Born in Washington , D.C. , Kulish was educated at Columbia University , graduating in 1997 . He worked a series of writing and Internet jobs in Hong Kong and New York City before becoming first a news assistant , then a reporter , at '' The Wall Street Journal '' . As a correspondent in the paper 's Washington bureau he covered the Florida election recount in 2000 and the September 11 attacks at the Pentagon . In 2003 , he was sent to report on the invasion of Iraq for '' The Wall Street Journal '' . This influenced the writing of his first novel '' Last One In '' ( 2007 )
September 11 attacks
September 11 attacks
Nicholas Kulish