Earlier this year, TV writers were in the news like never before — but, unfortunately, that's because they were on strike. So, what's it like when they're working? The New York Times has given us a peek, taking us inside the rooms where the writers come up with the dramatic scenes and witty one-liners that make television so great.
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TV ratings have been pretty miserable overall ever since scripted shows started returning to the air. It seems to be a little surprising to networks and advertisers, who expected viewers to come rushing back in a show of "absence makes the heart grow fonder"-style affection.
Today's New York Times notes that serial dramas have taken the brunt of the ratings hit and suggests several theories, one of which is that the strike gave viewers an excuse to quit shows that they just weren't that into anymore.
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If you were eagerly looking forward to this Summer for new seasons of HBO favorites like Big Love, Entourage, and Flight of the Conchords, here's some bad news: You're going to have to keep waiting. As a result of the writers' strike, all of those shows have been pushed till Fall — if not beyond.
The strike delayed filming on several series, including Entourage and True Blood, the vampire series starring Anna Paquin and written by Six Feet Under's Alan Ball.
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Wondering how you're going to get your Shonda Rhimes fix before new episodes of Grey's Anatomy return in late April? Well, if you live in LA, and you have 85 bucks and no plans for Feb. 29, you can go see the casts of Grey's and Private Practice as they throw a singing benefit. 
So, the writers' strike is dunzo — but that doesn't mean we're getting our shows back right away. It generally will take between four and six weeks to get a comedy back on the air, while dramas will need six to eight. CBS became the first network to announce when its shows will return, and NBC followed soon after. 
In the past 48 hours the writers voted overwhelmingly to end to the three-month-old writers' strike. Writers should be able to go back to work on Wednesday, and the Oscars will be going ahead as scheduled, thanks to a massive 92.5 percent of the Writers Guild of America members voting to stop the strike immediately.
The WGA president's statement can be found here, and Buzz has more on what's next.
Writers have voted overwhelmingly over the past 48 hours to end to the three-month-old writers' strike. Variety reports that 92.5 percent of the Writers Guild of America membership voted to stop the strike effective immediately. Writers should be able to go back to work on Wednesday. 
With the writers' strike officially over, we can safely start looking forward to the return of our regular TV shows in the relatively near future. But when they come back, will you still be watching? One of the big questions right now is whether viewers will tune back in when the major shows return or whether they'll keep doing whatever they did for strike survival — say, reading or watching TV on DVD — instead. 
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