I don't know if you're married, but sometimes there are times where one is really together with their partner. And then there are times when you're both just in your own thing, but you're there together.
The basic rule [of writing] given us was simple and heartbreaking. A story to be effective had to convey something from the writer to the reader, and the power of its offering was the measure of its excellence. Outside of that, there were no rules.