Q: With new head writers in place, what will be happening on "General Hospital"? — Cheryl, Concord, Mass.

A: The show's new head writers, Shelly Altman and Jean Passanante, reported to the "General Hospital" writer's room this week. At a fan function, Maurice Benard (Sonny) was very vocal about being happy about the writing switch. He felt Ron Calavarti, who was let go after three years at the writing helm, did not like his character and said for the first time in a long time he is happy to be on the "GH" set.

Nathan Varni, who supervises, revealed what loyal "GH" fans can expect. He hopes the new plot twists and turns will get viewers who have checked out of "GH" to come back for their routine check-ups. In the past year the show has shed viewers like a snake's skin.

In a recent podcast, Varni opined, "General Hospital fans are very passionate. My boss (Vicki Dummer) said the same thing recently in an interview. Regardless of whether they're hating or loving it, at least people are talking about the show, and that gives us a lot of exposure."

"We're trying to get back to the emotional storytelling for the show," Varni added. "Just a lot more romance, and really kind of honing in on our core characters, and making it the show everybody has loved over the years. I feel like we got off course just a little bit over the last year or so, but we're really trying to bring the focus back to our core central characters. We do have a lot of characters, but I think you can tell stories in a way that characters are coming and going, and the stories are relevant. I think you'll miss people as much as fans have missed people in recent months. Our goal is not to tell stories then drop stories. Our goal is to tell really detailed, emotional-type stories with our main characters, and bring the families together. Shelly (Altman) and Jean (Passanante) have a lot of work to do."

Varni said there is a story in the works to bring the entire Corinthos family together.

"September is going to be really great," he said. "We have a central Sonny and Carly story coming up. They're going to be picking out a (wedding) date pretty soon. It's about bringing that Corinthos family together."

Anthony Geary may be back as Luke Spencer at some point.

"I don't think it would happen anytime soon, but that character is very important to the history of 'General Hospital,'" Varni said. "The door would remain open for Tony to come back. Sometime down the road, in the next year or two, it would be feasible for him to come back."

There are no plans for Kristen Alderson to return as Kiki Jerome at this point.

"I have a lot of faith in the role of Kiki moving forward," Varni revealed. "I think Hayley (Erin) is doing a fantastic, admirable job as Kiki. I hope the character becomes more layered, and perhaps gets a job, and becomes more involved."

Varni chalked up Robb Derringer reprising his role as Agent Kyle Sloane to Grayson McCouch's "scheduling issues," with no mention of the rumor that McCouch didn't want to return because the character was about to be killed off.

Could the "Jake is Jason" reveal finally be about to happen?

"I know we've angered a lot people over the past year because we've had a couple of very slow-moving stories, one being with Luke and the next one with Jason," acknowledges Varni. "But if you can stick (it out) a little longer, all that reveal will be coming soon. We are addressing it, and the wait is getting close to being over. I'm really excited because I love Billy (Miller) as an actor, and I think he is going to knock it out of the park when that reveal is finally made."

Varni also explained why we're seeing less of the show's child actors. (Thank God, in my opinion.)

"The kids are wonderful and they're so talented, and Nicolas (Bechtel) who plays Spencer is one of the smartest, most articulate kids I've ever met. What was happening is we were giving too much weight to child actors on the show. This is an adult show and kids are meant to be ancillary characters and not center stage, so we took a little break from the kids. But Spencer is going to be back. He shot some scenes recently. I think it's all about using the kids sparingly so you don't get sick of them and appreciate the days they're on."

The proof is in the pudding. Hopefully viewers will like the taste!

To find out more about Lynda Hirsch and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate web page at www.creators.com.