For the first time in my writing career, I know exactly where to begin with my thanks: my editor, Jennifer Heddle, whom I met back in the early days of alt.tv.x-files.creative, via a 2400-baud modem and those ten free hours of America Online. She was a newly minted editorial assistant; I was just beginning to write (resoundingly mediocre) fanfiction, with only the haziest notion that I might ever become a published author. We were united by our love for the show and our shared conviction that Mulder and Scully absolutely needed to kiss. In other words, I think we both realized we were going to have to play the long game. My work benefited from her beta reading back in the day, as it continues to through the many professional collaborations we’ve shared since—but this project has been one of those incredibly rare occasions when an old dream fully becomes a reality, and I’m tremendously glad we got to share it.
I must also thank the rest of the publishing team, including Nicole Spiegel, Jennifer Levesque, Amy King, Sara Liebling, Guy Cunningham, Alex Serrano, and Kaitie Leary. In particular, I want to express my gratitude to the one and only Chris Carter, whose generosity and insight through this process immensely enriched the book. (Do you know how cool it is to open your inbox and find that Chris Carter has sent you a true, weird-science X-File? Answer: It is INCREDIBLY COOL.) 1993 me would never believe this, which is why 2024 me is still pinching herself.
My agent, Laura Rennert at Andrea Brown, and my assistant, Sarah Simpson-Weiss, have yet again provided their wisdom and support. Thanks also to Lucy Stille and Jamie Coghill for their guidance; this crazy industry is a lot more manageable because of all of you. And, as always, I am grateful to my friends and family for sticking with me through deadlines, doubts, and the occasional need to drop everything, right this minute, to research the yeti. (Thanks within thanks to my husband Paul, because writing this book meant rewatching a whooooooole lot of The X-Files, most of that with him by my side.)
Most importantly, I want to thank every person I met—every friend I made—in those early days of online fandom. The X-Files was the first fandom that was truly born and primarily conducted online, so we were all still figuring out this crazy thing together. My work at that point was very much that of a total novice, and I appreciate every single person who read, commented, and otherwise helped me progress as a writer. Not only was that a delightful fandom experience, but it also ended up laying the groundwork for my career, one that I give thanks for every single day. Another benefit: So many of you turned out to be wonderful people, and good friends. (The only reason I’m not naming names is because of my terror of accidentally leaving someone out!) I hope this book will give you some share of the joy I’ve felt writing it.