‘Speechless’ Creator Scott Silveri On Writing The ABC Comedy

Although “Speechless” is based on real-life experiences of its creator Scott Silveri, writing the ABC comedy isn’t easy for him.

During the recent The Hollywood Reporter’s Comedy Showrunner Roundtable, Silveri revealed the challenges he faces when writing episodes for the sitcom. “The first draft of ‘Speechless’ was very close to my actual experience, and it was just suffocating,” admitted Silveri. “It’s hard enough to make one of these things entertaining or funny but when you’re walking that line between therapy and comedy writing. You don’t get paid for therapy.”

Silveri continued: “You have to weave, ‘What’s interesting to me’ … and what’s really interesting [to others]. And there’s also the added burden of like, ‘What’s in the script is gonna pissed off my uncle at Thanksgiving?’ So I [eventually] found it far more liberating to sit down and like, ‘What do I really want to hold onto here and let’s take liberties around the margin.’”

READ: Minnie Driver reveals her favorite part about playing Maya on “Speechless”

While Silveri has a lot of things to consider when writing from his own experience, the Primetime Emmy winner said that working on the series has been “really liberating” so far.

According to The New York Times, Silveri grew up in a home with a nonverbal brother with cerebral palsy, much like the one on “Speechless.” But during a press visit to the set of the show last year, Silveri pointed out that there’s a difference between his brother and Micah Fowler’s character, JJ. “[In] real life my brother’s condition is more significant,” Silveri said (via FSM Media).

During the same press visit, Silveri said that his family has been “really incredibly supportive” about him writing a show based on their experiences. “[But] I made it clear from the beginning to them, as I try to make clear to anybody else, this is not their story,” he said. “This is not my story or my brothers or sisters.”

“What’s important to me is to capture a couple of elements about the time we had growing up,” Silveri explained. “I feel like you can take whatever challenge is thrown your way and wallow in it or turn it into something. You can curse the heavens or you can band together and make it work. And that’s what my mom did. That’s what my dad did. And I wanted to celebrate that at every turn. This (the show) is intended to be a love letter to my mom and my dad.”

“Speechless” Season 2 will premiere in the fall on ABC.