This journal documents the author's experiences as a television writer. To read the story from its inception, go to the beginning.

September 16, 2001

From the crucible
For the last three days my writing partner and I have been implementing the revisions requested by our agents. Not an easy task in light of the post traumatic shock syndrome we are experiencing. With our minds still reeling from the Twin Towers disaster, most of what we compose is extremely dark. Punch lines ending in "Osama Bin Laden" and "Taliban" abound. Most of what we write is thrown out.

Our writing sessions have been taking place in my collaborator's new digs: a spacious, sparsely furnished one-bedroom featuring a foyer that doubles as an office/writing area and a living room twice the size of my entire Manhattan apartment. Although our custom has usually been to sit together at the computer as we write, hours get spent in reverie, myself splayed in a lawn chair, he prone on the couch. We are the picture of two castaways; stranded on an island of mental debris.

When we finished the revisions this evening there was more distraction than joy. My writing partner, knowing he would have to visit New York's decimated downtown district tomorrow, started to gird himself for returning to his day job. I let my mind drift to the million niggling details ignored this week in favor of writing and emotional survival.

This evening two local stations had returned to broadcasting entertainment, the round-the-clock disaster updates still available on several others. As I turned on my tv, the first-ever episode of Frasier was being rerun. It had everything one could want in a half-hour sitcom: three-dimensional characters, fully-realized relationships, high emotional stakes, and extremely funny dialogue. Although I had seen this episode at least three times, I couldn?t help but laugh and get involved in the story. When the show was over it was very clear that at this moment in time -- much more than in recent years -- people will need release. They will want to laugh. And having completed these rewrites under very stressful circumstances, I now know my partner and I are up to the task.

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