Hey, everybody. Don't ask me why I am writing this at almost 3 AM. Because if you do, I'll have to admit that I am sitting up, fixating on the fact that our next book comes out in only THREE days and we have an unbelievable amount of work to get done still!

Which is not unexpected. Launch weeks are always intense. Sure, all of the busy work is done. The book is written, it's been through multiple rounds of extensive editing, the cover has been retouched to perfection and every retailer that plans on stocking the book at this point has not only placed their orders already, but have already received them!

All of the things that you typically think of when it comes to a book launch have been checked off my list. But now it's time to actually launch the book and it is my job to make sure that I make that everyone's problem. Which is why I am sitting up in my bed, writing a blog instead of heading to sleep.

In 2024, I reached out to Falencia and asked her to give me access to an affiliate link for her debut book (spoiler, it was Devil of the Deep) so that I could start selling it for her on the TikTok shop. She happily agreed and I got to work right away. In a matter of a few days, I had sold so many copies that she had to place a new order from her distributor. And that became our pattern. Whenever Falencia was back in stock, she would reach out and let me know and I would go post about it on my page, and typically within a few hours, she was sold out again.

I share that because it is two years later and we are three days from re-releasing this project together through an imprint that I started specifically to champion stories exactly like this one. And I couldn't feel more pressure. Not in a bad way.

I am passionate about every project we work on, but I am especially passionate about Devil of the Deep because of what it represents. It not only checks every one of my boxes, but it is a story that I have been fighting to champion for years now. And I NEED to see it through.

I went to Falencia and asked her to pull it down from the market so that we could help her to put it back out bigger and better than ever. She went months without the royalties she was used to in the hope that, with our resources, she could take her career to the next level. And I need that to be worth it for her. I need this book to explode the way it deserves to and to put Falencia on the map. For me, this isn't just about selling books. It is about setting our authors up for long, successful careers. Whether those careers are with us or not.

I say all of that to say... I would deeply appreciate it if this community showed up and helped to make sure the last three days of this pre-order campaign are as big as humanly possible.

It may not feel significant that sales take place before launch, but it is. There is a reason all of your favorite authors promote the hell out of their pre-orders. There's a reason they offer early signed copies and character art and cute custom pins, etc. It is because pre-orders play a HUGE role in a book's early success. And that is especially true for Black authors.

Devil of the Deep is not a risk. We know that. It is a mermaid, pirate story. But it is also Black. It is also Queer. It is also trans. It is also filled with marginalized people, disability, and identities that mainstream publishers actively resist investing in. Despite the huge audience that is looking for stories exactly like this, the narrative is that stories like this cannot be a success.

A successful pre-order campaign is a strong sign to bookstores and bookish businesses that that narrative is false. Which is about more than just this book. The more books like this that succeed, the more the industry has to take stories like this seriously.

I am a firm believer that community is how we push past systemic barriers. That is the entire reason we have built this community. So that we can use our collective voices to force the industry to take authors in the margins seriously.

Falencia sits at so many intersections of marginalization that, for me, she is the picture of what we are fighting for here. And this beautiful story she has written reflects exactly that. It is filled with conversations about systemic power, religious extremism, disability and so much more. This is EXACTLY the type of story I started Left Unread to champion. It is the kind of story this entire industry has spent decades convincing people they shouldn't invest in. So when I brought it to this community and asked you to invest in it, I knew it would be an uphill battle. I knew we would be pushing past industry biases and reader prejudices. When Falencia and I sat down and asked for a new cover, centering a Black woman in a story all about queer people in a Haitian-inspired world, we knew that we were doing something bold. Something that our current climate would be very much against... and we did it anyway.

And I am not saying any of this to convince you of anything. I don't need to. I know this is exactly why you are here too. Stories like Devil of the Deep. Authors like Falencia Jean-Francois. This is your heart too. It is why you are in this community, and it is why I have no doubt that you will show up over the next three days and hopefully far beyond. I am sharing all of this because I want you to know just how special this story is to me. I am emotional just thinking about it. In just three days, all of this hard work starts to pay off.

I need you to hear me... Devil of the Deep is one of the best fantasies I have ever read. I have believed in this story with all of my heart since the very first time I opened it up years ago. And I have always thought it deserved more praise and shelf space than it was getting. And now, after years of fighting for it at Falencia's side, it is on bookstore shelves all around the country, waiting to be picked up by hungry readers on Tuesday. Finally, it is being talked about in magazines and newspapers. Finally, it is positioned to be submitted for awards. Finally, it is going to be flooding every bookish space, celebrated by huge creators, chosen for bookclubs all over the country. THIS is what we are doing here at Left Unread.

We are taking stories that this industry is DESIGNED to ignore and shoving them down their throats.

So please, join me in going as hard as humanly possible for Falencia over these next few days. I want to see this book being talked about on every social media platform non-stop until launch. Engage on Goodreads, TikTok, Instagram, Threads, Youtube, even Facebook (yuck). And tag us please! Tag me, Falencia AND Bindery so that we can boost all of this content. If it's on Instagram, add us as collaborators! I will accept as many as possible!

I am being so serious. I want us to take over every bookish space and force everyone to think about only Devil of the Deep until after it launches.

Our goal was to sell at least a thousand copies before launch. And I'm going to be honest with you. We have not hit it. But we can. I sold almost that many copies of Cry, Voidbringer in the TikTok shop over a 48 hour period from a single video. And while I can't count on that happening every time I talk about a book, if we are flooding social media with conversations about this book, I assure you we can guarantee those kinds of results.

So please, help us do exactly that.

Here are some descriptions, resources and content ideas if you need them!

BOOK DESCRIPTIONS

Devil of the Deep is a Haitian fantasy about a mermaid, a notorious pirate and an ambitious navy captain who have to work together to take down a violent cult before they can raise their island from the sea and reshape the world in the image of their forgotten god.

Devil of the Deep is a Haitian fantasy following a young mermaid who is fleeing her home in order to escape a cult. She ends up running into a Black woman who just so happens to be one of the most notorious pirates alive and a sworn enemy of the cult she is fleeing from. Together, along with an ambitious navy captain who is questioning his allegiances, they must protect an ancient artifact in order to prevent their enemies from using it to reshape the world in the image of their forgotten God.

Things to highlight or talk about:

• Black mermaids

• All Black-cast

• Sapphic, Queer, Trans, Black and Disabled representation

• The book is having a conversation about colonialism and the way religious extremism can be a tool used to silence marginalized people and to steal their identity, culture and ancestral inheritances.

• Devil of the Deep is an open rebuke of Christian nationalism, which has not only historically been used as a tool of oppression on behalf of white supremacy, but is currently being used as such right in front of our eyes.

• The world lost its mind when Disney cast a Black woman to play Ariel. Devil of the Deep is our opportunity to rub it in. We're here. We're Black. And we deserve every ounce of magical screen/page time as everyone else.

• Queer identity being a sore topic in the Black community is directly linked to colonialism. Which is why Falencia gave us a very Black world where it isn't one. Historically, Queerness was not rejected by our ancestors. And so in the world she built, it isn't rejected by us. And that, in itself, is resistance. We do not agree with the definitions our oppressors assigned to our identities. A world that centers Blackness has to also center queerness.

Obviously, don't feel constrained to my ideas. These are just a few conversation starters I thought of on the fly. There are so many ways to have meaningful conversations about this book. So please, go create content, talk to your friends, your bookclubs, your families. Make videos for TikTok, carousels & reels for Instagram and Facebook, and drop your blogs and long form content wherever it makes sense for you. And wherever you can, tag us so we can help boost your content!

I know that if we come together, three days is PLENTY of time for us to have a massive effect on the roll-out of this book! And as a THANK YOU , I have set aside a handful of our incredible PR boxes to give out at random to people hyping up Devil of the Deep all throughout launch week!!! So make sure you are tagging me in the content you make so that you have a chance of getting one!

Oh, and don't forget, if you are in the Chicago area, PLEASE come to the launch party on Tuesday, April 7th at 7pm CST! HERE is a link to register!

Last thing... if you haven't pre-ordered your copy of Devil of the Deep, I beg you to get it now, rather than after launch. Here is a direct link where you can order your copy: https://bookshop.org/a/87137/9781967967049