Back row: David Malki ! & Ryan North. Seated: Bill Chernega & John Chernega (“MEAT EATER”), Rebecca Black (“TETRAPOD”), Rhiannon Kelly (“NATURAL CAUSES”)

So great to meet everyone in San Diego last week! We SOLD OUT of Grand Central’s copies of TIHYD at the show, and we also ran out of paper for the actual MOD that was there issuing death predictions. Not pictured above are the artists who were there — Lissa Treiman, Claire Hummel, Tony Cliff, Aaron Diaz, Tyson Hesse, Carly Monardo, Chris Schweizer, Meredith Gran, and Greg Ruth, just to name a few — and I hope that somebody got ALL THE SIGNATURES POSSIBLE.

And thank you to everyone who’s been picking up the new book at your local stores or online! We’ve been hearing nothing but good things from everyone who’s cracked it open so far. It’s exactly the book we’d hoped to make and we’re so happy that everyone likes it as much as we do.

THIS MONDAY IN TORONTO:

We’ll be holding an OFFICIAL LAUNCH EVENT at The Beguiling! It’s going to be a combination Choose Your Own Book Launch in cooperation with Ryan’s choosable-path Hamlet adaptation, TO BE OR NOT TO BE.

It will be two venues side-by-side featuring two signings for two different books! Locked in BITTER COMPETITION.

There will also be lots of events (Shakespearean rap battles! MOD Draw & Guess! Dramatic readings! LAUGHTER??) and it is sure to be a good time. If you already have a copy of either book, bring ’em out to be signed! If you don’t, come pick ’em up at the event!

WHERE AND WHEN:

• The Beguiling, 601 Markham Street, Toronto (in Mirvish Village, beside Honest Ed’s)
• Monday, July 29th, 7pm-10pm

More info here! Facebook invite here!

AFTER THAT: I’ll be at Gen Con in Indianapolis and PAX Prime in Seattle (both in August), and the Small Press Expo in Bethesda MD (September). See you…SOMEWHERE???

We are TWO WEEKS away from the release of THIS IS HOW YOU DIE!

Real quick — did you know — if you pre-order the book via Amazon, it will arrive ON the day of its release? Obviously we want everyone to support their local mom and pop bookstores (and other fine retailers), but if Amazon is your preferred method of bookbuying, just know there will be no lag time getting the book into your hands. Technology and the postal service will WORK TOGETHER to make you happy.

SO PRETTY.

Now onto some fun stuff!

TIHYD x 826LA COMEDY NIGHT!

A few weeks ago we had a sort of “pre-release party” for the new book here in Los Angeles at 826LA. It was a festive night with comedy, friends, a giant check, and a lot of Mexican beer — we edited together the highlights for you to check out below:

SAN DIEGO COMIC-CON!

Are you going to Comic-Con?! Come see us! THIS IS HOW YOU DIE will have its official premiere at the show, and Ryan and David will be doing an official signing at the Hachette booth (#1116) on Friday July 19th from 11-12.

We’ll both be stationed at the TopatoCo booth (#1229) any other time during the convention as well. But here’s what’s extra rad — so many of the artists who contributed to this book will also be there, we’ll be handing out cool postcards with everyone’s whereabouts so you can have your own signature scavenger hunt!

THIS IS HOW YOU DIE SHORT FILM!

Heads up — on THIS MONDAY, July 8th, we are premiering a hilarious and macabre short film on the aptly-titled website Funny Or Die.

It was directed by our friend Michael Mohan, who you might have heard of from a film called SAVE THE DATE, which was co-written & featured artwork by MOD Vol.1 illustrator Jeffrey Brown. We really put a lot of energy into making it great, and are excited to share it with you next week! In the meanwhile, here’s a few stills to WHET YOUR APPETITE:

TWO MORE WEEKS! TWO MORE WEEKS! TWO MORE WEEKS! TWO MORE WEEKS! (did you pre-order the book yet)! TWO MORE WEEKS! TWO MORE WEEKS! TWO MORE WEEKS!

Oh man — This is How You Die (our upcoming Machine of Death sequel) was just named one of Publishers Weekly‘s Best Summer Books 2013! Hooray!!

It is now less than TWO MONTHS until the book is released. It’ll be hitting bookstores across the U.S. and Canada on July 16, and to get it the very day it’s released, you can now pre-order it on Amazon or the retailer of your choice.

But before that, we’re throwing another party! On Sunday, June 2, you’re invited to the This is How You Die x 826LA Comedy Night, featuring:

• MOD-themed improv comedy from iO West’s The Lusty Horde!

From moment one of their opening chant, The Lusty Horde evoke the soul of sci-fi fantasy films once confined to late night television and the straight-to-VHS bin. Through the mysterious powers of the Horde, these long-lost worlds are released to wreak havoc in a fully improvised rampage of droids, ice beasts, and all manner of witches, warlocks, and witchlocks. Sound the Horn of Balfor, release the Drakon, and make calm the Robeasts. So sayeth the Elders. So sayeth the Lusty Horde.

• Machine of Death Draw & Guess with celebrity cartoonists Kevin McShane & Keith Knight!

• Music from Zach Sherwin, AKA MC Mr Napkins!

Zach Sherwin is a comedian and rapper based in Los Angeles. His music videos have been viewed millions of time online, his album is available on Comedy Central Records, and he has appeared on MTV, E!, and VH1, as well as at the prestigious Just For Laughs Comedy Festival in Montreal. He is also a staff writer for the blockbuster web series “Epic Rap Battles of History,” which has racked up well over a billion views, and he frequently performs in the videos, having portrayed such characters as Albert Einstein, Sherlock Holmes, and Doc Brown.

• A demo of the upcoming MOD card game!

• All hosted by our pal Jordan Morris!

Why are we doing a pre-launch party when our book won’t even be out yet?

Two reasons:

• MaxFunCon is that weekend, and if you’re going to that, we’d love to have you at our show too! (Ours is the evening after MaxFunCon ends.)

• This is a benefit show for our good friends at 826LA! We’ll be holding it at their Mar Vista Time Travel Mart, and all proceeds will go to support their nonprofit writing & tutoring center for kids. We’ll also be making a formal presentation of a comically oversized $11,000 check as part of our Kickstarter partnership, and we’ll have a door prize/raffle for some cool MOD and Time Travel Mart prizes too!

IN SUMMARY

WHEN: Sunday, June 2, starting at 8pm.
WHERE: Mar Vista Time Travel Mart, 12515 Venice Blvd, Los Angeles 90066. Ample street parking.
HOW MUCH: $10 at the door; includes a raffle ticket and free bonus MOD game cards. Also a death prediction test, if you want it!
THERE WILL ALSO BE: Drinks, merch, and additional raffle tickets for sale.

•• FACEBOOK INVITE for RSVP PURPOSES ••

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All proceeds from the show will benefit 826LA. Hope to see you there!

Today is the LAST DAY for our card game Kickstarter! To say it has done well is to make an absurd understatement. This game has now done, in pure power points (defined as revenue per unit over time), better than anything else we have ever done. And it’s not even over yet! You can still pledge today and get a boatload of free bonus goodies.

Yes. We will bring AN ACTUAL BOAT TO YOU. Full of bonus goodies. Including the new Machine of Death Artbook — a book filled with all the art from both books, including statements from the contributors! Free to all backers in digital form, and free in physical form to all backers over $35. We were kidding about the boat but not about this book. It’s gonna be pretty great!

But perhaps you have already pledged — or have already decided that it isn’t for you! Fine. Here are a few OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS that may be of interest.

More preview stories.

Thanks to the generosity of backers, we have released four more free preview stories from This is How You Die! (The first four previews are linked in this post.) Here are stories FIVE through EIGHT:

Preview story #5 — “TETRAPOD”, by Rebecca Black
Preview story #6 — “LAZARUS REACTOR FISSION SEQUENCE”, by Tom Francis
Preview story #7 — “BLUE FEVER”, by Ada Hoffmann
Preview story #8 — “SCREAMING, CRYING, ALONE, AND AFRAID”, by Daliso Chaponda

Read them! Enjoy them! Share them! Print them out and wallpaper your room. It’s your day.

Save the date!

On SUNDAY, JUNE 2, we will be throwing a party (in the tradition of our Talent Show and Variety Show) at 826LA’s Mar Vista Time Travel Mart in West Los Angeles! 826LA is a nonprofit writing & tutoring center for kids in elementary, middle, and high school, primarily serving underprivileged communities. Since MOD wouldn’t be here without writers, we want to give back in a small way and hold a benefit event for the 826LA programs — all of which are free for the kids involved, and which rely on donations.

More information about this event will be forthcoming! In the meantime, if you’re in the Los Angeles area, SAVE THE DATE for JUNE 2.

And check out our Kickstarter on its last day! If you’re bored, read all the updates. They’re pretty interesting.

Thanks to those of you who’ve pledged! We’re very excited about the game and hope you are too!!

At our Super-Stupendous Magic & Variety Show last fall, musician Lucciana Costa performed her original song “Sooner Than You Think”. Enjoy!

[Link to YouTube video]