We are at a time of conflicting energy at my company, Schnoobert Productions. On the one hand, we are preparing for the transmission of Apocalypse Slough, the next instalment in the Murder, They Hope franchise for UKTV Gold, and the 11th I’ve written. That’s exciting. But on the other hand, we’re looking to our new projects and firing them out to broadcasters, hoping for the television-shaped fish to proverbially bite. So there’s the confidence of a show that’s actually been made… and the nervous attentiveness to the seedlings that we hope will blossom into actual commissions.

There’s no typical day at Schnoobert. I’m the CEO, and I also write a lot of our slate, as well as working with as many newer writers as our thunderously full diary can manage. But one constant, which is why I always drive in with a smile on my face, is talking about story. For me, that makes the greatest days possible. Character arcs, potential plot points, even a story that might not go anywhere but gets you a single beautiful joke are all part of the joy. And seeing the narrative click into place is often the most satisfying moment of all.

This week, for example, we’re interviewing runners and writing assistants for a big project we’ve got script commissions for. Then we’re meeting with some top-tier talent about a potential feature I’ve thought up. We’re also pitching a new factual show, which is very exciting. And that’s all before a quick trip to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe to see some new talent and hopefully get them to start writing scripts.

I made my career at the Fringe. I started out as a stand-up and performed a new show every year for about 10 years. It’s such a creatively free space compared with the comedy circuit, where often you’re playing to stags and hens. My stand-up act was (and is – I still dabble) based on stories about my life and family, and those stories I told in Edinburgh would eventually become my first sitcom, Hebburn, for the BBC. So the Fringe has a very special place in my heart.

And the Fringe isn’t far from me. We are based in Newcastle, where I was born, at the heart of the newly emerging television sector in the North East. There’s been incredible investment up here in the TV world, led by North East Screen (our funding and development agency). They are great and really help us get by, as well as promoting the cause of productions being shot up here.

It’s an incredible place to make a show, I call it “10-minute town” because you’re 10 minutes from everywhere. Want a castle? We’ve got loads of them! And 10 minutes from that castle will be a beach or a quaint Northumbrian village, which will be 10 minutes from a concrete prefab housing area, which will be 10 minutes from rolling countryside. With budgets tight and unit moves wasting precious time, why not shoot the show up here?

As the day finishes, we often end up at what is the main reason I rented my office here: the Indian restaurant Dabbawal is just round the corner. I was in the merchant navy when I was younger, and we would visit India and have this incredible food. I couldn’t find it anywhere in the UK … until I walked into this restaurant, had one mouthful and was transported back in time – much like the food critic in the film Ratatouille – to a moment where I would be sitting in my boiler suit at sunset, eating that incredible cuisine from a banana leaf. A joyous end to a joyous week.

Jason Cook is a stand-up, screenwriter and CEO of Schnoobert Productions.