Writer Shannon Peace Says Goodbye To GENERAL HOSPITAL

The writers’ room backstage at GENERAL HOSPITAL is still undergoing modifications. Breakdown writer Shannon Peace has announced her departure from the soap opera as content written by the new headwriting duo of Patrick Mulcahey and Elizabeth Korte starts to air on screen.

“I am no longer under contract with GH after nearly three years on staff and 106 episodes written,” she wrote on Instagram. “Writing for the longest-running television serial drama in this country has been an epic educational experience; I will always be appreciative that I was able to obtain my WGA card on a daytime staple that so many people associate with fond memories.”

Peace went on, “I’m proud of my time on the show.” “I leave behind storylines I helped create and characters I named.” I was a member of an exceptional group that received nominations for two Writers Guild Awards and two Daytime Emmy Awards.

Peace started contributing to GH in 2021, and she was proud of some of the significant and impactful moments she was able to bring to the screen. “Possibly more significantly, as the only Black breakdown writer (and the only person of color in the writers’ room) during my time there, I advocated for crucial character exchanges and conversations that put inclusivity, visibility, and representation first,” she said. A candid discussion between Stella and Portia in July 2022 regarding the part race had in Esme’s portrayal of Trina is just one instance of the influence I’m honored to have had.

The writer expressed her appreciation to former Headwriters of GH, Dan O’Connor and Chris Van Etten, for providing her a platform and enabling her to express herself. “I also want to thank all of the fans who have been so encouraging and kind to my work, especially those who have recognized how much I adore ‘Sprina,'” Peace stated. “My only regret is that I never got the chance to take that’ship’ much further.

“I sincerely hope that GH recommits to valuing staff writer efforts and input, with a more intentional focus on diverse viewpoints — and thrives for another 60 years,” she said, closing on the heels of a historic writer’s strike that revealed new information about the unsettling ways in which writers are regarded during the day.