The moment I heard how McAra died, I should have walked away. I can see that now. I should have said, "Rick, I'm sorry. This isn't for me. I don't like the sound of it," finished my drink, and left. But he was such a good storyteller, Rick-

I often thought he should have been the w riter and I the literary agent-that once he'd started talking, there was never any doubt I would listen, and by the time he had finished, I was hooked. The story, as Rick told it to me over lunch that day, went like this:

McAra had caught the last ferry from Woods Hole, Massachusetts, to Martha's Vineyard two Sundays earlier. I worked out afterward it must have been January the twelfth. It was touch-and-go whether the ferry would sail at all. A gale had been blowing since midafternoon, and the last few crossings had been canceled. But toward nine o'clock the wind eased slightly, and at nine forty-five the master decided it was safe to cast off. The boat was crowded; McAra was lucky to get a space for his car. He parked belowdecks and then went upstairs to get some air. No one saw him alive again.

ROBERT Harris began his illustrious writing career with the publication of Fatherland (1992), a "what-if" novel set in the aftermath of World War II. He followed it with another war-era novel, Enigma (1995), and then Archangel (1999), set mostly in contemporary Russia. His recent fiction has concentrated on ancient Rome, where his novels Pompeii (2003) and Imperium (2006) take place.

It may come as a surprise that the author of five books featuring distant times and places would turn to contemporary suspense set in America. But with his sixth book, The Ghost, Harris says he felt that "this particular setup, of a ghostwriter-there was no way of doing it with everyone disguised in togas. This is now." Harris was a journalist before he was a novelist, so he is no stranger to the intrigues of modern politics, a familiarity that shows to great advantage in The Ghost. After graduating with a degree in English literature from Cambridge University, Harris worked for the BBC and then for several British newspapers. Now a full-time author, he recently spoke with one of our editors about the genesis of his latest book.

SELECT EDITIONS: What was the inspiration for The Ghost?

ROBERT HARRIS: I liked the idea of writing something-at first I thought a stage play rather than a novel-using the character of a ghostwriter, who would be licensed to ask questions of some powerful person. The next step would be that he would discover something about the client that no one was supposed to know.

But there were two aspects I could never properly resolve: First, who would this powerful person be? And then, where would the book be set?

About two years ago, I heard a radio interview with someone who was trying to have Tony Blair prosecuted for war crimes. That gave me the central character-a former British prime minister-and a location-the USA, which is where such a figure would go to seek sanctuary from arrest.

SE: What comes first in your writing, plot or character?

RH: First comes an idea. Then characters begin to evolve out of that idea. Everything has to flow from their personalities, otherwise it will not be emotionally engaging, or plausible.

SE: How much of The Ghost was based on research and how much on your own experiences?

RH: The only real research I did was to visit Martha's Vineyard. The rest of it came from my professional life as a journalist and from my imagination-trying to think what it would feel like to have been prime minister and to have lost power.

For research, my agent offered to introduce me to his godmother, who has a house on Martha's Vineyard. She was marvelously helpful. I love seaside resorts out of season. It was the perfect backdrop for the story I wanted to tell.

I also spoke to a couple of friends who have worked as ghostwriters, and I read a couple of books on the subject.

Normally I spend about two years researching a novel; for this, it was more like two weeks.

SE: I understand that your book Pompeii is being made into a film. Can you tell us about this?

RH: The director Roman Polanski bought the film rights earlier this year. He and I collaborated on the script, and a huge budget was raised by the producers. I hope we may start filming in 2009.

SE: What are you reading at the moment?

RH: I just finished Arthur Schlesinger's Journals. I love diaries, letters-anything that is an original source, unmediated by another writer.

SE: What is the best thing about being a successful writer?

RH: Freedom. Within reason, I can write what I like and spend as long doing it as is necessary. That is a luxury beyond price.