No one has been pursued by Donald Trump with more fervor than James Comey, who has been threatened with criminal investigations ever since Trump fired him as the head of the F.B.I., in 2017. Now the Justice Department is targeting Comey for supposedly inciting violence against Trump, because he posted—and quickly took down—a photo of beach shells that spelled out “86 47.” It is also fair to say that no one dumped by Trump has re-invented himself more successfully than Comey, whose turn to mystery writing has produced two acclaimed best-sellers, Central Park West and Westport. How many first-time thriller writers are praised by Harlan Coben, Michael Connelly, and Ian Rankin?
His latest is FDR Drive, and once again we follow the intrepid Nora Carleton, who is back as a federal prosecutor after a stint in private practice. One of Comey’s daughters is also a prosecutor, currently on the team leading the case against Sean “Diddy” Combs. Guess who once said, “I love Diddy.... He’s a good guy.” Yep, you can check it out in Season Five of The Celebrity Apprentice.
JIM KELLY: When I was reading your first novel, Central Park West, before it was published, I mentioned to a government-lawyer friend how well written it was. She replied, with a wave of her hand, that “everyone knows Comey is a good writer.” Why do you think she said this? Were you especially known for your writing as a lawyer? Perhaps you should publish a collection of your legal briefs!
JAMES COMEY: Well, that was nice of her. Sure, I’ve written some briefs that read like Tolstoy (or is it Tolkien?), but I doubt that’s what she meant. Maybe she said that because my first two nonfiction books were pretty good. Or maybe she liked the pacing of my Trump memos. I don’t know, but I’ve always loved to write, starting as a high-school and college journalist.
J.K.: In your new book, FDR Drive, federal prosecutor Nora Carleton takes on a case involving a far-right Internet hate-monger whose followers are picking off people he calls out as enemies on his show. Domestic terrorism also figures into the plot. How dangerous do you think the new breed of ultra-conservative political influencers are, and do you think we’ve become too complacent about domestic terrorism?
J.C.: Relentless online propaganda moves troubled people to violence. We saw the so-called Islamic State succeed in 2014 and 2015 at radicalizing young men in the United States by using Twitter to call them to a higher purpose—“Come to the caliphate or kill where you are.” It worked, in dozens and dozens of cases.
Propaganda today works to move young white men searching for meaning and purpose. But we—both ordinary folks and the government—struggle to recognize it because the perpetrators are white and because one of our political parties is now white-supremacist-adjacent. In Trump 2.0, it is not career-enhancing to work in white-identity extremism for the F.B.I. We are blind to a threat that is emboldened, which is not a good place for us to be.
J.K.: Your daughter, Maurene Ryan Comey, is a federal prosecutor who tried high-profile sex-crime cases against Ghislaine Maxwell and Sean Combs. She appears to be an inspiration for Nora Carleton. Any truth to that, and how does she feel about the character?
J.C.: I wrote Central Park West while she was in courtroom 318 at the old Manhattan federal courthouse, trying Maxwell. She wouldn’t let me attend (“It’ll be a thing if you come, Dad”), but my wife went and gave me reports. It dawned on me then that it was the same room in which I prosecuted John Gambino when she was a little girl. Until that moment, my plan was to have the protagonist be a mini-me, and I was struggling to write it. I switched to a woman prosecutor and based her on aspects of all five of my kids (so I can easily avoid blame if any of them are unhappy with a character trait). That unlocked something for me, and writing became a joy.
J.K.: You, of course, are not the first lawyer to become an acclaimed and best-selling crime writer. Scott Turow, John Grisham, Lisa Scottoline, and George V. Higgins are on the list. And Bill and Hillary Clinton have tried their hands, with help from James Patterson and Louise Penny. I have a theory that lawyers write crime fiction because not only can they control the outcome, but, unlike in real life, the good guys almost always win. Thoughts?
J.C.: I don’t know why other lawyers write crime fiction. I actually resisted trying it at first, but found it allowed me surprising freedom to show readers the worlds I’ve known in a very “real” way, while also being fiction. I also think part of the attraction for me is nostalgia and the fun of making up characters based on real people.
J.K.: Before you wrote your first novel, were you an avid fan of crime novels and TV shows? Rudy Giuliani, a federal prosecutor before he became mayor, faithfully watched The Sopranos when it first aired. Is there any crime novelist or TV show that especially influenced you?
J.C.: No. For decades I found it difficult to read or watch anything involving crime, espionage, or terrorism because those things filled my days. I read Turow’s Presumed Innocent in 1987 just before I went to work as a prosecutor for Rudy (who seemed different then, but maybe it’s me), and I don’t remember reading another in the genre until recently. Long ago, I tried to watch The Sopranos but hated the way it made a bunch of vicious bullies into something they are not.
J.K.: What is your writing routine? Do you have a set number of pages you aim for each day? Computer or legal pad? And any tricks you rely on to avoid writer’s block?
J.C.: I write on a laptop, and I type very quickly because I took a high-school typing class—in a clever effort to suck up to a coach. It did me no good athletically, but allows me to write thousands of words in a day if I have gas in the tank. Some days, the tank’s empty, but I’ve learned that if I’m patient, it will fill. I’ve also learned to go ask my spouse, who is my idea person. She will tell me where the story should go next. Then I go type quickly.
J.K.: Good news! I am not going to ask about Donald Trump! But I will ask you about what it was like working for George W. Bush and Barack Obama, and what differences and similarities they showed in doing their jobs. I know you almost quit working for Bush, but you and he resolved the issue that was troubling you.
J.C.: They were both institutionalists who realized they were part of something bigger than themselves. And they both struck me as people looking for the right answer to hard questions. Obama was more secure than Bush, but I think they were also both fundamentally good people.
J.K.: Finally, I assume Kash Patel has not called you (or used Signal!) to ask for advice. At least not yet. But if he did, what wisdom would you impart?
J.C.: Still waiting to be added to the group chat, but I’d say, “Spend as much time as possible in Vegas and at M.M.A. events. It’s where the bureau really needs you.”
Jim Kelly is the Books Editor at AIR MAIL
