I had become disgruntled because I was supposedly informed that I would be let go in a few weeks once the book deal went through. The publisher was warned that I might try to retaliate. The publisher was told that when I learned the book deal was final, I locked the "real author" out of her own website and that I was now holding it hostage.

I was warned that I had to immediately turn access of the blog over to the publisher or risk further legal and civil penalties. I've been warned that any further posts made under the pseudonym will compound the damages because the pseudonym now belongs to the publisher and I was fired by the "real author."

I'm baffled and scared. What's uniquely worrisome is that the firm somehow knows my real name. The cease and desist is addressed to me. I have no idea how they obtained that information.

Because of the threats, I've decided to go radio silent on my blog. I usually post once a day, but I haven't posted anything since Wednesday night. In the mean time, the new blog has posts. It's weird and creepy and just plain scary because they are posts where someone is pretending to be me. I've seen my traffic take a nose-dive as it appears many of my readers have found the new blog over the last few days.

I'm hoping to reach a lawyer on Tuesday, but in the mean time, what can I do? Beyond the bizarre happenings with the blog, I'm beginning to be nervous about my own safety.

Relevant Comments

• Poster asks: Why not put up a blog post telling your readers what is going on, so that they stop switching over to the new site? OOP: In my communications with the firm, I was warned that any post made on behalf of the pseudonym would only add to the damages I would be facing. They claim to own all rights to the blog. Rather than open myself up to further legal trouble, I've gone quiet until I can talk with an attorney. But my readership is plummeting in the meantime.

Editors Note: This one appears to have some really good advice on what to do if you're in this situation. I saved a few of the comments for a future "just in case".

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UPDATE: I write a pseudonymous blog. Someone posed as me and got a book deal. I've been ordered to hand over my website. [Feb 26 2017]

https://www.reddit.com/r/legaladvice/comments/5wbgc1/update_i_write_a_pseudonymous_blog_someone_posed/

Thank you for all the advice to my last post. I especially appreciate the supportive private messages I received from IT experts and fellow mommy bloggers.

As for the update, unfortunately this problem has become too complicated for me to fight and I've chosen to walk away. I know this does not make much sense at first, but there are many personal considerations that have gone into my decision.

In the comments to my last post, I alluded to being worried about the financial security of my family. What I did not mention is that much of this fear comes from the fact that my mother in law was recently diagnosed with a serious (though hopefully treatable) disease. My family and the families of my in-laws are helping her through this difficult period.

But the difficulties are more than financial. This has been a very emotionally trying time for my husband and my children. Prior to this legal problem, my husband and I had discussions about me reducing my blogging or stepping back entirely for a stretch. The amount of time it took to write for my blog is honestly time that I need to put towards supporting my family right now.

So one consideration in my decision to not pursue a legal fight was the money and (more importantly) the time it would take. Although my husband and I figured the money would work itself out, especially if our case was as strong as everyone here said it was.

But the real reason I decided not to fight the publisher is this: I wrote things on my blog about my in-laws (including my MIL) under the assumption that I was writing anonymously. I was never mean, but I did state some difficult truths about their behavior and unintentional emotional manipulation.

We came to the conclusion that any effort to fight the publisher carried with it too great a risk that I would be outed publicly as the author of the blog. Given that emotions are running high now that we are all caring for my MIL, it would be devastating if my in-laws became aware of my writing. This concern settled the issue for us.

The publisher filed a DMCA complaint against my blog. Thanks to the advice of everyone here, I made a backup of all my writing for myself. Strangely enough, a (very poorly formatted) archive of old posts also appeared on the new blog run by the impostor and the publisher. It looks like they just used copy and paste. I sent an email to the lawyers saying that while I was not conceding ownership of the blog or of my posts, I would not be fighting them at this time. They want me to sign some papers, but I have told them that I will not do that. They seem to have backed off.

Honestly, I am heartbroken to lose my blog, but I would be more heartbroken if it became something that would create a rupture in my family as we try to support my MIL.

Thank you again to everyone. Hopefully somewhere down the road I can begin writing anew.

I am not the original poster. This is a repost.

The original poster is u/ceaseblogging. Originally posted 5 years ago on r/legaladvice.