MAY WE PLEASE THE SEA
The version of MAY WE PLEASE THE SEA living on this page is the story that got me two literary agents (the ones behind Ender’s Game and The Hunger Games!). Outside of them and a handful of beta readers, no one has ever read it.
Until now. . .
MAY WE PLEASE THE SEA
Silo meets The 100 underwater
For as long as her village has sacrificed to the sea gods, the ocean has provided. But when the food supply suddenly collapses and her island plunges into famine, Easla, a skilled spearfisher, braves the forbidden waters beyond the atoll in an attempt to bargain with the gods.
What she finds instead is a high-tech underwater research station—proof her people were never the last humans alive. But these survivors aren’t gods, and they aren’t coming to the rescue. With their own systems slowly failing, the station’s leader sees Easla’s talent in the water as the perfect weapon for a desperate, last-ditch war.
But as Easla gets pulled into this new agenda and begins uncovering lies above and below the surface, she must decide how far she’ll go to survive in this dying world—or if she can find a better way to live, before all the fighting destroys what little of humanity remains.
I studied Computer Science & Economics at Harvard, worked in Hong Kong finance, and ran operations at LinkedIn before quitting to write fiction. Every time I’ve achieved something big, it wasn’t by taking the “proper” steps—it was by skipping permission and going straight at the thing. This 10-week sprint is me doing it again.
Whether you’re here to read the chapters week-to-week or go deep on the behind-the-scenes with the Director’s Cuts, welcome to Act 1.
📖 Act 1: Chapters & Director’s Cuts
This is a 10-chapter weekly release sprint. Chapters drop every Saturday (Text + Audiobook), and Director’s Cuts drop every Tuesday (Behind-the-scenes video).
🆓 Chapters 1–5: 100% Free for everyone.
🔒 Chapters 6–10 & Paid Director’s Cuts: Unlocked weekly for Paid Subscribers.
Upgrade to Paid ($9/mo) to unlock the full 10-chapter release:
Chapter 1
🆓 Read & Listen: Chapter 1 — Free
MAY WE PLEASE THE SEA: Chapter One
I should be paddling in. Instead, I linger in the lagoon’s sun-warmed seawater, clutching my spear to my chest as I twirl through a school of snapper, not bothering to aim as they reshape around me...
🆓 Watch: Video Director’s Cut — Free
Director's Cut: Chapter One
·How a shark tank in the San Francisco aquarium, a sunburn in Mexico, freediving, and a Chinese word created Chapter 1.
Chapter 2
🆓 Read & Listen: Chapter 2 — Free
MAY WE PLEASE THE SEA: Chapter Two
It happens in less than a breath. The matron’s shout from below, Elly’s hand sliding out beneath mine from the top of the palm tree. My hunting instincts take control, and I snatch at my little sister’s fingers like they’re a lobster in the rocks. But they’re not a lobster’s spiny shell. They’re sweaty, slick. They slip through my grip, and I scream.
🔒Watch: Video Director’s Cut — Paid
Director's Cut: Chapter 2
Two lobstering courses for one sentence, a notebook page that just says “Incest!! To fix,” and the love interest I forgot I'd named Fletcher (which I then named my dog)
Chapter 3
🆓 Read & Listen: Chapter 3 — Free
MAY WE PLEASE THE SEA: Chapter 3
No one speaks. The only sounds are the splash of our strokes and the crying of baby girls. Every canoe in the village follows in my wake, our stilt-huts shrinking behind us into the mangroves and the haze.
🔒Watch: Video Director’s Cut — Paid
Director's Cut: Chapter Three
My agent asked for “more longing.” I gave her a spear stabbing. Plus the real drug sponge behind blue coral, and diving the real atolls I'd already written.
Chapter 4
🆓 Read & Listen: Chapters 4 — Free
MAY WE PLEASE THE SEA: Chapter Four
The atoll is gone. Where the white ring of dead corals just stood, unholy waters now roll in over…nothing.
Pain flares behind my eyes, and a sting bites into my hands where they still grip my paddle. The gods wouldn’t take our atoll. We’re their chosen people.🔒Watch: Video Director’s Cut — Paid
Director's Cut: Chapter Four
What I ate for three days in the Alaskan wilderness (it involves worms), and why campfire cuddles aren't sexy
Chapter 5
Read & Listen: Chapter 5 — Paid (Releasing Saturday, Oct 17)
Watch: Video Director’s Cut — Paid (Releasing Tuesday, Oct 20)
🔒 Chapters 6–10 (Paid Subscriber Exclusive)
Unlock all remaining chapters, all behind-the-scenes Director’s Cuts, and live co-working sessions by upgrading your subscription.
Subscribe Now to Unlock Chapters 6–10:
🔒 Chapters 6 & 7
Read & Listen: Chapter 6 — Paid (Releasing Saturday, Oct 24)
Watch: Video Director’s Cut — Paid (Releasing Tuesday, Oct 27 & Nov 3)
🔒 Chapter 8
Read & Listen: Chapter 8 — Paid (Releasing Saturday, Oct 31)
Watch: Video Director’s Cut — Paid (Releasing Tuesday, Nov 10)
🔒 Chapter 9
Read & Listen: Chapter 9 — Paid (Releasing Saturday, Nov 7)
Watch: Video Director’s Cut — Paid (Releasing Tuesday, Nov 17)
🔒 Chapter 10
Read & Listen: Chapter 10 — Paid (Releasing Saturday, Nov 14)
Watch: Video Director’s Cut — Paid (Releasing Tuesday, Nov 24)
🔒 Chapter 11 (Act 1 Finale)
Read & Listen: Chapter 10 — Paid (Releasing Saturday, Nov 21)
Watch: Video Director’s Cut — Paid (Releasing Tuesday, Dec 1)
⚡ Perks for Paid Subscribers
When you upgrade to a paid subscription ($9/month), you get:
Full Act 1 Access. Access to Chapters 6–10 and all 10 behind-the-scenes Director’s Cut videos.
Live Deep Work Co-Working Sessions. Sit down and body-double alongside me live twice a week during our 9-week sprint:
Tuesdays: 4:00–5:00pm PT / 7:00–8:00pm ET
Thursdays: 9:00–10:00am PT / 12:00–1:00pm ET
💬 Subscriber Chat & AMAs. Access to our private subscriber chat + two dedicated Ask Me Anything threads (ask me about world-building details, productivity setups, writing routines, life behind the scenes, anything!)
💡 Curious why I walked away from traditional publishing after signing with two top literary agencies?
Read the story of why I stopped waiting for permission and decided to build this project live:
The Book I Quit My Job For? I'll Be Reading It to You Next Saturday
I’m sitting there with eight pending requests from big-name literary agents for my second book, and I'm thinking, “Do I even want this any more?”
This was a very confusing thought to think! Because that has always been my goal! A goal big enough that I quit my job at LinkedIn to pursue it.