Trade Secrets: Behind The Scenes of Reality Television

I once spent a few years working as a writer for reality television. When I tell people that, they feel as if they're being let in on a Hollywood secret. "Aha!" they'll say. "That stuff is all written? I knew it was fake."

"Well, it's not exactly writing," I'd explain. "It's more like ... story." That explanation, understandably, would be met with a confused stare, and I'd start my little speech I'd practically memorized by that point.