Who among us doesn\u2019t secretly believe they have one decent novel in them? Writing a book isn\u2019t exactly the most lucrative these days, but still, we think, \u201cMy book could totally be the next \u2018The Firm\u2019!\u201d In New York, there\u2019s plenty of politicos and government officials who have actually acted on that impulse, with some of them developing part-time careers out of writing fiction. As you\u2019re building out your back-to-school reading list, we suggest putting down \u201cThe Power Broker,\u201d and dive into the vastly varied world of New York politics\u2019 part-time novelists.<\/p>\n
Sam Schwartz<\/p>\n
\u201cGridlock Sam\u201d Schwartz, a former New York City traffic commissioner, can write the rules of the road and even the foundations of our first-in-the-nation congestion pricing scheme, but lately he\u2019s been trying his hand at fiction<\/a>. His first novel \u201cAutokill,\u201d co-authored with Cary Pepper, unsurprisingly dovetails with his traffic obsession. It explores a universe in which autonomous vehicles are used as weapons \u2013\u00a0a universe that isn\u2019t entirely science fiction, he told The New York Times.<\/p>\n Bradley Tusk<\/p>\n Speaking of futuristic cars \u2026 political strategist, lobbyist and Bloomberg alum Bradley Tusk is the author of several books, including the 2023 novel<\/a> \u201cObvious in Hindsight.\u201d Imagine the early days of Uber\u2019s swaggering foray into New York City, but this time they\u2019re selling a transportation revolution with flying cars. Bonus points for Tusk, who actually owns a bookstore<\/a> on the Lower East Side.<\/p>\n Yume Kitasei<\/p>\n New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani\u2019s pick to lead the Department of Citywide Administrative Services arguably had the most established literary career outside government by the time she was made a commissioner. Yume Kitasei has worked in city government for 15 years but has concurrently built a career writing speculative fiction on the side, landing on some \u201cbest of\u201d lists in the process. As of April, she was on deadline<\/a> for her next novel.<\/p>\n Steve Israel<\/p>\n The former Democratic member of Congress from Long Island is one of a few former elected officials who have taken up writing after leaving office, with Israel taking inspiration<\/a> from real events in his World War II spy novel \u201cThe Einstein Conspiracy.\u201d More bonus points for Israel, who also owns<\/a> a bookstore in Oyster Bay.<\/p>\n Pete King<\/p>\n