The use of AI within the publishing industry has been a growing concern for the past number of years. Author’s works are being plagiarised and used without permission to feed AI learning models, editors’ jobs are at risk due to advancements in AI editing technologies and now there has been widespread speculation on whether or not authors are writing their own books. 

Though AI in the creative field may be a taboo topic it isn’t at all an uncommonly used tool. In a survey by BookBub it was revealed that “45%” (Robertson, 2025) of the 1,200 authors surveyed use AI to help develop, write and/or edit their work. However, this issue is being revisited following the suspected use of AI in a highly anticipated new release, Shy Girl by Mia Ballard. 

The Rise and Fall of Shy Girl by Mia Ballard

Shy Girl, a psychological horror novel, was originally self-published by the author Mia Ballard in February of 2025. After performing well in the market Hachette decided to acquire and publish the novel. It was released in the UK in late 2025 and was set to be released in the US in March of 2026. Though the book initially performed well in the UK it has since been pulled from the market over reader concerns that the novel was written with the use of AI. Hachette has spoken to The Bookseller saying its choice to pull the book from publication is due to its commitment to “protecting original creative expression and storytelling” (Brown, 2026).

It should be noted that the novel was already getting AI allegations before it was acquired by Hachette with many issues surrounding the formatting and editing in the original self-published version. A YouTube video entitled “I’m pretty sure this book is ai slop” takes an in depth look at the original version and speculates on the use of AI within the novel. That video has amassed over 1.4m views and has partially been responsible for the ‘cancellation’ of the novel. With these issues being present in the original version it calls into question whether Hachette knew of the allegations surrounding the novel and if not, how they were unable to pick up on the AI usage when preparing the book for publication. 

With Hachette, one of the big five publishers, releasing a book that has allegedly been written with the aid of generative AI many consumers and industry professionals are voicing their concerns about the future of publishing.

As noted in the survey above, AI is a commonly used tool within the writing and editing of novels and is likely to become more prevalent within the industry. Natalie Wall who covered this scandal argues that “we should cultivate an openness around the use of AI in writing by lobbying publishers to provide this information openly and clearly” (2026).  Some writers are pushing back against the use of AI with The Society of Authors launching a ‘human authored’ campaign. Authors will continue to use AI as a tool for their creative works, therefore the publishing industry needs to regulate what level of AI usage is appropriate and if they will begin to label books as being written or edited using AI tools. 

This latest issue puts forth the question, will publishers crack down on the use of AI or should readers prepare for a market filled with AI written novels?

References List

Brown, Lauren. (2026). ‘Hachette Pulls Initially Self-Published Horror Novel over Suspected AI Use.’ The Bookseller. Available at: www.thebookseller.com/news/hachette-pulls-initially-self-published-horror-novel-over-suspected-ai-use .[ Accessed 2nd Apr. 2026].

Frankie’s Shelf. (2026). I’m pretty sure this book is aimed at slop. YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GbeKTa5xhZo&t=3816s. [Accessed 31st Mar. 2026].

Robertson, C. (2025). ‘How Authors are Thinking About AI (Survey of 1,200+ Authors’. BookBub Partners Blog. Available at: https://insights.bookbub.com/how-authors-are-thinking-about-ai-survey/. [Accessed 3rd Apr. 2026]. 

Wall, N. (2026). ‘A popular novel has been pulled over AI concerns. Here’s what happened’. The Independent. Available at: https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/news/ai-book-shy-girl-mia-ballard-b2950995.html. [Accessed 4th Apr. 2026]. 

Cover Image:

Ballard, M. (2025). Shy Girl. [Book Cover].

Hachette. (2025). Shy Girl [Book Cover]. Published in the UK by Hachette.

Image: Hachette. (2025). Shy Girl [Book Cover]. Published in the UK by Hachette.

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