Thélyson Orélien Denies AI Use in 'C'était ça ou mourir', Admits Plagiarism
On October 13, 2026, Canadian-Haitian author Thélyson Orélien responded to claims regarding his novel 'C'était ça ou mourir' (Grasset), asserting that it contained no AI-generated content. He expressed regret for having plagiarized other writers after relocating to Canada. The uproar started three weeks prior when 'Balance ton Claude' accused him of employing generative AI. Orélien labeled the allegations as 'a calumny and a heresy,' clarifying that while he utilized research tools, he firmly stated, 'This novel, I wrote it myself.' He commenced writing in autumn 2017 and finished a draft by 2019. His promotional tour was halted on September 25 due to the plagiarism claims, yet sales surpassed 65,000 copies, igniting discussions about AI's role in literature.
Key facts
- Thélyson Orélien denied that any sentence in his novel 'C'était ça ou mourir' was created by AI.
- He admitted to plagiarizing texts from recognized authors after arriving in Canada.
- The controversy began with accusations from the X account 'Balance ton Claude' three weeks before his statement.
- The Académie Goncourt removed the book from its selection, but the Renaudot prize retained it.
- Canadian publisher Les éditions du Boréal suspended the promotional tour on September 25.
- Orélien interrupted his French promotional tour on September 27 and returned to Quebec.
- The novel has sold over 65,000 copies despite the scandal.
- Initiatives to certify human-written books were announced at the Frankfurt Book Fair.
Entities
Artists
- Thélyson Orélien
- Samuel Fitoussi
Institutions
- Académie Goncourt
- Grasset
- AFP
- Balance ton Claude
- Les éditions du Boréal
- La Presse
- The Philippine Star
- Pangram
- prix Renaudot
- Frankfurt Book Fair
- X
- Les Éditions du Boréal
- RFI
- Boréal
Locations
- Canada
- Haiti
- Quebec
- France
- Paris
- Frankfurt
- Germany
- Québec
- Haïti