Page 14 of Female Fantasy
About three months after I finishedA Tale of Salt Water & Secrets(orATOSASfor short), I was insatiable. I’d absorbed as much of the world of Atlantia as possible, so much so that it practically coursed through my veins and characters hadbegun appearing to me in my dreams. I’d read and reread all six books in the series, underlining and annotating, tabbing my favorite parts. (Pink for swoon-worthy moments. Blue for heart-wrenching, sad quotes. And red for passages that required one-handed reading.) I’d joined Reddit subcommunities and littered message boards with fan theories and oral histories, memorizing and cataloging every detail of the lore mentioned throughout the books and bonus chapters. I’d even ordered custom throw pillows from Etsy with fan art of Ryke’s face plastered on them in sequins.
Still, it wasn’t enough.
I was a woman obsessed. Possessed. I needed more content to feed the fangirl inside of me. The thought of waiting anothertwo yearsto read another ATOSAS book made me want to stick my head in an air fryer. How was I supposed to live through a miserable 730 days without knowing what Ryke was up to? Without confirming that he was alive and well?
That was when I found my Salty Girls.
There was a fanfic community dedicated to writing Ryke into everyday scenarios as well as expanding upon the world of the book. Want an alternate ending? The community had written many. Hungry for a Ryke POV? You could literally read the entirety of ATOSAS written in his voice, from his perspective. I was in heaven. I mean, these stories are basically novellas catering to the female gaze. In one chapter, you could find conflict, romance, and sex, written by people who had read so much EGC that they had the voice down pat. Itwas practically impossible to separate their writing from the author’s. In one story, Merriah watched Ryke compete in a competitive kelp ball game against his archnemesis before visiting him in the locker room to deliver a spicy surprise. In another, Merriah was kidnapped by a jealous sea nymph, and Ryke tore apart the ocean in order to find her before making sweet, sweet love to her in an underwater cave. The best part? All of the stories were self-insert, so the reader could pretend to be Merriah, whether that meant going grocery shopping with Ryke or fighting off underwater aliens with his Upper Shoal.
Or, you know, dry humping and stuff.
Just girlie things.
It took me a while to work up the courage to write my own fanfiction, but after a whole lot of encouragement from the community and a desire to read stories that hadn’t yet been penned, I finally caved. And thus my alter ego, StepOnMeRyke432, was born. At first, my writing was pure unadulterated shit, a smear on EGC’s good name. But with practice, I got better. I began truly nailing her voice. My first story to go viral was a thousand-page epic in which Ryke and Merriah were spies recruited during the Cold War who had to monitor Russian forces through underwater passageways. At first, I was apprehensive about posting it—was it too historical, lacking in fantastical thinking? Then the comments started trickling in. First by the hundreds. Then by the hundreds of thousands. They were overwhelmingly enthusiastic. Everyone wanted more, and I began to pump chapters outfaster. I was elated. The internetlovedme. Nobody knew that StepOnMeRyke432 spent her days writing copy for prescription eczema cream and her evenings going on lackluster dates with man-children.
But I’m between chapters right now. My readers know my posting schedule. There’s no reason for anyone to be pinging me or for the message boards to be active.
Something must be wrong.
Swallowing down the bitter taste of an oncoming panic attack, I click into the conversation and am instantly greeted by links and911!!!!messages written in all caps.
MERderMe71:JOONIE!!!! Have u been hit by a bus?
LilMinnow69:If she has, dibs on her special edition Ryke & Merriah collectible dust jackets
SoManyQueefs:Seriously WRU!!! Ur missing EVERYTHING!!!
I giggle at the frantic DMs from my virtual friends—Angel, Roya, and Kalli, all of whom I would I give a kidney to in a heartbeat despite the fact that we’ve never met in real life. Then I follow the URL down the rabbit hole, which is how I come face-to-face with my hero, the woman who changed my life forever, the legendary Ms. Evelyn G. Carter.
She’s giving a live-streamed interview.
But why?
I check my calendar.
According to my calculations, it isn’t the anniversary of therelease date of any of the books, nor is it the birthday of any of the characters. EGC isn’t scheduled to give an interview until next June, six months from the release date of the next ATOSAS book.
My heart races.
Could she be releasing a surprise special edition cover for her fans?
Perhaps an unscheduled novella?
The possibilities are endless.
Face flushing, I put aside all of my responsibilities and crank the volume up to ten before taking out my sketch pad and preparing to take diligent notes.
“As many of you have most likely guessed, we’re gathered here for a very special Q and A,” she begins. “There are twenty-six letters in the series title. And if you divide twenty-six by six, since there are six books, you get four point three. Today’s date is April third.”
I curse, chastising myself for not paying closer attention. She’s been posting Easter eggs all over her social channels. I should have gotten the letters thing, goddammit!
“As a treat for eagle-eyed readers, I’ve decided to answer the first ten questions submitted in the chat forum below.”
All at once, a million questions flood my head like the basement of a beach house. I shut my eyes and try to focus on one but find the task impossible. Now that I have the opportunity to ask any question of the woman who has permanently altered my outlook on love, I can’t possibly pick.
“Done,” EGC announces. “The portal is now closed.”
“Fuck my fucking life!” I shout out to no one in particular. “Get it together, Joonie! You’re better than this!”
