Book excerpt: Barely out of film school, Rob Long struck the jackpot and landed a job on the phenomenally successful TV sitcom, Cheers. However, with the demise of the show, Long was faced with the question, 'Is there life after Cheers?' Mercilessly witty about the daunting process of setting up a new series and getting it on air, these two books tell the absurd tale of what came next. Getting from pitch to pilot is a tricky path to navigate successfully, from making non-negotiable changes and deal-breaking edits, combined with accommodating the whims of studios, networks and agents, often the finished product ends up a long way from where the script-writer started. With the help of his agent, her constant demands, monstrous salesmanship, brutal irony and unswerving loyalty, Long's career fluctuates from wannabe to player, from award-winning script-writer to burnt out has-been. And it's all, as he says 'half true'.