Author Jerry Falade has seen his $2 million publishing deal for his debut crime novel, Call Me, I’ll Hide the Body, collapse following allegations that artificial intelligence was used in the writing process. Despite the book receiving significant interest and a massive offer from Macmillan’s Minotaur imprint, his agents withdrew the manuscript, stating they could no longer confirm how the project was developed.
Marc Gerald, Falade’s US agent at Europa Content, noted that while the book was initially received as a masterpiece, internal doubts about its origins grew during the submission phase. Although the agency previously trusted Falade’s claims that he avoided AI tools, the firm decided to end their professional relationship after a meeting on July 29 revealed inconsistencies in the author’s narrative.
Falade has categorically denied using AI and argued that the publishing industry is unfairly targeting Black authors. He pointed out that three Black writers have faced similar contract cancellations this year due to unsubstantiated AI claims. He characterized these actions as a biased assumption that exceptional work by Black authors must be machine-generated, while white authors who openly utilize AI face little to no professional repercussions.
Furthermore, Falade questioned the validity of AI detection methods and pointed to the fact that his work successfully passed through multiple rounds of professional editing and acquisitions before the controversy erupted. As the literary world debates the impact of generative tools, this case highlights the increasing pressure on publishers to verify the authorship of the manuscripts they acquire.