At Home With Writers

Half past seven. The children are in bed, and my wife @Patroclus and I have retired downstairs, where the gentle clicking of laptop keys is the only sound for half an hour or so. Finally:

ME: What are you doing?
@Patroclus: Thing about geoploitical implications for Finnish energy companies' IT systems.
ME: Ah.

Pause.

@Patroclus: What are you doing?
ME: Outline for that CBeebies thing, about a caterpillar.
@Patroclus: Ah.

Pause.

Suddenly:

ME: OH THIS IS TOO HARD!

I storm upstairs. After a while:

@Patroclus: Can I have a bath after you?
ME: GOD, WHATEVER, YES, FINE.

Half an hour later:

ME: I'm finished in the bath now, and I think.... I think, I've cracked the caterpillar outline.
@Patroclus: That's good, I've nearly done the Finnish thing now.
ME: OH WHO CARES ABOUT YOUR SORDID BUSINESS WORLD I'VE BEEN MAKING ART.

'DUGGEE' begins this September, on CBeebies.