The guest
Mark Greaney — Bestselling thriller novelist behind the Gray Man series and the continuation of Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan novels.
The gist
Mark Greaney joins Joe Rogan to discuss how a mild-mannered guy writes hyper-violent espionage thrillers, and the 20-year, repeatedly-rejected road to getting published at age 42. He details the 13-year journey of The Gray Man from paperback to the Netflix film with Ryan Gosling, and how he co-authored Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan novels after meeting and briefly writing with Clancy before his death. Greaney explains his research process, including roughly 50 firearms classes, Pentagon visits, and travel to 38 countries, plus how he weaves real geopolitics (Russia, Ukraine, oligarchs) into fiction. The conversation also covers obsessive fans and critics, a botched back surgery that left permanent nerve damage, and a long riff on fitness, nootropics, and David Goggins-style mental discipline.
Big reveals
- Greaney spent 15 years writing his first (unpublished) novel and wasn't published until he was 42 years old.
- He put in his notice at Medtronic four days before the company offered everyone a generous voluntary-separation buyout.
- Severe social anxiety once made him skip pre-arranged meetings with literary agents, never leaving his hotel room.
- Tom Clancy died days after finishing their third book together, and Clancy's family then asked Greaney to continue the Jack Ryan series.
- His new Russia-themed novel's plot points were echoed by real FBI/intelligence indictments that surfaced just weeks after he finished writing.
- A surgeon botched his back surgery, leaving permanent nerve damage so he cannot dorsiflex his left foot, after four total surgeries.
- Greaney once unknowingly ate half a tray of cannabis lime squares and spent the night in a paranoid freakout convinced a jellyfish sting was killing him.
Things worth remembering
- The Gray Man bounced around Hollywood since 2009; Brad Pitt was once signed on and Charlize Theron wanted to play a female version of the lead.
- Roughly 13 years passed between Greaney writing the book (2007) and the film's 2022 release.
- He took around 50 firearms and high-risk contractor classes, spending close to 200 days training at a Tennessee school.
- The phrase 'gray man' came from contractors describing how to blend in and not look tactical while traveling overseas.
- Greaney once crammed 14 extra pages into a Clancy book at the last minute, after the publisher had already measured the spine.
- Rogan had Greaney take six Alpha Brain Black Label capsules live on camera during the episode.
- Despite around $20 million from his books, David Goggins owns no car and lives a Spartan life, per Rogan.
- Greaney has two articulating artificial lumbar discs, a 'Maverick' device made by his former employer Medtronic.
- He has written roughly 23 books in about 12 years, often producing one nearly every year.
Recommended in this episode
Books, products and media the guest or host genuinely endorsed here — with the buy link.
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