I'm loving this Mickey segment! I have a question for Mickey: Do you have any advice for writers just signed - do's and dont's - to make the most of those first few years? A lot of writers flounder at this stage. Also, what goes on in these manager-client meetings? What do they work on with the client?

Hey, Paul! I'm still learning those as I go. Part of it is what I put in the doc, which is not taking on too much. I heard this from a number of people and I saw how easy it could happen. As much as I want to work and am excited to have certain opportunities, I have to be honest with myself and be willing to pass on stuff I'm not a hundred per cent passionate about or think I can execute. Otherwise, in terms of working with my manager and agents, I try to stay fairly low maintenance. I don't hit them with every idea that comes in my brain or half-baked logline. I take their advice and feedback to heart just like I would any other producing partner. I deal with my neuroses on my own time and try not to put them in the position of psychologist too often, which also means I don't run to them with every problem. I show up on time and prepared for meetings, having done my homework. I think so much of it is basic common sense stuff: be professional, don't be an a-hole, be someone people WANT to work with. Oh, and I got over my fear of disappointing them when I don't get the job or some new idea I hit them with falls flat. They're not all going to be winners but I never stop trying. In regards to working with my manager, he sees a lot of early drafts of scripts, pitches and concept docs and gives me his feedback, then we do a good bit of brainstorming together and punching stuff up before others see it. He's the early strategist - he knows if some new idea I'm excited about just sold to someone else, or was put in turnaround somewhere because of unforeseen pitfalls. When there are multiple opportunities on the table he helps me prioritize and navigate relationships. He helps manage my time, making sure I don't get sucked into a black hole of endless development. I imagine it's different for every client/manager relationship but that's a lot of what goes on with us. Hope that helps!

Wow. Thanks Mickey! A lot lot of us really look up to you. Not just for your one in a million dream scenario, but also for the good attitude you have towards everything. It's cool how you took time out of your busy schedule to answer fan questions.

I want to be Mickey Fisher when I grow up. This is probably my favorite series so far this month. The manager that passed on Mickey just because he mentioned he had different scripts in different genres must have been kicking himself when he saw the Extant script whip the town into a frenzy. Reminds me of the story of how an agent dropped Allan Loeb right before Loeb wrote "Only living Boy" and became a Blacklist darling--and one of the busiest writers in town. It goes to show you that if you're a manger, you shouldn't get too precious on what a newcomer should be--jut read the quality of the script to make that projection. So what if they have an animated script, a crime drama and a sci fi/family drama/suspense thriller...you might be missing out on the next Mickey Fisher!

We are free to write whatever we want. And there is no one pure path to success. So if our interests are all over the place re genre, you can follow your muse a la the Coens and carve out a career. That said, the path of least resistance, as I've said before, is to be genre specific: Write three complete, vetted, and rewritten scripts in one genre, and have at least two treatments in the same genre. If you have some strong loglines with that background, I can't imagine a manager NOT wanting to read you. You have positioned yourself to be an easy writer to pitch around town because you've created content, you've proved you can write, you have strong ideas, and you slot right into a distinct genre which in effect becomes your brand.

I really appreciate the kind words, guys. I've been so lucky, I feel like the least I can do is pass a little of it on. I agree with Scott here about the path of least resistance. I was lucky in that this genre is something I love and so I did have some other things in the pipeline that were in the same vein as EXTANT. I didn't hold it against the manager at all, I totally saw where he was coming from. If he sent around my gritty crime fiction script one day he couldn't very well send me out to pitch for a comedy the next. HE'S (or she's) going to look like they don't know what they're doing. I think what's great about what we do is that if you can claim a spot and stay in that lane for a bit, you can eventually make a move to widen your lane by writing another spec.

That's exactly what I tell people, Mickey: If you been 'branded' in a certain genre and you get tired of writing just those projects, you can always write a spec in a DIFFERENT genre and break into other areas of writing that way.