📚 Strange metaphors and repetitive phrasing

Hachette has canceled the U.S. publication of Mia Ballard’s novel, *Shy Girl*, and will discontinue the U.K. edition due to allegations of AI use. Readers speculated that the book’s strange metaphors and repetitive phrasing indicated AI involvement. The founder and CEO of an AI detection program ran *Shy Girl* through his software, which indicated that the book was 78% AI-generated. Ballard denies using AI to write the story but says that the friend she hired to edit it did. Hachette, which asks its authors to disclose AI use, informed the New York Times of its decision. The novel took off when Ballard self-published it in early 2025, and Hachette took notice and re-released it in October in the U.K.

  • Shy Girl by Mia Ballard is the first book from a Big 5 publisher to be pulled over alleged AI use, but it almost definitely won t be the last.
  • Hachette did not comment as allegations piled up.
  • Ballard denies that she used AI to write the story but says that the friend she hired to edit it did use AI in that process.
📚 BookAddict’s Take: If you’re an author, be aware of the risks of using AI tools without fully understanding their implications — and be ready to disclose that use to your publisher.

Source: Book Riot  | 
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