Career Highlights

• Swanson is an attorney who has written about history, the Constitution and popular culture for a variety of publications
• His novel Manhunt: The 12 Day Chase for Lincoln’s Killer is the historical account of the greatest manhunt in American history: the pursuit and capture of John Wilkes Booth
• Swanson shares Abraham Lincoln’s February 12 birthday
• Swanson serves on the advisory board of the Ford’s Theatre Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Campaign

Career Overview

James L. Swanson is the author of the New York Times best seller Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln’s Killer. Swanson credits his grandmother for sparking his initial interest in Lincoln’s assassination at the tender age of 10 years old. The lawyer and author has written for the Wall Street Journal, Smithsonian and the Los Angeles Times, among other publications. He is also the author of the young adult’s work Chasing Lincoln’s Killer and co-author of Lincoln’s Assassins: Their Trial and Execution.

Manhunt is currently being made into a full-length film. Swanson serves on the advisory board of the Ford’s Theatre Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Campaign, and on the advisory committee of the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission. He currently lives in Washington, D.C.

Our Interview

James will be answering questions from Erika Thomas during an in-the-field interview at the National Book Festival. Stay tuned for his advice to aspiring writers!