And the consumer doesn't care. They don't watch networks, they watch TV shows.

I don't think you can really make television based on what you think audiences want. You can only make stories that you like, because you have to watch it so many times.

Everybody knows things are not the same. The people running the TV end of a major vertically integrated company know how much money a successful show can make.

Their argument is that most shows are losers, which is true, but it's also disingenuous to say, 'We are not going to take the risk unless it is totally covered by the few successful shows that are out there.'

It's show business. No show, no business.

I get bored with establishing shots of people getting out of cars and walking into buildings, getting into elevators and then 45 seconds later they have a line.

The story drove the book. That had a very seminal effect on the way I saw writing and storytelling. If you can set a character in a story that is compelling and has a backbone, you draw people in.