(Matthew Eisman/Getty Images)/Cindy Ord/Getty Images for POPSUGAR Play/Ground)
Young adult Nigerian-American author Tomi Adeyemi couldn’t have imagined that after her debut novel hit no. 1 on the New York Times bestseller list, heartthrob Michael B. Jordan would slide into her DMs.
The special message was sent after the first installment of Adeyemi’s trilogy, “Children of Blood and Bone,” hit no. 1 on The New York Times Bestseller list. And the same month it was released, Fox 2000 preemptively acquired movie rights to the story, which Deadline reported was “one of the biggest YA debut novel publishing deals ever.” The deal is worth seven figures to put the West African fantasy story on the big screen.
“The craziest thing was Michael B. Jordan DMed me congrats and I was like, ‘Thanks,’ and he responded,” Adeyemi told Pop Sugar Tuesday, June 12. “I go to speak at schools and I like to tell them what people told me: ‘You can do it.’ But then I say, ‘And Michael B. Jordan DMed me’ and they always go ‘What?!’ and this gets the students really inspired.”
When the writer sent the “Fahrenheit 451” star a photo of the PowerPoint slide she uses during school presentations, he responded in kind.
“He said ‘Wow, that’s awesome’ and I’m like ‘You replied to me’ and then I think ‘Tomi, I’m famous now.’ That’s the most pinch-me moment for sure.”
The novelist has something in common with the “Black Panther” actor too, as Pop Sugar reported her novel is heralded as “Black Panther plus magic.”
“It’s funny because this book took a long time. When I started writing, I wanted to imagine this world full of epicness and blackness and magic . . . this was years before the movie came out,” she said of the book, which follows two children of an iron-fisted king and the two siblings who have greatly suffered under him as they go on a magic-filled quest for power. “My whole goal was for something like that to exist, something like ‘Black Panther.’
Adeyemi has since tweeted about the discussion she had about virtually meeting Jordan, which delighted her followers.
my secret crowning achievement was outed today lol
that being said, i do list this as one of the potential upsides of following your dreams when I go into schools and talk to kids pic.twitter.com/aw8VWnFhQL
— TOMI (@tomi_adeyemi) June 14, 2018
“TOMI I AM SCREAMING.”
“How you did not scream MICHAEL B JORDAN SLID INTO MY DMS to the world the second it happened is a skill on its own.”
“DECEASED. I think he low key wants that role. And I will no doubt watch him do it OMGGGGGGGGG.”
“Living ur best life Tomi ❤❤❤.”
