In the old days, newsstands would have magazines and articles and you might see an article tease on the cover and you'd buy that magazine for $4 and take it with you. You didn't have to buy a subscription or give your name and number to the publisher. Make paying to read one article easy again!

Counterpoint: no.

Saw Send Help with Kristi yesterday and we laughed and gasped the whole way through. Such a fun movie my friends Shannon & Swift wrote from scratch!

The word "generational" went from meaning "once in a generation" to "above average" in less than a year.

5. I would work with Jensen again a hundred times. Truly one of the great experiences of my career.

4. No... and one of my friends got called in to help transfer the sets to "permanent storage." 😥

3. I kind of want to write a novella or a graphic novel like Stacy suggests in another tweet. Then when I start considering it, it just seems daunting. I think I need some time.

2. I had the situation in mind and then spoke with my good friend who is a heart surgeon in Dallas. He consulted with some colleagues and they came back to me with glioblastoma. I did some research from there and found out about the emerging treatments.

1. Life has been great. Doing a ton of reading... listening to a lot of music... hanging with the family... trying to help a couple of younger writers get some shows up and running. Doing a bit of writing. How are you?

I'll answer 5 questions today if anyone has anything they'd like to know. Just don't ask anything that would require me to do math.

I hope you have a better year ahead of you than Volchek.

Merry Christmas Eve everyone! Stay safe and leave some cookies out for Santa.

This is my only social media. I'm not on anything else. I won't ever be on anything else. So if someone contacts you on Instagram, FB, or Tik Tok, or Twitter X, or any other ones I don't know about, with this photo, and says they are me... you can make fun of them because they aren't me.

Two of my favorites together at last. Slothrust and The Grinch. www.youtube.com/watch?v=hofB...

Over the years, I have been asked if there are any good screenwriting books, and I always answer the same: "I don't know." That is, until now! You can pre-order the Scriptnotes book from writing legends August and Mazin right this second wherever books are sold! Go get one!

Hey, thank you to Amazon Prime and a great cast and crew for our season of Countdown! Fun to make all around! (pssst…Oliveras lived.) 😀

If you are looking to give to a great charity, I Am ALS aims to educate the public about ALS disease, pushes for policy reforms, and assists families afflicted by the disease. www.iamals.org

5. As soon as I know anything, you'll know! Maybe you'll know before me. I'm gonna stay optimistic. If it doesn't happen, I guess I'll have to write a novella so you'll have closure. But fingers crossed... let's get some more Countdown.

4. I knew it would be an ominous callback. And show you how evil and scary this guy is.

3. The hardest was the mall. It was the same time as the LA fires. And then it was so cold that the roof was covered with ice. Not to mention coordinating hundreds of extras. And daylight was at its shortest. And it was windy as hell. The things we do for you! 😀

2. Strange that he didn't.

1. I have too many. The realization that Gallagher was a truck brand and not the name of a suspect made me happy. The safe explosion in the basement. Anything with Meachum and Oliveras. The desert chase. Meachum looking at the plane in the sky and then coming in and seeing his team.

Okay, it's the FINAL COUNTDOWN Sunday q&a. Ask your five questions. What more could you possibly want to know?

Script pages from episode 113.

You made it to the season finale of Countdown. Thanks for watching and talking it up and coming here all season long. I really appreciate it. I'll answer five questions, one last time this Sunday. I'm... I'm sure everything will be all right. Right?

Oh man I was just trying to enjoy some golf and I mentioned to Jensen that you might not watch the season finale of Countdown tomorrow and he just...

Script page from episode 112.

Bonus 2. Looking for different flavors... mainly talking to tech advisors about various task forces and what types of threats/cases they investigate and then choosing a path from there that sounds interesting to me.

Bonus. I like both ways... having a room with camaraderie and crazy ideas always bouncing around with talented people is exhilarating and often rewarding... writing solo is more like writing a novel which can also be exciting and thrilling. I don't know which I like better! Both fun.

5. Satisfied knowing that all the characters are okay and going to live long, happy, fulfilling lives!

4. It is fun to see what scenes or lines or twists hit for you guys on here. Always awesome when there's something I think will work and then it lands. I like the buildup to the episodes and I like the recaps. Anyone talking up the show has my thanks!

3. Nothing new to share. I know there are a lot of fans over at Prime who really champion the show so I'm hoping for great news but not sure when the timing will be. Thanks for watching though and tell everyone who has been holding out for binging, now's the time!

2. I'd most relate to Sam Johnson. Just wants to be part of the team but the higher-ups... it's all political... maybe you can put in a good word for me?

1. Since this is my only social media, my perception's based on comments skewed in my favor because you like the show if you're looking here. I see where it falls in the world on Amazon's top 10 each week but that can be apples to oranges. Also, my brother texts me what he likes or doesn't.

It's Sunday and time for five questions in the run up to our big finale. I can't believe it's already here. Okay... ask your questions and I'll do my best to sort of answer.

Working with cool guest stars is a highlight on any show. Rico Anderson played a memorable thief in the "Wheelman" episode of FBI:International so I was excited to hang with him again when he played Randall Tooks.

It is Wednesday... which means time for you to watch the penultimate episode of Countdown. I believe we have an agreement... if you watch, I'll come back on Sunday to answer five questions. Can't we all be friends?

A script page from episode 111.

5. A final two minutes that will have you saying "they can't do this to me."

4. a. They look good on Jensen. b. Vanessa and Jonathan definitely had an 80s aesthetic going when they were thinking about how they wanted the show to feel. This fits.

3. I liked the interview room scene with TK. All that religious-sounding nonsense to get him to talk. And the guy playing TK -- Patrick -- was really good.

2. I think she was more upset at herself and Molly but took her frustration out a bit on Bell. She probably feels bad about that.

1. It's hard to show everything in an episode... sometimes you can assume there are things happening in the world that you didn't see.

All right... we made it to Sunday. So much going on! Like I said, I'll answer five questions.

It's Wednesday. Getting near the end of Countdown Summer! First, watch the new episode. Yes, there are still three left! Second, tell me your favorite part. Third, come back Sunday and I'll answer 5 questions. (And I got to reunite with the great-lyn Caitlyn Carver in this episode!)

👀

Bonus.

5. I don't think it's ever going to be gone-gone. The threat is there that the symptoms could return. I'm just grateful that he was able to get into this program and I'm energized by the results.

4. Yes, I went to Baylor U in Waco, Texas back in the day and my old screenwriting professor is Bob Darden. In everything I've written... movies, TV... Darden is always the first to go... but as an inside joke because I love Bob!

3. Fortunately, I only have to worry about making shows and not how the super high-ups make their scheduling decisions. They have to juggle a ton of strategies and relationships and data and experience and sometimes old-fashioned risk-taking... they're smart people... I stay out of it!