In the media

Our author Coleen Greenwood appeared on ITV's This Morning in February 2023, joining hosts Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield to tell the story of how she was deceived for over two years by a man posing as a firefighter who was secretly married with three children living just down the road. The show described it as one of the biggest con stories they had ever covered. Coleen spoke about the fake cancer diagnosis, the fabricated vasectomy, and the moment the entire deception unravelled. The full story is told in Playing With Fire: The True Story of Fireman Scam, published by Crear Publishing.

The story of Coleen Greenwood and her twin sister Karen Crear was adapted into Love-Bombed with Vicky Pattison, a BBC Sounds podcast series. The series tells the true story of how Coleen fell in love with a man who claimed to be a heroic firefighter, only to discover he was living a dangerous double life of manipulation and fraud. Presented by Vicky Pattison, the podcast reached number one in the UK Apple Podcasts chart within its first week of release. The full story is told in the book Playing With Fire: The True Story of Fireman Scam, published by Crear Publishing.

Ryan and Karen Crear, owners of Crear Publishing, were featured in the Our Weekend column of Northern Insight Magazine (Issue 122), one of the North East's leading lifestyle and business publications. The piece offers a warm and personal insight into the people behind the independent publisher, covering everything from weekend book launches and author meetings to Karen's love of horror movies and Ryan's passion for rugby. The feature highlights Crear Publishing's deep roots in the North East community and the genuine passion Karen and Ryan bring to supporting their authors.

Our author Coleen Greenwood was interviewed by BBC Radio 4's consumer affairs programme You & Yours, giving one of her earliest national media accounts of how she was deceived by a man posing as a firefighter who was living a double life. Coleen spoke in detail about the extreme lengths Greg Wilson went to in order to maintain his deception, including fake fire service emails, a fabricated vasectomy, and invented business interests that led to her sister Karen Crear losing £58,000. The accompanying BBC News online article, written by reporter Jon Douglas, remains one of the most detailed early accounts of the case. The full story is told in Playing With Fire: The True Story of Fireman Scam, published by Crear Publishing.

The story of Crear Publishing author Coleen Greenwood and the Fireman Scam was featured on Pablito's Way, a popular YouTube channel, in August 2022. The video, which has accumulated over 26,000 views, tells the story of how Coleen was deceived by a man posing as a firefighter who was living a double life, and the court case that followed. The full story is told in Playing With Fire: The True Story of Fireman Scam, co-written by Coleen Greenwood and Karen Crear and published by Crear Publishing.

Our author K.L. Crear featured on the Siren Stories channel for Table Read Magazine in October 2023, discussing her debut women's fiction novel The Reinvention of Lottie Potts. In the video Karen shares the inspiration behind the book, talks about her main characters, what she loves about writing, and offers advice for other aspiring authors.

Our author Coleen Greenwood appeared as a guest on Channel 4's Steph's Packed Lunch in November 2023, sharing her personal story with a national television audience. During the appearance Coleen discussed the themes behind her book Playing With Fire: The True Story of Fireman Scam and revealed that a follow-up book was in the works. A portion of proceeds from book sales supports Women's Aid.

Our author K.L. Crear's debut women's fiction novel The Reinvention of Lottie Potts was featured by BookTok creator Annalise Reads in December 2023, reaching an engaged audience of independent book lovers on TikTok. The post praised both the book and its cover, sharing it under popular indie book hashtags including #indiebooktok and #indieauthors, helping introduce Lottie's story to a new community of women's fiction readers.

Our authors Coleen Greenwood and Karen Crear featured in Episode 3 of Red Flag, a true crime documentary series streaming on U (UKTV). The episode, titled Fireman, Fiancé, Father... Fake, tells Coleen's story of how she met a man online who claimed to be a firefighter, only to discover that nothing about him was real. The 60-minute episode is part of an eight-episode series exploring dangerous and deceptive relationships. The full story is told in Playing With Fire: The True Story of Fireman Scam, published by Crear Publishing.

Our author Coleen Greenwood featured in a real-life story in Take a Break magazine, one of the UK's best-selling weekly women's magazines, telling the story of how she was deceived by a man posing as a firefighter who was secretly living a double life with a wife and three children. The article brought Coleen's story to Take a Break's large national readership of women's magazine readers, well before the publication of Playing With Fire: The True Story of Fireman Scam by Crear Publishing.

Our founder and author Karen Crear was featured in a full interview with Luxe Magazine in July 2024, discussing her unconventional path into writing, the inspiration behind her Teapots & Tequila Shots women's fiction series, and her commitment to charitable giving. Karen spoke openly about facing two cancer diagnoses, writing Playing With Fire in just three months to meet a BBC Sounds podcast deadline, and how that success gave her the confidence to pursue her lifelong dream of writing fiction. The article also covers her mission to give older women a voice in literature and her donations to Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital, the Epilepsy Society and Women's Aid.

Crear Publishing author K.L. Crear's second Teapots and Tequila Shots novel Lila Glover Wants a Lover received a four star review on TikTok from BookTok creator Tea Pig Reads, reaching an engaged audience of book lovers through the BookTok community. The review was shared under popular hashtags including #booktok, #bookreview and #over40, placing the book directly in front of readers looking for fiction featuring older women -- exactly the audience Karen Crear writes for.

Our authors Coleen Greenwood and Karen Crear featured in Series 1, Episode 2 of Love Cheats, a Channel 4 true crime documentary series. The episode, subtitled The Fireman Fraudster, tells the story of how twin sisters Coleen and Karen were defrauded by a con artist posing as a firefighter — the same story told in their book Playing With Fire: The True Story of Fireman Scam. The 60-minute episode aired on Channel 4 at 9pm on Monday 21 October 2024 as part of a four-episode series exploring extraordinary cases of romance fraud

Our author Coleen Greenwood appeared in an ITV News report in February 2025, sharing her experience as a romance scam victim ahead of Valentine's Day. Coleen spoke about her relationship with a man living a double life and offered advice to others about recognising red flags in new relationships. Her story is told in full in Playing With Fire: The True Story of Fireman Scam, published by Crear Publishing.

Our authors Coleen Greenwood and Karen Crear appeared on the Local Heroes Podcast in November 2025, joining hosts Chris and Dan for an in-depth conversation about romance fraud, coercive control, survival and the power of sisterhood. The episode covers the full arc of their story, from discovering the truth about Greg Wilson's deception, through the police investigation and courtroom revelations, to the media storm that followed and their experience of victim-blaming and online abuse. Coleen and Karen also discuss their bestselling books Playing With Fire and Healing from the Burns, the BBC Sounds hit podcast Love Bombed with Vicky Pattison, and a new screenplay currently in development. The episode is described by the hosts as powerful, warm and surprisingly uplifting, with proceeds from the books supporting Women's Aid.

Our author Natasha Robinson, a teenager from Gateshead living with drug-resistant epilepsy, was featured in The Table Read Magazine in April 2026 ahead of the launch of her debut poetry collection Words from the Soul. The article highlights how poetry has served as both a creative outlet and a source of comfort for Natasha throughout her journey with epilepsy, and explores themes of family, childhood, friendship and the beauty of everyday life. The piece also covers Crear Publishing's mission to encourage young people in the North East, one of the UK's lowest child literacy regions, to both read and write. Natasha's book launch took place at Electric Beacon Books in South Shields on 11th April 2026, with a further appearance at the North East Children's Indie Book Fest on 25th July.

Kingsmeadow Community School in Gateshead published a news feature in April 2026 celebrating the achievement of Year 11 student Natasha Robinson, whose debut poetry collection Words from the Soul was published by Crear Publishing. The school's headteacher, Mr Barrett, praised Natasha's talent and noted that her achievement was no surprise given her performances at school and community events. The article highlights how Natasha developed her poetry through the school's Creative Writing Club and expresses hope that her success will inspire other young students to explore their own creativity. The feature underlines Crear Publishing's commitment to giving young writers a platform and amplifying voices that might otherwise go unheard.