Houston, I *AM* The Problem & More Reasons to Order from the Local Bookstore

Seriously, I'm going wild with all these pre-order incentives

No one has ever accused me of being chill.

And when it comes to my books, which I genuinely want to just throw at people and beg them to read so we can be nerdy together, I have remarkably less chill than normal. And I just love the idea of celebrating art with art, and I think marketing stuff is fun, and…well…

Maybe I’ve gone a little overboard with the pre-order goodies. But also? They’re fun!

So, sit back, relax, and let me regale you with all the fun art and stickers and stuff that you’re going to get with just a simple pre-order! This newsletter got a little long—yes, there really are that many freebies to tell you about—so if you’re reading via email, click through to see the full thing and get sneak peeks of my picture book and links to a free chapter sampler!

First: If you can pre-order, please do so through a local indie bookstore.

I don’t need to tell you (again) why Jeff Bezos and Amazon don’t need your money, how they’re bad for the economy and treat workers unfairly and undercut small businesses (although if you want to read about it, check it out here).

Instead, I want to remind you of why local indie bookstores are so good:

• they support the community—not just through the fact that they pay local taxes (something Amazon doesn’t do), but also because they provide outreach programs in literacy with youth, author events, and much more

• they stand for free speech—in a world rife with people who want to censor books and ban ideas, literature (and people) different from them, indie bookstores, along with libraries, are at the forefront of fighting back against these misguided and harmful people

• they support the arts—indie bookstores help curate the literary world, promoting books that would otherwise be ignored, particularly in under-represented voices

So, in order to promote my own local indie bookstore, Malaprops in beautiful Asheville, NC, I’m going to offer a unique pre-order incentive. This exlcusively licensed sticker is going out to the first 100 people who order Full Speed to a Crash Landing from Malaprops.

When I saw this image made by artist Alison Evans, I instantly bought both a sticker and a t-shirt with the design. I mean, come on, it’s hilarious and beautiful! (You can order your own via Etsy or RedBubble!)

But also? That famous line (which is actually not a direct quote from the Apollo event) is a plot point for the trilogy. This will become more clear in the sequel books, but let’s just say that Ada would have really liked this picture of me from NASA’s Houston center:

This was all the way back in 2013, and clearly this red telephone left an impact on me! Also holy crap, it’s been more than a decade, what.

So, the phrase of Houston, I have a problem is already pretty relevant to the books—really relevant by the end of the trilogy!—plus the twist on that wording that Alison did with her art is 100000000% perfect for the main character of the book!

Of course, I know that not everyone can order from a local indie, and I also understand that not everyone can order at all—so the following incentives are going to be made available to anyone who orders from anywhere or anyone who requests the book from their local library! And yes, this includes international!

First up! A stunning art print by artist Marina Charalambides!

I mean, how beuaitful is this?! Marina was able to capture Ada’s stubborn nature and the way Rian is utterly intrigued by her with just simple expressions. Plus! The tension! The pining! The longing!!

EXCEPT IT GETS EVEN BETTER!

Because I love this art so much and because I want to make it even more amazing for you, I’m getting these printed with super fancy, beautiful gold holographic foil. All the stars and swoops in the image above are going to be so shiny!

PLUS THERE’S MORE!!!

All books need bookmarks, right? And luckily for me, I happen to be friends with Erin Bowman, who is a brilliant author and graphic designer. I reached out to her with an off-the-wall idea, and she made it even more amazing than I could have hoped for. (You can follow Erin on Insta @heyerin or online at embowman.com.)

Behold, the bookmark of my dreams:

Should we have dreams about bookmarks? Idc, I do. And this one? It’s the only one I’ve got eyes on these days. See, not only is it shaped like a freaking rocket ship, which is awesome to start with, but that black print?

Yeah, it’s coming in a space-themed black patterned holographic that is also gonna be shiny. Also, this is not just getting printed on cardstock. The paper feels like velvet, and it’s magic.

OMG THERE IS STILL MORE COMING TO YOU

If you follow me on Instagram, you may have noticed that I did a poll, asking people for their favorite version of a sticker that showcased the galactic government logo, which features prominently in the book. The results are in!

We’re going holographic!

So, ordering from Malaprops means you get:

• Signed and personalized copy of the book!

• Exclusive “Houston, I am the problem” sticker by artist Alison Evans for the first 100 orders

All Malaprops orders will ALSO get the following, but these will also be made available to orders from anywhere (and requests from your local library count!):

• Beautiful foil-enhanced art print by Marina Charalambides

• Stunning rocket-shaped bookmark enhanced with glittering black print designed by Erin Bowman

• Bonus holographic stickers of the galaxy (while supplies last; these are limited)

• Signed bookplate (only available to Malaprops orders upon request, since you’re already getting a signed book)

If you are ordering from Malaprops, you don’t need to do anything but order—every order will contain goodies. If you order from anywhere else, please fill out this form.

And hey! Y’all know that I’m also launching The Fate of Magic next, and just know: I am also going to be doing some exclusive pre-order goodies for that as well! I just didn’t want everyone to think I’d forgotten my romantasy fans in my excitement for spacemance! <3 (PS: I also already have some epic art planned for you for the sequel to Full Speed.) (I should not be left alone to commission art, I will attempt to do it all.)

FULL SPEED Selected as a Top 25 Summer Reading Pick!

Rachel Conrad at Polygon recently wrote up a list of the top 25 must-read books of summer, and selected Full Speed to a Crash Landing for the list!

I love the write up Rachel did, which includes this gem:

Having dabbled in the literary side of Star Wars for some time, Beth Revis is no stranger to science fiction, outer space, impossible heists, or romantic tension. Her new novella, Full Speed to a Crash Landing (the first in a trilogy) has all that going for it and more.

Additionally, DAW Books is hosting a conversation about writing, publishing, and sci fi, and it’s available for everyone! You can sign up for the Zoom meeting here or read more information on it here.

Start Reading Darkness Fills the Void for free, now!

My latest serial novel, Darkness Fills the Void, has been avilable to Patreon readers since the start of the year, but you can now read the first ten episodes for free on Kindle Vella!

Darkness Fills the Void is about toxic friendships, lies on social media, and evil poltergeists that fill up our empty thoughts in an insatiable attempt to feed off negative emotions, as one does. It’s a serial novel, which means it publishes one chapter at a time. While this may seem like a new format, serialized novels have a rooted place in literary history (Dickens, most famously), and it makes for an easier read. Casually pick up a chapter each week and add an extra novel to your yearly reading goals!

One of the key thing I wanted to do with this book is explore what’s real and what’s not. I’m excited to announce I’m working with graphic designer (and fellow author) Jessica Khoury to make up “evidence” in the book—you don’t just read about the things the characters see, you get to actually see it and make the choices for yourself on whether their interpretation is accurate! These images are rolling out exclusively on Patreon, and I’ve seen early iterations of Jess’s brilliance—I’m so excited to share them with you!

SNEAK PEEK of Someone Who Loves You!

In case you missed it, Gizmodo and io9 had the exclusive reveal of several of the images of my upcoming picture book!

In developing this book, it was important to me to find balance. (Hey, if Anakin was prophesied to bring balance to the Force, I can at least bring balance to a picture book!) I wanted to blend Han’s idea of love with Leia’s—so the book is from both of their points of view, with Han’s words coming in straight text, and Leia’s coming in cursive. I wanted to blend hope with reality—love isn’t always roses! I wanted to blend past, present, and future—so there are flashbacks of the past, hints about the future, and joy in the moment. And I wanted to blend sweet serious with funny comedy—which is why the page below is one of my favorites!

A pain in the what, indeed! I love the way artist Sophie Li captured Han’s expression as Leia pointed a loaded Ewok butt at him!

This is a visual gag I had almost from the start, and I’m thrilled with the way it shifted from idea to finished page! That has been the most fascinating part of this whole process: watching an idea become real.

You can see the whole collection of sample pages here and you can pre-order the picture book now from any retailer, including Malaprops for signed copies!

What I’m Working on Now

• YA Fantasy: Done!

• Chaotic Orbits series: Done!

• Adult fantasy proposal: Real!

• Darkness Fills the Void: YA horror novel set in Western North Carolina. Currently only available to Patreons.

• House of Hex: Currently in copy edits

• Side gigs!

  • Weekly posts and videos about writing at Patreon

  • SNHU as an online adjunct in the MFA writing program

  • Accepting critique and coaching jobs with Wordsmith Workshops—in addition to doing Word Lab!

  • Actively doing in-person school, library, and book fair events—book me for panels, signings, and workshops for both adults and teens on writing! If you’d like to get an idea of some of the programming I do, I describe it a bit here.