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leaving the island...
...two years ago – almost to the day – i was hired on a start-up television series called “lost.” the gig was supposed to be two months at staff writer pay to work with a small think-tank in developing the long term arcs of a show that had not only not been picked up to series – the pilot had not been written!
four months later, i sat in the audience at the san diego comic-con, watching “lost” with an audience of three-thousand – stunned by how quickly it had gone from a glimmer in jj abrams and damon lindelof’s eye to one of the best television pilots i have ever seen... and, ultimately, a popular-culture phenomenon.
two incredibly exhausting and eventful years, seven scripts, forty-eight episodes, a shelf-load of awards, several convention appearances, many great friendships, hundreds of messages in “the fuselage,” and one hanging hobbit later, the time has come for me to leave the island.
so, come the end of the season, i am on the raft.
the obvious question is – of course – “why?”
the simple truth is my work is done. as television series change and evolve, so do the things they require from the writers and producers in their staffs. i have contributed everything i had to “lost” and now the time has come for other writers to step in and make their own contributions in their own voices.
i pride myself on being honest in this forum and am being completely so when i tell you that this parting is mutually agreed upon, beneficial to everyone involved, and – most importantly – amicable.
yep. amicable. go figure. it actually does happen in hollywood.
how amicable? “lost” and its creators are a huge part of my life, and while we all agree that it is time for me to move on to write and produce other shows (maybe even one of my own), let’s just i may just be that rare castaway who not only gets to leave the island, but also gets an invite to visit on occasion. it's an exciting prospect.
as a founding member of the “lost” writers community, i know for a fact that i am leaving this show a better place than i found it, am proud of the work i have done, and know that my employers feel the same way. the people for whom i have worked the past two years are truly extraordinary – and i leave grateful, fulfilled, happy, and – truly – want nothing more than to see the series to which i have given (and from which i’ve gotten) so much continue to flourish.
now that we all know this, there’s something else you should know...
...i’m still not telling what the monster is!
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