Seven-figure book deal canceled; Hugh Howey says it’s the “end of an era”

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A debut author had his $2+ million book deal canceled because his agents came to believe his manuscript was substantially AI assisted.

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Michael Goldberg

How would an author show they didn’t use AI? Feels a bit like assumed “guilty” or “suspect” at the start

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Jane Friedman

There is no industry-recognized means of proving human authorship. Brian Murray, CEO of Harpercollins, recently said, “This is an industry built on trust and relationships,” he said, “and we need to rely on those qualities” to find a way to ensure books have been written without AI. He doesn’t believe there is a technical solution to finding AI-aided books. He suggested authors may need to keep records of their writing process, but I have yet to find any agent or publisher reviewing such records or knowing how to authenticate them. More: https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/digital/copyright/article/101002-brian-murray-calls-for-industrywide-solutions-to-issues-around-ai-authorship.html

Agents are telling me that they suspect about 50% of their submissions are now heavily AI assisted but few authors disclose such use.

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