Author Deesha Philyaw has a 7-figure deal for her next two books
By HILLEL ITALIE
AP National Writer
NEW YORK (AP) — Deesha Philyaw struggled to find a publisher for what became her acclaimed debut “The Secret Lives of Church Ladies.” Now the Prize-winning fiction writer has a 7-figure deal for her next two books. Mariner Books announced Thursday that it had signed up Philyaw and will publish her novel “The True Confessions of First Lady Freeman” in 2025. Mariner calls the book a “biting satire” of the Black church and “a deeply provocative” story about family, friendship and “sexual agency.” Drawing again on her experience attending church as a child, Philyaw is centering the novel around a megachurch leader.
