Page 22 of Child of Mine

Then it occurs to me that there must be a reason Izzy moved to Boston. Maybe her own family needed her. I know thatBoomkids had to be Boston locals, so she must be from here originally. And in the long run, pipe dreams aside, I should probably stay away from her if I want to keep this job and advance in the career that I’ve put before everything.

She’s probably a cat person, anyway.

* * *

The next morningwhen I walk into the production meeting, I’m surprised to find Izzy, or I guess it’s Bella now—got to get that straight—seated at the conference table. She doesn’t see me because she’s focused on a pile of paperwork, the same slew of stuff I had to pore over and sign two days ago.

Meaning they’ve hired her.

When I pull out a chair and it makes a scraping noise, she looks up. A pained expression crosses her face before she rearranges her expression and flashes me the smile that makes the camera love her. That drew me to her. When I was a kid and then a giddy, on-the-way-to-the-top television exec.

Which reminds me that I’m not that kid anymore. At thirty, I’m too old to waste time. In Raleigh, I had to fight every step of the way to advance my ideas and my career. I’m here for my career, not to chase other dreams, so I keep my smile professional and focus on the task at hand.

Unfortunately, when James calls the meeting to order, the first thing he says throws a monkey wrench in my plan to innovate. “A year ago, when we were throwing around ideas for a new kids’ show, we couldn’t come up with a single format or concept that was better thanBoom.”

Do I risk offending my new bosses right off the bat? Or is it more of a risk to have my career pinned to a has-been show that gets revived, only to die again? I’ve never been known for prudence or patience, so I raise my hand. After James gives me a nod, I begin with, “There’s a saying where I’m from”—amping up my hometown accent, I drawl—“if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

James nods. “My point exactly.”

But before he can take another breath I add, “The problem with that, though? What’s your definition of broke?” Pausing to let that sink in, I survey the table to see who might be with me. I’ve at least got everyone’s attention, so I plow ahead. “For example, way before ad revenue dropped for a local gardening show, Nielsen told us that viewership was on a downward slide. The brass only cared about the income, but when you’re losing eyeballs, eventually your advertisers are going to go elsewhere.”

“We don’t sell advertisements on public television,” Carol points out, “as I’m sure you know.”

“Of course.” I sit up straighter and direct my focus to her. “But you can’t completely ignore the data, right? I mean, there must’ve been some reason why the sponsor of the originalBoomdropped out.”

James and Carol share a quick glance before she answers. “It’s complicated. As you’ve suggested, Burger World decided they could sell more fries by buying commercial time on network shows. We also faced a political climate that was less supportive of public television. Now, however, we have funding from foundations that are all about education. We will be adding more science and math to the show at their behest.”

“I hope you’ll consider making some other changes, too, like shooting outside the studio. The research I’ve done on the oldBoomshows a big spike in interest when the short documentaries were added.”

James nods. “We had considered that—”

Before he can add some backward-ass reason for why they can’t possibly change anything so precious as the originalBoom, I cut in. “That’s great. I’d love to have some freedom with the pacing, too. Changing up the cut gave our cowboy show a much-needed facelift, which, as you know, led to a successful syndication.” This not-so-subtle reminder having landed, I barrel on. “Our competition isn’t just the networks this time around. Nickelodeon has some great shows, likeYou Can’t Do That on TelevisionandDon’t Just Sit There.The soaps are even aiming for the after-school crowd”—I give Bella a nod, but she frowns at the suggestion, so I turn to a different staff member—“plus game shows and even video games.Boommay have been fast-paced when it debuted, but in today’s field, it’s slower than a herd of turtles.”

At least I earn a few chuckles with that.

After a long pause, where no one seems to know what to say, Bella raises a hand. “Taking the kids away to do team-building is a huge change already. What if we shot some footage of that process? For documentation purposes, if nothing else.”

“That’s exactly the kind of thing I’m talking about,” I say. “Kids won’t sit through a bunch of scenes with the same old black background. We need the show to move.”

The other associate producers chime in with their own ideas, making me feel like my point has been made, so I wrap up by throwing a bone back to Carol. “I remember you saying during my interview that the stuff viewers send in is more original than anything fifty adult writers in a room could come up with. I’m not suggesting we get rid of that. I just want it to feel current so we can keep up with the competition. Or even beat it.”

* * *

By the endof the meeting, we seem to have taken two steps back for every one step forward. Frustrated and desperate for an ally, I jog to catch the person who seems like she might have the most sway over Carol. “Bella, can I talk to you for a minute?”

When she flinches at my touch, my hands go up in the air reflexively. “Sorry, I—”

“It’s fine. You just startled me.”

I shove my hands in my pockets so I’ll be sure to keep them to myself. Despite whatever it is that draws me to her personally, I’m here to get us on a professional footing. “I really need to stretch my legs. Walk with me?”

She nods down the hall to the doorway where the other APs are gathering. “I need to join them, but I guess I can take a quick break first.”

Since my time with her is limited, once we’re outside, I cut right to the chase. “I feel like we need to clear the air. I always told myself that I was probably barely a blip on your radar, but the way you looked at me yesterday—”

She shakes her head. “It’s fine, Hal. I mean, Henry.”

“You can call me Hal.”

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