Brad Meltzer gets to write about Batman and Superman and visit with ex-presidents to research his novels. Is it luck or Fate? By Zac Crain

Brad Meltzer hasn't been an unknown in literary circles since his first novel, The Tenth Justice, was published in 1997; his books have more than six million copies in print. But that's the position the author found himself in when he was signed to take over the reins of DC Comics' Green Arrow in 2002. Of course, his anonymity didn't last long: After a well-regarded run on Green Arrow and the commercial and critical success of his seven-issue murder-mystery miniseries, Identity Crisis, Meltzer became a star on the comics circuit as well.

Both of those worlds are colliding this month. Meltzer releases his sixth thriller, The Book of Fate, which follows Wes Holloway, who is trying to glue together the shards of his broken life and unravel the mystery that caused it to break in the first place, all while in the employ of former president Leland "the Lion" Manning. (He's a fictional president but feels real, thanks to Meltzer's visits to the offices of former presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton.) Meltzer also happens to be two issues deep into a 13-issue run on one of DC's prize books, Justice League of America. Though the mediums are seemingly dissimilar, Meltzer's unique gift for detail is present throughout both. In other words: If you are a fan of Meltzer's novels, you should check out his comics, and vice versa. And if you haven't checked out either, well, you're missing out.

Given his résumé, it should come as no surprise that Meltzer is a busy, busy man. I caught up with him over a crackling cell-phone connection between appointments. But he's happy to be busy, especially with his comics work: "I've been wanting to write the Justice League - and Batman and Superman and Wonder Woman - since I was seven years old."