Kennedy Cole: UNCW alumni, author with a six-figure, two-book deal with the Penguin Random House Publishing, now with a film agent.
After graduating with her Bachelor of Fine Arts in creative writing in Fall 2024 and signing with her agent, Cole went on to submit her manuscript to editors. It was announced Jan. 31 on Publisher’s Marketplace that Cole’s book, “There Used to Be People,” was picked up by Berkley Books, whose parent house is Penguin Random House Publishing, and is set to publish in spring 2026.
“Penguin Random House is the best of the best,” Cole said, sharing her excitement. “I can’t put it into words.”
“There Used to Be People” follows the only Black detective in a 1970s Mississippi police department and his partner as they work together to solve a murder that should be a standard procedure, but turns into something far more supernatural. The book explores themes of race, queerness and the push and pull of societal change. Despite the book having many sinister and devastating elements, Cole ensured that there is a hopeful ending for her characters.
“Today, there is not a lot of hope or positivity in the media,” Cole said. “And I think it is important that people of color, queer people, people that are marginalized and affected by the DEI policies are keeping their attention on hope.”
Cole wants to use her book to shine a positive spotlight on Black police officers, queer happy endings where both live and interracial relationships between men. Cole also wrote “There Used to Be People” as a way to process her own identity as a queer Black Christian woman in the South.
“Me being a queer Christian is definitely disagreed with on both sides,” Cole shared. “Queer people disagree with me because I’m a Christian, Christians don’t like that I’m queer.”
Candice Coote, Assistant Editor with Penguin Random House Publishing met with Cole and her literary agent, Alex Brown, to discuss the novel. “[Coote] went into my characters and my themes and how excited she was when she was reading it. And then, she broke down into more developmental ideas for moving forward.” In addition to making the book more fast-paced, there was also the suggestion to turn Cole’s thriller novel into a horror story.
“A week later, my agent called me and it was about the book deal,” Cole said, describing the overwhelming process. “It was very, very quick and groundbreaking.”
After Cole’s book deal went up on Publisher’s Marketplace, two film agents reached out to her agent to read her manuscript.
“We met with Lucy [Stille], who is S.A. Cosby’s film agent, and she is just incredible. Definitely a powerhouse in the industry,” Cole stated. Drawn to her confidence and editorial style after bouncing ideas off of each other in the initial meeting, Cole announced on her Instagram on Feb. 11 that Stille is her book’s representative in the world of film.
Cole shared that her dream cast would be John Boyega as her main character, Samuel, along with an assortment of emerging actors, as long as they worked under the direction of Jordan Peele, famous American horror director.
The book deal signed with Penguin Random House has Cole on contract for two books, and she promises that book two will be nothing like “There Used to Be People.” Not confirmed with an agent or editor, she is 1500 words into another stand-alone book that she describes as a mix of “Saltburn” and “The Bear.” Her work in progress is set in a restaurant and focuses on a narcissistic protagonist bent on revenge.
Keep your eyes on Cole’s Instagram, @kennedyreadsandwrites, for more about her book, and be prepared to be both horrified and amazed in spring 2026 with the release of her debut novel celebrating Black and queer voices, “There Used to Be People.”
