How an AI Accusation Ruined a Black Author’s $2M Book Deal

A Nigerian-born author landed a multimillion-dollar book deal after his debut crime novel impressed the publishing world and had book lovers eager for its release. But before the ink could dry, his own reps abruptly axed the deal, claiming they couldn’t verify whether AI helped him write the manuscript. Now, the writer is speaking out, raising alarms that these unproven accusations could mark the start of a disturbing pattern weaponized against talented Black writers.

Jerry Falade‘s debut novel, “Call Me, I’ll Hide the Body,” was scheduled for publication in 2028 after it triggered a massive 14-way auction among major U.S. publishing houses and six-figure bids in the U.K., according to The Guardian. The manuscript was so captivating that Hollywood studios were vying for film and TV adaptation rights before the manuscript was even published, Deadline reported.

Marc Gerald of Europa Content—a boutique Brooklyn literary management firm—told The Bookseller that the novel was “stunningly good,” adding that it “appeals to absolutely everyone” and was something “everyone fell in love with” after he first read the book in June.

“Jerry Falade produced an incredible manuscript that dazzled us and the top publishing professionals around the world,” Falade’s agents reportedly wrote in an email sent to publishers, The Guardian reported.

Minotaur Books, owned by Macmillan US, secured the manuscript for $2 million, one of the largest debut deals of the year—until, halfway through the submission process, AI concerns were raised by an editor.

Europa refused to use AI-detection software to prove the allegations because, according to Gerald, Falade was “clear and credible” in his explanation. But that changed after a July 29 meeting when “aspects of [Falade’s] story changed.” Gerald told The Guardian they could no longer “authenticate how the manuscript fully evolved from origin to completion,” and cited the “need to have total faith.” Without that, Europa withdrew the book and dropped Falade altogether.

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“We feel terrible for putting this into the universe and the firestorm it has caused,” Gerald said. However, Falade noted how his novel had “passed through first readers, second readers, editors, and acquisitions teams at numerous publishing houses” in a statement to The Guardian. He added that if during the process “the manuscript had shown genuine signs of being generated by AI, it is difficult to believe that every one of those experienced professionals would have failed to notice.”

Now, he’s breaking his silence about the abrupt cancellation, noting that other Black authors have received similar fates that all seem too coincidental.

“Three Black authors received major publishing deals this year, and all three later had deals cancelled or disrupted following suspicions about AI. There seems to be a troubling assumption that when a Black writer produces work that attracts significant attention, the work could not possibly be their own. Meanwhile, there are popular white writers who have publicly mentioned using AI for their writing processes and they’re still doing fine,” Falade told The Guardian.

Although Falade did not specify which Black authors were dropped, Hachette Book Group, one of the largest publishers in the United States, pulled the U.S. release of Mia Ballard’s horror novel, “Shy Girl,” after rumors circulated online that she used AI, The New York Times reported.

After The New York Times approached Hachette, citing evidence that the book appeared to have used AI, the company swiftly removed the book from Amazon and discontinued it in the U.K. Ballard said an acquaintance she had hired to work on an earlier self-published version incorporated AI tools in comments to The New York Times.

“This controversy has changed my life in many ways, and my mental health is at an all-time low, and my name is ruined for something I didn’t even personally do,” she wrote in an email, per The Guardian.

In February, Simon & Schuster paid seven figures to secure the publishing rights to H.M. Wolfe’s “Daggermouth,” The Atlantic reported. The dystopian romance novel—which topped Amazon’s science-fiction romance genre book chart and spent months on USA Today’s bestseller list—was identified as containing “substantial AI text.”

Wolfe denied the allegations in a statement her lawyer sent to The Atlantic, noting, “I have been outspoken about my opposition to generative AI and what it’s doing to writers, artists, and the creative community. I don’t believe it belongs in the writing process.”

While Wolfe doubled down on her anti-AI stance, Jerry Falade called out circulating rumors and unreliable programs. “Within six hours, I had been dropped by my agency, deals were paused, and press releases were being issued,” he told The Guardian, noting how AI-detection tools “are widely known to produce false positives.”

The Root reached out to Europa Content’s Marc Gerald for comment, and has not heard back.