Jeffery Deaver is an international number-one bestselling author. His novels have appeared on bestseller lists around the world. His books are sold in 150 countries and translated into over twenty-five languages. He has served two terms as president of Mystery Writers of America, and was recently named a Grand Master of MWA, whose ranks include Agatha Christie, Ellery Queen, Mary Higgins Clark and Walter Mosely.

Wall Street Journal bestselling author Isabella Maldonado wore a gun and badge in real life before turning to crime writing. A graduate of the FBI National Academy in Quantico and the first Latina to attain the rank of captain in the Fairfax County Police Department just outside DC, she retired as the Commander of Special Investigations and Forensics. During more than two decades on the force, her assignments included hostage negotiator, department spokesperson, and precinct commander. She uses her law enforcement background to bring a realistic edge to her writing, which includes the bestselling FBI Special Agent Nina Guerrera series (soon to be a Netflix feature film starring Jennifer Lopez), the award-winning Detective Veranda Cruz series, and the Agent Daniela “Dani” Vega series. Her books are published in24 languages.

Q: You both write your own series—how did you come to write one together?

Jeffery: We met at a writers’ conference in Chicago a few years ago. We were in the green room, getting ready for the presentation and chatting with Gillian Flynn, author of Gone Girl. The three of us were doing what authors do—cracking up and making up a joint book about a baby Mafioso (think The Godfather in Pampers). The idea died a merciful death, and we moved on. Then Isabella and I met at a conference a few years later and decided the idea of a joint book might be fun since we write the same type of book (fast-paced, third-person POV, past tense, with many surprises and twists), and we moved forward from there. The rest is history….

Isabella: After meeting at the Murder and Mayhem in Chicago conference in 2018, we met again at Thrillerfest in New York City in 2019. Again, we hit it off, enjoying each other’s sense of humor. I think it’s important for writing partners to have a basis of both friendship and mutual respect before embarking on a major endeavor such as writing a novel. Neither of us had ever co-authored a full-length work before, so we were both taking a major leap of faith. Fortunately, it turned out beautifully!

Q: What are some of the pros and cons of writing a book together? What do you do when you disagree with a plot line or a character’s choices? And who usually wins in a disagreement?

Jeffery: No cons whatsoever. It was great fun, exhilarating, and a very productive effort. We jointly came up with the outline and jointly wrote the book, editing each other’s work, with zero ego. Of course, we both floated ideas that we discussed and then discarded for creative reasons, which is the nature of the game!

Isabella: It was a completely positive experience. The important point is that we both treated each other with respect. Whenever either of us had an idea, the other felt free to cross-examine it, as an attorney would do. Since both of us have backgrounds with the law, we felt comfortable with that sort of arrangement. In other words, there was no room for ego. Everything we did was in service of the story, which really means the reader. We were both willing to sacrifice our darlings if we knew that it would make for a more enjoyable read. After all, readers are the ones we strive to please.

Q: Isabella, you spent many years in law enforcement. How did your experience inform your character Carmen Sanchez? Do you and Carmen have any similar traits?

Isabella: I wore a gun and badge for 22 years. I was a hostage negotiator, department spokesperson, precinct commander, and the first Latina to attain the rank of captain in my agency. My last official position was Commander of Special Investigations and Forensics. I also attended the FBI National Academy in Quantico, which gave me deeper insight into how the various federal agencies interacted when investigating high-profile cases. This background, and the fact that I was one of few women in law enforcement at the time, helps me write authentic characters who can provide readers with a sense of what it feels like to have “been there, done that”—especially as a woman in uniform.

Q: Professor Jake Heron is an intrusionist—is that a real thing? How did you do your research?

Jeffery: Not officially. Jake is someone who, as a professor and a security expert, looks for dangers to people from government, corporate, and individual overreach, as in data mining, domestic abuse, etc. The idea derives from my time as an attorney and my law review research into “torts,” civil wrongs like defamation and defective products, which I analyzed in terms of how the defendant “intruded” into my clients’ lives.

Q: What was it like doing the research into the digital terrorism you write about?

Jeffery: We both did a great deal of research (though trimmed it so that what remained was relevant to the story). Research is great fun—fiction writers, like journalists and puzzle masters, love to dig up facts. I have written four cyber thrillers (The Blue Nowhere, The Broken Window, The Steel Kiss, and Roadside Crosses), and have an interest in the dangers the internet poses (so I can scare the socks off my readers!).

Q: Southern California (and its freeways!) is a character in itself in your book—why did you want to set your thriller in that area?

Jeffery: I lived in California for a time and spend a lot of time there now. It’s a good venue for a thriller like ours because we needed a large geographic area with varied topography.

Q: Fatal Intrusion is the first in a series – can you share a preview of the next Sanchez and Heron novel?

Jeffery: No…. Ha, we’re suspense writers, so we have to leave the world in suspense! But we can say that the title is The Grief Artist. All will be revealed in due time…

Q: What are you both individually working on now?

Jeffery: We’re working on the sequel, and I am currently writing the next novel in the series featuring Colter Shaw, the hero of the CBS Sunday night prime-time show, Tracker. Also, I’m writing the latest in the series featuring Constant Marlowe (The Broken Doll, The Rule of Threes) for Amazon Original Stories.

Isabella: I am currently writing the third and final installment of the FBI agent Daniela “Dani” Vega trilogy, A Killer’s Code. It will be published in January, and I am currently planning a new series after that. There are other things on the horizon, but they are in early stages of development now.