Legendary Claire Labine on Difference Between Writing an Established Soap and Creating "New Reality"
By Jamey Giddens on November 03, 2009
We Love Soaps' Damon Jacobs has posted Part One of a chat with one of the best writers to ever work in daytime television, Claire Labine. The award-winning scribe, who created Ryan's Hope and gave us BJ and Maxie's heart transplant drama and Robin's HIV diagnosis on General Hospital, explained to Jacobs the difference between coming in to helm an already established soap and creating your own.
We Love Soaps' Damon Jacobs has posted Part One of a chat with one of the best writers to ever work in daytime television, Claire Labine. The award-winning scribe, who created Ryan's Hope and gave us BJ and Maxie's heart transplant drama and Robin's HIV diagnosis on General Hospital, explained to Jacobs the difference between coming in to helm an already established soap and creating your own.
Claire Labine: (continued) There are two different disciplines, writing for an established show and creating a new reality. When you go into a show already established you have to try to respect the creator’s concepts for these characters and the basic relationships within the show and you really only have freedom to create characters when you bring in someone new to interact with the established folks. It is really hard, especially with a show that’s been on the air a long time, to capture the essence of the character as presented, so you’re not totally betraying the audience. And you have to make the established characters behave in a way that is familiar to the audience in an emotional situation with a new character. So you have to design a new character who can emotionally relate to established characters. It’s really very difficult to do.
Once again Jacobs has outdone himself!
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Comments
14 November 2007
3 days 5 hours
I can't wait to read this!!!!!
3 April 2009
1 week 6 hours
If that is a recent picture of Ms. Labine she looks great. I know she was sick for a while, I wish she would come back and write another soap...maybe ALL MY CHILDREN?
3 April 2009
1 week 6 hours
Also, I've always wondered...if RYAN'S HOPE was still on if Ms. Labine can still envision the staunch Irish-Catholic Ryan family living in today's world. Would Maeve have objected to a gay relationship if say one of her grandchildren was gay...would have made for great drama considering...
4 May 2009
1 day 16 hours
She's one of the greats. She could teach today's "writers" a thing or two about characters vs. catastrophes. Whenever that hack Bob Guza gets stuck, he just blows something up.
20 February 2009
1 hour 29 min
Paul Mayer, who co-created Ryan's Hope with Ms. Labine, becasme a client and friend in my last life, we would talk soaps and the genius that is Claire Labine. We would discuss the (then:early oughts) state of soaps compared to the late 70s/80s/90s; it was pretty great and yet sad at the same time, who would have guessed that things could and would get worse.
BytheBy: Paul was married to the actress Sasha Von Scherler who played Brooke's mom on AMC, she was fabulous and another great source info on the good ole days.
14 November 2007
3 days 5 hours
maxsmom: I'm so jealous!!! I would have given anything to talk to him about soaps!! I would have asked him a million questions about Ryan's Hope!
3 April 2009
1 week 6 hours
Oh wow Max's mom, I would love the dish on that. I love it when they talk about the glory years of soaps - though I must say what's going on OLTL for the past year or so is very redolant of the way things use to be. However, all of it is so accelerated and you are rarely steeped in character like you were when RH first premiered and you knew the characters intimately understood why they did what they did, and why they reacted in such a way. The character of Delia is a perfect example...you never really could hate her for the things she did, because she had all these motivations you could empathize with.
3 April 2009
1 week 6 hours
Oh wow Max's mom, I would love the dish on that. I love it when they talk about the glory years of soaps - though I must say what's going on OLTL for the past year or so is very redolant of the way things use to be. However, all of it is so accelerated and you are rarely steeped in character like you were when RH first premiered and you knew the characters intimately understood why they did what they did, and why they reacted in such a way. The character of Delia is a perfect example...you never really could hate her for the things she did, because she had all these motivations you could empathize with.
14 November 2007
3 days 5 hours
Llanview76: ITA!!! There were times when I wanted to strangle Delia, but I understood why she was the way she was and couldn't really hate her for long (especially with IK in the role.) I LOVED the way women were written on Ryan's Hope. They were flawed but really strong in their own way (even Delia) and they were all so different from each other.
3 April 2009
1 week 6 hours
Ilene Kristen was the best Delia, IMO. I know people like Randall Evans, but Ilene Kristen was so much more real, yet beautiful, and has a gift for playing quirky characters.I am so glad she adds mucho color to the Llanview canvas as Roxy. She's a hoot...and from my own experience, one of the nicest, gracious celebs in the business. Love her!!!
Erik
20 February 2009
1 hour 29 min
Paul was a therapist so he had lots of patience for me and my questions and Sasha, who was also a therapist, somehow maintained that old Hollywood glamour, she was such a character,ahh nostalgia.
In my experience the behind the scenes people or the ones who have left acting behind are often happiest to discuss their career highlights, which isnt to say that current stars can't be nice but perspective is always good no matter what you do for a living.
8 May 2008
1 day 8 hours
Why isn't Labine still in soaps today?
14 March 2009
18 hours 37 min
I'm pretty sure that is a cropped version of a photo from when Ms Labine wrote for GH years back. I hope she is in good health once again. There is many a Soap that could benefit from her attention if even just as a consultant ala the years AMC had Agnes Nixon as a story consultant.
14 November 2007
3 days 5 hours
Llanview76: I think IK was the best Delia too! You're right, some people really liked Randall, but I couldn't get into her. And I never saw Robin Mattson as Delia - I love RM, but just can't picture her as Dee, lol. Besides IK and Ron Hale had the best chemistry
maxsmom: I don't suppose you remember any specifics about your discussions with Paul that you could share? I know it was probably a long time ago...
16 October 2009
6 hours 43 min
Llanview76, if she wrote for All My Children, that would just be so great
. She seems to have a great idea of what a soap is and I believe that she could restore and make the show better. To bad 
, man! I, and a whole bunch of other AMC fans, can hope!
20 February 2009
1 hour 29 min
I really wish that I could remember the specifics because he was so nice to listen and talk to me, he was good friends with the couple who owned the business and lived and worked a few blocks from the business so I saw him fairly often. I probably held on to the info just long enough to recount the stories to my mom. If I get a specific memory I promise I'll just post in any GH or OLTL thread going.
13 June 2009
1 day 15 hours
Claire Labine is my soap writing idol. She is one of the absolute greats--and it's her fault that I got addicted to GH.
I cannot wait to read this interview! Thanks for linking to it.
1 July 2009
7 hours 46 min
I agree, I can't believe she is still not writing on daytime soaps. She knows what storytelling is all about and that's why she is one of the best. GH was at its best with her as the head writer. Can we get her to write for AMC PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
17 December 2007
19 weeks 4 days
OMG, if Claire Labine wrote for AMC, I think Thorsten Kaye would be on the first plane flying to Calif. Her writing was amazing. I didn't watch Ryan's Hope back then, but I'm watching it on Soapnet now, in the middle of the night..Her days at GH were some of the best for this show...
She needs to teach a writing class and guza and pratt need to be in that class.
18 October 2009
2 weeks 4 days
GH during Claire Labine's tenure was a wonder. After she left I hung on for a few years, hoping that she would return or the writing would improve. When neither of those things happened, I eventually gave up.
I often wonder why she stopped writing for daytime drama. I'd like to think there were offers but soaps have been taken over by hacks, so maybe not.
16 October 2009
6 hours 43 min
I would just be SO RELIEVED if she was named Head Writer of AMC...it's the only soap right now that severely needs the help! Gosh that would be the day.....
.
3 April 2009
1 week 6 hours
I remember the ladies in the break room at my department store job in the 90's dishing GH during Labine, and I think her son was co-writing with her at that time, tenure. Oh my God, these women were so addicted to the characters and the stories that were being told on that show it was amazing. Alot of the talk was about Luke and Laura of course, but there was so much talk about Bobbie, Lucy, Kevin, Mac, Robin, Monica, Alan...and not a heck of a lot about Sonny Corinthos. Go figure.
14 December 2008
18 hours 55 min
I'd love to see her back on AMC!
25 March 2008
2 weeks 2 days
How refreshing would it be to have a female Head Writer on GH after years of Guza writing women characters as nothing more than props to the male characters?!
4 November 2009
17 weeks 1 day
Claire Labine's a legend in my book!
Not only did she create "Ryan's Hope", but she's a terrific writer to boot! I wish ABC would see the errors of their ways, and Kick Guza to the curb...Imagine how much better GH would be...it would be old home week....and hopefully we'd see all of our favorites come back....Genie Francis, Jackie Zeman, Kristina Wagner...I could go on and on, but I won't...seriously....someone should start a petition to kick Bob Guza to the curb....Claire Labine rocks! 