Southern California is notorious for its delicious surfer dudes, scantily clad, waify golden girls, miles of scenic (and sometimes polluted) beaches and of course: The OC.

I have to admit, it’s hard to resist the drama, the outrageousness and the awkward pleasure that characterizes Orange County — which is probably why I jumped at the chance to participate in a conference call with OC creator Josh Schwartz.

As Schwartz is the youngest originator of a network TV show, I was itching to pick up some how-to success tips — and of course, get the inside scoop on season four, which premieres Nov. 2. While Josh did offer a bit of juicy insight into his enchanting world of long-limbed, Chanel-donning, tragedy-prone beauties, I found that the real characters were my inter-collegiate reporter colleagues:

The Village Idiot:

Troy University News: What was the significance of the files Julie gave to Ryan?

Josh Schwartz: Have you seen the episode? Uh...Well I don’t want to say anything too concrete to give away the first episode so...

TUN: Um...do get I get another questions or is that it?

JS: I have no idea how this [conference call] works.

TUN: I don’t either. Uhh...So are there going to be any major character developments in the future episodes?

JS: Hopefully there’ll be lots of them. At the beginning of the season it will be the Cohens battling it out for Ryan’s soul, and Seth and Summer working out their long distance issues — and Julie Cooper will be totally out of control this year.

The Sentimentalist:

University of San Francisco: What was your favorite show growing up and can you find elements of the show in the OC?

JS: Well if you look at Alf...if you look at the schematics of Alf — stranger coming into the home, disrupts the family...I think you could see a lot of Ryan as a modern day Alf.

USF: Okay...?

JS: I’m just kidding. Sort of. But I did enjoy that show as a kid. The Family Ties? There’s certainly a lot of the Keatons in the Cohens when things are going well. But I’m going to stick with Alf. Ryan does not eat cats, however. Just want to clarify.

USF: Do the characters represent any people you knew in your high school or growing up?

JS: I went to USC, and coming from Rhode Island I’d never seen these OC kids before — of which there were a lot in college — so I’d never met the giant water polo player and I was not familiar that being buoyant was a skill that would help you with the ladies. So basically, The OC was my attempt to avenge all the water polo players.

The Realist:

Columbia Daily Spectator: When I watch TV shows where the kids go off to college I think, wow this is unrealistic. They don’t go to class, they don’t study. How will you make Summer’s experience at Brown more realistic?

JS: Well, we certainly want to feel true to the college experience — I don’t think you’ll see every exam that she takes — but I definitely think you’ll see the idea that, college is a place to reinvent yourself and that you go there and nobody knows who you are and nobody knows your past — that it’s a real opportunity for growth, and that’s what we’re exploring.

CDS: You were one of the youngest creators of a network TV show. Do you have any advice for people in college and following that path? What did you do?

JS: I wrote a lot. I went to film school at USC and took full advantage of all the opportunities and I tried to write as much as possible. I think you’re always in the process of reinventing yourself as a writer but the more you can do it, especially when you’re in college and you’re not being paid to do it, there’s no outside influences, it’s just you figuring out your own way to write. That and you’ll probably end up having to move out to California.

The Ignorant Ivy-Leaguer:

Yale Daily News: Hey Jason, what’s up?

JS: Josh.

YDN: Oh Josh. Oh, my bad. Sorry. I was dry cleaning and then I got to go next. So basically...

JS: You go to Yale?

YDN: Yeah, I go to Yale.

JS: I don’t believe you.

YDN: You don’t believe me? I’m sorry. Okay. What are you most excited about for this season? If I’m going up to a friend who hasn’t caught the first episode and wants to just get, like, the gist of what’s new, better and different, how would you describe it?

JS: I just think the heart and humor are back. It’s exciting — you’ve never seen this version of the show before. I think the characters are off and in really different directions. The cast is just giving it 110 percent. I think it’s really fun again. I think the people who watch it will really enjoy it. If you’ve been a fan of the show at any point, I think that’s who this season is really for.

The Narcissistic Asshole:

University of Southern California: Hey, “Fight on!”

JS: “Fight on.”

USC: Yeahhhhhh! USC Cinema School!

JS: Yes.

USC: I just have a quick question. I’ve been working myself on a TV show and I was just wondering what you think the best way to present it is. Like how did you...what did you give them? Like, what do you suggest I have, kind of thing?

JS: Well I think the best course of action is you know, you have a script and then try to find an appropriate agent...

USC: Well yeah. Did you have, like, multiple scripts, like a...

JS: Well I had sort of an unusual situation. I sold a couple pilots before I did The OC. But I think getting an agent and getting your script out there, I mean, if you’re at USC someone knows somebody...

USC: (interrupting) Oh yeah, yeah. Do you think that that made a difference?

Facilitator interrupts, tells USC his time is up.

USC: This is a follow up to what he just said. Can I keep going? I was just wondering how much you thought already getting your stuff bought made a difference.

JS: I mean it made a difference, but everybody’s always looking for the next great script. So it’s totally possible.

The Inquisitive Intellectual:

The Stanford Daily: Is The OC meant to be a social critique? What was your original message for your viewers?

JS: It was meant to be a lot of different things. It was certainly a social critique and looking at the world of OC hopefully...I meant there was a reason all the characters on the show were outsiders in their own way, I thought that was probably the most interesting prism with which to look through in examining Orange County. And I always wanted to be careful that we weren’t judging the place that you know, that while we were maybe tweaking it a little bit or having our fun with it, it was always very inviting. It’s also a show about family and in the beginning and this year it’s a little bit a critique of the genre as well.

TSD: How do you feel about shows like Laguna Beach that clearly tie so closely to your show?

JS: It’s really flattering, to know that the show has spawned its own reality show component...But I think they all kind of examine the world from different places in different ways. I think it’s interesting that narratively Laguna Beach is like, how little story can we tell in a given episode while still being watchable? Yeah absolutely it’s cool. I feel like we’re all a part of something. So I’m excited about that...