Torri “T.J.” Newman ’06 signed a two-book deal with Simon & Schuster’s Avid Reader Press in February 2021, and her debut novel Falling will be released July 2021. A former flight attendant, T.J. came up with the idea for Falling on a cross country red-eye flight. The thriller takes place on a crowded flight from Los Angeles to New York, during which the pilot learns his family has been kidnapped and he must crash the plane to save them, all while the flight’s passengers remain unaware of the drama unfolding in the cockpit.

A week after the announcement of her book deal, Universal Pictures won a bidding war for the screen rights for Falling. T.J., who has since left her job as a flight attendant, has already begun work on her second novel. Falling is widely available.