The most popular show on Netflix right now depicts one of the most dramatic friendship breakdowns of all time. Based on the infamous “SoHo crook” Anna Delvey, née Sorokin, Invent Anna follows the con man’s escapades through New York, after which she was convicted of defrauding banks, restaurants and hotels (and stealing a private jet). The show also shows Delvey’s friendship with Rachel, a former magazine editor whom Delvey billed for over $60,000 for a vacation in Morocco.

The real Rachel, full name Rachel DeLoache Williams, was once one of Delvey’s closest friends. After their fallout, she testified against the con man at his trial and later wrote a book about her experience. Though that’s where her story ends Invent Annathe real Rachel continues to speak out against Delvey and has thoughts on Netflix’s dramatization of events.

Rachel wrote a book about her experience.

In real life, Williams worked as a photo editor for vanity lounge when she met Delvey through mutual friends. As on the show, she wrote an essay about her experience with Delvey and sued her former friend for $62,000 after he participated in an undercover operation for Delvey’s arrest. Delvey was found not guilty of the real-life charge and Williams was left with the debt, although the writer told ABC News his credit card company wrote off most of the debt.

Williams also wrote a book about his experience with Delvey and the con man’s trial, titled My Friend Anna: The True Story of a Fake Heiress. The memoir was reissued in paperback this week, with a new afterword also published in Time.

In a Q&A on her website, Williams confirmed she was not involved with the Netflix show. She previously sold her own story rights to HBO and Lena Dunham, but she says on the website that the project is not currently in development.

She now works as a freelance photographer.

Williams, a Tennessee native, left vanity lounge after selling his book My friend Anna in 2019. According to her website, she works as a freelance writer, photographer, producer, and creative consultant. She also expresses her passion for photography and travel on her Instagram.

She says Anna is “rewarded for her crimes”.

Before Invent AnnaWilliams trashed the show in a Airmail essay, criticizing Netflix for giving Delvey even more notoriety and attention.

“Trust someone who knows: It’s the art of cheating, a shell game that offers irresistible thrills for low stakes, while a sleight of hand does the business of high rollers unseen. Netflix doesn’t just publish a fictional story. It’s effectively managing a crook’s PR and putting money in his pocket,” she wrote.

She also speculated about the media attention and money Delvey received from Netflix (while selling the rights to her story) and other sources in her. Time test.

“If your crimes are splashy enough, a media company could grab the rights to your story before trial so you can afford a lawyer of your choice who is qualified enough to minimize your sentence. You could be paid so much money that even after your funds are frozen and victims are reimbursed, you have money left over and found an audience to tap into for future opportunities,” Williams wrote.

She also admitted that she had given Delvey “enormous power and influence over me – power and influence that I then spent years recovering”, before telling her audience to be careful not to pay more attention to Delvey.

Talk to vanity lounge the day after the show’s release, Williams said, “I was caught off guard when Netflix announced their character description of Rachel.” (Netflix calls Rachel “a born follower whose indiscriminate worship of Anna nearly destroys her job, her credit, and her life… The woman she becomes because of Anna is perhaps Anna’s greatest creation. “.) She said “To say a woman is someone else’s creation is contrary to a feminist narrative. I looked at it and I said to myself, Really? This is where you’re going to go. with that ?

Williams added of Katie Lowes, who plays her on the show: “Lowes’ concern for accuracy in describing me as I am seems limited to spelling my full name.”