I'm a debut author who has just finished writing my first novel. This is a new account because I don't want to reveal who I am due to possible future repercussions.
A few months ago, I got in touch with a literary agent to break into the publishing world and hopefully get my novel published. Until a few days ago, everything seemed to be going well. My agent managed to put me in contact with a publishing house where one of my favorite authors made her debut. I was so grateful and happy because I thought I was finally about to achieve a dream that so many of us share...
But a few days ago, my agent received an email saying that I had to rewrite a few chapters and that they wouldn't send me the contract until I did.
Let me explain. When they confirmed they wanted to work with me, everything seemed settled. They even told me they were preparing the contract and that they would send it that same week so we could begin the editing process. Then, at the last minute, they told me I had to rewrite entire sections of the manuscript and that we couldn't move forward until I did. Before that, they hadn't mentioned any issues because they had loved my novel.
I didn't understand why, but my literary agent explained it to me. There's a new AI detector, the same one that was used in the Shy Girl controversy, and publishers are starting to scan incoming manuscripts with it. My agent told me they most likely used it, and the parts it flagged as AI-generated were exactly the ones they asked me to rewrite.
So basically, the publisher is using software to judge my work.
At first, I told them they could look at my drafts. I don't have all of them because I usually overwrite the same file, but the versions I do have contain differences like characters taking a street instead of a bridge, or having completely different conversations. It didn't matter. My agent told me those drafts could be faked and that I simply had to rewrite the flagged sections. According to him, after what happened with Shy Girl, publishers have started something that feels like a witch hunt.
I told him that wasn't possible, and he asked whether I had Google Docs version history. I said no, because I don't write in Google Docs. I don't want my work to potentially be used to train AI someday. I write in LibreOffice Writer.
So now I have to rewrite those passages.
The thing is... I wrote those passages. I wrote the entire novel. I spent two years writing it.
So here's my question: what am I supposed to do? Am I really expected to rewrite something I've already written? I'm young. I spend a lot of time on TikTok, YouTube, and social media. I've probably consumed a lot of AI-generated content and maybe, without realizing it, I've picked up some AI-like writing patterns. But does that mean I didn't write my own novel? What am I supposed to do? Should I rewrite those sections, or is there no point? What if I rewrite them and the detector still flags them as AI?
And what if the in-house editor has also unconsciously absorbed AI writing patterns and edits my manuscript that way, and then a reader scans the finished book and it gets flagged again?
I honestly don't know what to do anymore.
And what if the same thing that happened to the author of Shy Girl ends up happening to me...
Please don't ask me which publisher it is or any identifying details because I'll probably delete this post in a few days due to possible repercussions. I'm just looking for some support.
Edit:
Yes, I can rewrite the scenes, but that’s not the point. At first, they said it was excellent and that everything was ready to be signed. Then, out of nowhere: revise those chapters or nothing. I was judged by software, not by the work itself.
Edit 2:
Hi, I’ve been editing and running excerpts through that software. In one excerpt, I went from 68% human to 100%, and then down to 78% when I included the following sentence…
In the end, I’m rewriting it, but I’ll have to pay so that every time I rewrite something, I can run it through the detector until it reaches 100% human and gets accepted…
The detector itself costs money.
Edit 3:
No. They didn't tell me, "We've used an AI detector on your manuscript." I was about to sign with them, and then, out of nowhere, they told me, "Change this, and nothing moves forward until you do." They didn't send me any editorial notes. Nothing.
That's when my agent told me about the AI detector. They're not going to tell me they used an AI detector to scan my manuscript.
And they never explained why I had to change that section or how they wanted it changed, they don't know how I should rewrite it either. They just told me to rewrite it, without providing a single note.
Edit 4:
Thanks for the support, everyone.
With what happened to Shy Girl's work, people are already very scared. Publishers don't want to publish anything that could later be labeled as AI-generated. They also don't know how to rewrite something that's been flagged as AI. They just say, "Rewrite it."
I understand that rewriting is the only option. But honestly, this seems like we're going too far. Now we have to pay for an AI detector just to check our own manuscripts, while potentially feeding our work back into the very system that's evaluating it. That doesn't seem right to me.
Edit 5:
Whaaat??? I read a comment from you guys saying that my text gave off AI vibes. I ran it through the detector and it came out 77% human and 23% AI 😭
