Bingo. That combined with him actually liking to write and the fact that some settings actually give stat bonuses according to backstory, and that explains it all.
Well, fair enough, but reading upwards of 1300 pages over what was probably a week or two, in addition to everyone else's stuff and whatever else was happening in her life, and him trying to convince her of the first character's viability, and I think it's the most taxing thing on screen so far.