hi, hope you're doing well! i know you joined the team in s2 when a lot of that groundwork was laid in s1, but what were the discussions around the portrayal of sherlock's depression/addiction like? i love how elementary seemed to portray his depression as more dysthmic especially compared to contemporary shows like You're the Worst/Bojack Horseman, though it seemed to be less of a focus in later seasons. also thanks for helping my fave show of all time come to life!

I'm fine except for the annoying covid.

We talked about Sherlock's addiction all the time, though less so about his depression. I'm not 100% sure he has depression, TBH. Maybe bipolar disorder? Whatever type of depression he may or may not have is complicated by a LOT of other issues. We always believed Sherlock's neuroatypicality was extremely atypical and thus difficult to pin down. We wrote that part of him as, well, Sherlock. Diagnose at your own peril.

That said, I can certainly see why you might see him as dysthymic. Your understanding of Sherlock's issues may vary.

And thanks for the kind words.

hello mr. writer sir! I was wondering how you’ve been enjoying your time on tumblr? Are the fanbases for your different projects different from how you expected at all? If so, how? thank you!

Tumblr is great. It's not as good as Twitter for following current events or what my friends are up to, but it's terrific for communicating with fans. It's a much better place to do Q&As, for one thing, and it's a lot easier to find fan art and fun memes.

The fanbases are pretty much what I expected, TBH.

Is there anything we can do to support the Writer's Strike? Material support, cancelling streaming subs and letting the studios know why, etc?

Cancelling your streaming subs is probably a good way to go, especially if you tell them you're doing it in support of the WGA and won't renew until they sign a deal.

Thanks for asking!

I just finished Elementary & I gotta say that although at first I was really worried about the ending (you really had me going!) you guys wrapped the show up wonderfully. I don't want to accidentally go into spoilers in case you post this but thanks for the great ride! Many more rewatches to come.

Thank you for the kind words! We're all very proud of our little murder show.

I'm so excited you're here! I love so much of your work! I wanted to ask some great question that would make you think I'm cool but all I can come up with is "was Clyde hard to work with?" Especially after he became such a breakout star? Did he demand special lettuce or not being used as an ambulance anymore? I clearly not very cool.

Clyde was actually a pain in the ass to work with, to be honest, in that he was portrayed by two live tortoises and a robot. The live tortoises (Bonnie and Clyde) didn't take direction at all, and the robot was, while willing, was limited in what it could do, and not always great at execution.

So we had to be very careful about how much we used Clyde and what exactly we wanted him to do on screen.

I still loved him though.

This is less of an ask than a comment, but I appreciated Elementary as a counterpoint to Sherlock, with its emphasis on cooperation and respect. Also it's a better show in terms of the mysterious and etc., but what really struck me was a return to the kindness of the original stories, particularly in terms of treatment of Watson.

Thank you! We really tried our hardest to capture the feel of the original Doyle stories, while updating for our time. Glad you feel we hit that target.

when i want to support an author i like, i buy and preorder their books. but how do i support a tv writer i like? i suppose the obvious thing to do is watch their tv show. but what if it has been canceled? how can regular folks who are not in the business but just enjoy good tv writing support writers they like?

TV writers get money whenever you watch one of their episodes on streaming, or when you buy or rent a dvd or electronic copy. Even a cancelled show is usually streaming somewhere or available to buy or rent on Amazon.

In my case, you can also buy my books!

Billy Smith and the Goblins (3 book series) Paperback Edition (amazon.com)

Thank you for supporting us TV writers. Much appreciated.

What do you think are some misconceptions that people who watch TV (or movies, for that matter) but don't actually make it tend to have about screenwriting? Whether they're just casual viewers or critics.

Oh there are lots. A few:

Many people think the actors come up with all their own dialogue. Nope.

People often ask if I just write for one character on a show, or if I just write the action stuff, or the comedy, or whatever. Nope. If my name is on the episode, it's very likely I wrote (or co-wrote) every word, at least as some point in process (rewrites and group writes do happen of course).

That said, people don't actually understand how much of tv writing is a team sport.

People have no idea of the insanely long hours tv writers work. A regular week on most shows is 60+ hours. If I'm on script, an 80 hour week isn't out of the ordinary. There have been a few shows where I've clocked 100 hour weeks.

A lot of people think the writers and actors on a show are all besties. While this can end up being the case (there are a few actors I've worked with I consider friends) the truth is, given the crazy hours everyone is working, there's little time for socializing.

People have no idea about how much tv writers work to GET work. There's no job security and half the job is landing the next job.

All that said, I love what I do and wouldn't trade it for the world.

Ah!!!!! I love elementary because Sherlock also had to earn Joan's respect and trust, and even after they did, there was banter! It felt so much less one sided, and Sherlock was so much more human... I keep putting it on as background noise even though I've seen it through like 8 times.

Glad you enjoy it. Everyone who worked on ELEMENTARY is insufferably proud of themselves.

Are you enjoying tumblr so far? Have you seen Goncharov?

I enjoy Tumblr.

As to Goncharov, I actually prefer the TV series version HBO did in the early 2000s. I know it was just two seasons and people are divided about Sean Pean as Goncharov, but I thought it was really great.

I was actually up for season three. I wish it had happened! But I totally understand why Sean Penn chose to do relief work in New Orleans instead.

One question I forgot asking. Do you know what happened to the props of Elementary? I always wanted to own the print that Sherlock made with the jade seal and put up on his wall.

I once asked CBS about it but they only said they would auction the props off eventually and that’s it. I hoped that maybe you might know more but they probably also do not tell you, right? 😅

I don't know where all the props went, to be honest, but I DO know where that one is.

I own it!

And I have the seal too. Which might make my wife the Empress of China since she has a tenuous claim, but I don't.

Hey, i am huge fan of elementary. I especially loved how diverse it is. While watching (and rewatching) the show I noticed some… let me call it „queer-coded“ scenes. Sherlock telling Joan that she should try dating women or multiple people. Joan implying Sherlock is dating their male enemie in season 6. Marcus bell marrying in season 7 but the gender of the partner is never specific. Also Sherlock waking in a Pride Parade (to find a murder). I was wondering if you know why none of them were ever confirmed canon queer, maybe bisexual? The show is so diverse and has many queer side characters, but not a single queer main character? That always left me kinda confused.

We definitely implied Sherlock was queer. I'm not 100% sure why we didn't make it undeniable. Not to dodge the question, but that was above my pay grade. Maybe the folks above me in the chain of command thought we went as far as we could in a network procedural. Or perhaps it's the same reason we never fully diagnosed Sherlock's neurodiversity. We intentionally left that vague because Sherlock's brain wiring is totally unique to him and can't be easily defined.

I'm glad you enjoyed the show!

Hey, i am huge fan of elementary. I especially loved how diverse it is. While watching (and rewatching) the show I noticed some… let me call it „queer-coded“ scenes. Sherlock telling Joan that she should try dating women or multiple people. Joan implying Sherlock is dating their male enemie in season 6. Marcus bell marrying in season 7 but the gender of the partner is never specific. Also Sherlock waking in a Pride Parade (to find a murder). I was wondering if you know why none of them were ever confirmed canon queer, maybe bisexual? The show is so diverse and has many queer side characters, but not a single queer main character? That always left me kinda confused.

We definitely implied Sherlock was queer. I'm not 100% sure why we didn't make it undeniable. Not to dodge the question, but that was above my pay grade. Maybe the folks above me in the chain of command thought we went as far as we could in a network procedural. Or perhaps it's the same reason we never fully diagnosed Sherlock's neurodiversity. We intentionally left that vague because Sherlock's brain wiring is totally unique to him and can't be easily defined.

I'm glad you enjoyed the show!