Duane Louis Swierczynski (born February 22, 1972) is an American

crime writer True crime is a nonfiction literary, podcast, and film genre in which the author examines an actual crime and details the actions of real people associated with and affected by criminal events. The crimes most commonly include murder; about 40 per ...

known for his work in non-fiction books, novels and comic books.

Early life

Duane Swierczynski was born and raised in Frankford, a neighborhood in lower

Northeast Philadelphia Northeast Philadelphia, nicknamed Northeast Philly, the Northeast and the Great Northeast, is a section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. According to the 2000 census, Northeast Philadelphia has a population of between 300,000 and 450,000, depending ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, United States. After leaving in the late 1990s and making several stops elsewhere, he moved to another neighborhood in Northeast Philadelphia from 2002 until 2016. He currently resides with his family in the Los Angeles area.An interview with Rhawnhurst graphic novelist Duane Swierczynski
, NEastPhilly.com, May 6, 2009.Technically Not Tech: Graphic novelist Duane Swierczynski
TechnicallyPhilly.com, April 6, 2009. Swierczynski's surname loosely translates as "dweller near a fir tree." He and his brother Gregg were named after the

Allman Brothers Allman may refer to: Music *The Allman Brothers Band The Allman Brothers Band was an American rock band formed in Jacksonville, Florida in 1969 by brothers Duane Allman (founder, slide guitar and lead guitar) and Gregg Allman (vocals, keyboa ...

Career

Swierczynski has written six

non-fiction Nonfiction, or non-fiction, is any document or media content that attempts, in good faith, to provide information (and sometimes opinions) grounded only in facts and real life, rather than in imagination. Nonfiction is often associated with b ...

books, including ''This Here’s A Stick-Up: The Big Bad Book Of American Bank Robbery'' (Alpha, 2002) and ''The Big Book O’ Beer'' (Quirk, 2004). He has worked as an editor at ''

Men’s Health ''Men's Health'' (''MH''), published by Hearst, is the world's largest men's magazine brand, with 35 editions in 59 countries. It is also the best-selling men's magazine on U.S. newsstands. Started as a men's health magazine by Rodale, Inc. ...

'' and ''

Details Detail(s) or The Detail(s) may refer to: Film and television * ''Details'' (film), a 2003 Swedish film * ''The Details'' (film), a 2011 American film * ''The Detail'', a Canadian television series * "The Detail" (''The Wire''), a television epis ...

'' as well as Philadelphia magazines including the ''

Philadelphia City Paper ''Philadelphia City Paper'' was an alternative weekly newspaper in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The independently owned paper was free and published every Thursday in print and daily online at citypaper.net. Staff reporters focused on labor issues, ...

'', which he left in February 2008. ''Secret Dead Men'', Swierczynski’s

crime fiction Crime fiction, detective story, murder mystery, mystery novel, and police novel are terms used to describe narratives that centre on criminal acts and especially on the investigation, either by an amateur or a professional detective, of a crime, ...

debut, was published in 2005 by PointBlank and has since written nine further novels. His fiction draws heavily on crime noir themes, making frequent use of femmes fatale. In 2008, Swierczynski signed an exclusive deal with

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

, where he penned '' Moon Knight Annual'' #1, a ''

Punisher The Punisher (Francis "Frank" Castle, born Castiglione) is an antihero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer Gerry Conway and artists John Romita Sr. and Ross Andru. The Punisher made ...

'' one-shot ("Force of Nature"), and the second volume of ''

Cable Cable may refer to: Mechanical * Nautical cable, an assembly of three or more ropes woven against the weave of the ropes, rendering it virtually waterproof * Wire rope, a type of rope that consists of several strands of metal wire laid into a hel ...

'', which lasted 24 issues. He also assumed writing duties on ''The Immortal Iron Fist'' from issue #18 until the title's cancellation. His other planned projects with Marvel included a revival of ''

Werewolf By Night The Werewolf by Night (usually referred to by other characters simply as the Werewolf) is the name applied to two fictional characters who are werewolves appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The first incarnation of We ...

'', a story starring

Bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...

, and contributing to the

X-Men The X-Men are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, first appearing in ''The X-Men'' #1 by artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby and writer/editor Stan Lee in 1963. Although initially cancelled in 1970 due to lo ...

-related event ''

Messiah War "Messiah War" is a crossover storyline running through the issues of '' Cable'' and '' X-Force'' cover-dated May– July 2009 and a one-shot, ''X-Force/Cable: Messiah War'', published by Marvel Comics. Writer Craig Kyle described it as the follo ...

''. He later wrote the 2012 rebooted Bloodshot series from

Valiant Comics Valiant Comics is an American comic books, comic book publisher. The company was founded in 1989 by former Marvel Comics editor-in-chief Jim Shooter along with lawyer and businessman Steven Massarsky. In 1994, the company was sold to Acclaim E ...

and the

Black Hood The Black Hood is a fictional character created by MLJ Comics (later known as Archie Comics) during the period known as the "Golden Age of Comic Books". The Black Hood first appeared in ''Top-Notch Comics #9'', October 1940 and became one of MLJ ...

series from Archie Comics beginning in 2015. Lion's Gate Entertainment picked up Swierczynski's novel ''Severance Package'' for film treatment and hired Brett Simon to direct the film and co-write the script with Swierczynski. Swierczynski is known for using a variety of social media tools, including

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

and

Blogspot Blogger is an American online content management system founded in 1999 which enables multi-user blogs with time-stamped entries. Pyra Labs developed it before being acquired by Google in 2003. Google hosts the blogs, which can be accessed th ...

. In September 2011, DC Comics relaunched ''

Birds of Prey Birds of prey or predatory birds, also known as raptors, are hypercarnivorous bird species that actively hunt and feed on other vertebrates (mainly mammals, reptiles and other smaller birds). In addition to speed and strength, these predat ...

'' with issue #1 as part of their

The New 52 The New 52 is the 2011 revamp and relaunch by DC Comics of its entire line of ongoing monthly superhero comic books. Following the conclusion of the " Flashpoint" crossover storyline, DC canceled all its existing titles and debuted 52 new serie ...

publishing initiative. Swierczynski replaced

Marc Andreyko Marc Andreyko (born 20 June 1970) is a comic book writer and screenwriter, best known for the true crime series ''Torso'' he co-wrote with Brian Michael Bendis and for co-creating the character Kate Spencer for DC Comics. Career Marc Andreyko ...

as the writer, with Jesus Saiz handling the art.

Batgirl Batgirl is the name of several superheroines appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, depicted as female counterparts and allies to the superhero Batman. Although the character Betty Kane was introduced into publication in ...

and Poison Ivy will later be joining the team.

Personal life

Duane Swierczynski is married and has two children. His first-born son (born March 30, 2002), Parker, is named in honor of the

Richard Stark Donald Edwin Westlake (July 12, 1933 – December 31, 2008) was an American writer, with more than a hundred novels and non-fiction books to his credit. He specialized in crime fiction, especially comic capers, with an occasional foray into ...

character as well as

Spider-Man Spider-Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, he first appeared in the anthology comic book '' Amazing Fantasy'' #15 (August 1962) in the ...

's secret identity, Peter Parker. He also has a daughter (born July 15, 2003), Evelyn, or Evie for short.

Works

Non-fiction

* ''This Here’s A Stick-Up: The Big Bad Book Of American Bank Robbery'' (Alpha, 2002) * ''The Big Book O’ Beer'' (Quirk, 2004) * ''The Encyclopedia of the FBI's Ten Most Wanted List, 1950 to Present'' * ''The Perfect Drink for Every Occasion'' (Quirk) * ''The Spy's Guide: Office Espionage'' (Quirk) * ''The Complete Idiot's Guide to Frauds, Scams, and Cons'' (Alpha)

Fiction

* ''Secret Dead Men'' (PointBlank, 2005) * ''The Wheelman'' (St. Martin's Press, 2005) * ''Damn Near Dead: An Anthology of Geezer Noir'' (Busted Flush Press, editor, 2006) * ''The Blonde'' (St. Martin's Press, 2006) * ''Severance Package'' (St. Martin's Press, 2008) * ''Murder at Wayne Manor: An Interactive Batman Mystery'' (Quirk, 2008) * ''

Expiration Date An expiration date or expiry date is a previously determined date after which something should no longer be used, either by operation of law or by exceeding the anticipated shelf life for perishable goods. Expiration dates are applied to selecte ...

'' (Minotaur Books, 2010) (Winner of the 2011 Anthony award for Best Paperback Original) * ''Canary'' (Mulholland Books, 2015) * ''Revolver'' (Mulholland Books, 2016) * ''The House Husband'' (with James Patterson, BookShots, 2017)

Charlie Hardie Trilogy

* ''Fun and Games'' (Mulholland Books, 2011) * ''Hell and Gone'' (Mulholland Books, 2011) * ''Point and Shoot'' (Mulholland Books, 2013)

Comics

* '' Moon Knight: Annual #1'' (

Marvel Marvel may refer to: Business * Marvel Entertainment, an American entertainment company ** Marvel Comics, the primary imprint of Marvel Entertainment ** Marvel Universe, a fictional shared universe ** Marvel Music, an imprint of Marvel Comics ...

, 2007) * ''

: Force Of Nature'' (Marvel, 2008) * ''

'' #1–25 (Marvel, 2008–2010) * ''

The Immortal Iron Fist ''The Immortal Iron Fist'' was a comic book series published by Marvel Comics and starring the superhero Iron Fist. Publication history The series was written jointly by Ed Brubaker and Matt Fraction from issues #1-14 with artists Travel Forema ...

'' #17–27 (with

Travel Foreman Travel Foreman is an American comic book artist. Biography Travel Foreman gained attention with his work on Com.x’s ''Cla$$war'', where he replaced original series artist Trevor Hairsine.Iron Fist: The Death Queen of California'' (Marvel, 2008) * ''

: Frank Castle'' #66–70, #75 (Marvel, 2009) * '' Dead of Night: Werewolf by Night'' #1-4 (Marvel, 2009) * ''

: The Times and Life of Lucas Bishop'' #1–3 (Marvel, 2009) * ''

Immortal Weapons The Immortal Weapons are fictional characters appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. They are each a champion of one of the Seven Capital Cities of Heaven in the . The Immortal Weapons first appear in ''The Immortal Iron Fi ...

'' #1-5 (Marvel, 2009-2010) * ''

Dark X-Men The Dark X-Men are a fictional team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. They made their debut during the crossover between ''Dark Avengers'' and ''Uncanny X-Men'' written by Matt Fraction, as part of the broader Dark Re ...

'' #1-5 (Marvel, 2010) * ''

Deadpool Deadpool is an antihero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Fabian Nicieza and artist/writer Rob Liefeld, the character first appeared in ''New Mutants'' #98 (cover-dated Feb. 1991). Initially, Deadp ...

: Wade Wilson's War'' #1-4 (Marvel, 2010) * '' X-Men: Hope'' #1 (Marvel, 2010) * ''X-Men Origins:

'' #1 (Marvel, 2010) * '' X-Men: Curse of the Mutants —

Blade A blade is the portion of a tool, weapon, or machine with an edge that is designed to puncture, chop, slice or scrape surfaces or materials. Blades are typically made from materials that are harder than those they are to be used on. Historic ...

'' #1 (Marvel, 2010) * '' Black Widow'' #6-8 (Marvel, 2010) * '' Widowmaker'' #2, #4 (Marvel, 2010-2011) * ''

'' #1-17, ongoing series, (DC, 2011-2013) * '' Infestation 2'' #1-2 (IDW, 2012) * '' Infestation 2: 30 Days of Night'' #1 (IDW, 2012) * '' Bloodshot'' #1-13, ongoing series, (Valiant Comics, 2012-2013) * ''

Godzilla is a fictional monster, or '' kaiju'', originating from a series of Japanese films. The character first appeared in the 1954 film ''Godzilla'' and became a worldwide pop culture icon, appearing in various media, including 32 films produc ...

'' #1-13, ongoing series, (IDW, 2012-2013) * '' X (comics)'' #0-24, ongoing series, (Dark Horse, 2013-2015) * ''

Judge Dredd Judge Joseph Dredd is a fictional character created by writer John Wagner and artist Carlos Ezquerra. He first appeared in the second issue of ''2000 AD (comics), 2000 AD'' (1977), which is a British weekly anthology Comic book, comic. He is the ...

'' #1-30, ongoing series, (IDW, 2012-2015) * ''Two Past Midnight'' #1-3 (Dark Horse, 2013) * '' Harbinger Wars'' #1-4 (with

Joshua Dysart Joshua Dysart (born June 21, 1971) is an American comic book writer. He has done work for DC Comics, Vertigo Comics, Dark Horse Comics, Image Comics, Valiant Entertainment, IDW Publishing, Penny-Farthing Press, Virgin Comics and Random House ...

, limited series, Valiant Comics, 2013) * ''

vs.

X-Force X-Force is a fictional team of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, most commonly in association with the X-Men. Conceived by writer/illustrator Rob Liefeld, the team first appeared in ''New Mutants#New Muta ...

'' #1-4 (Marvel, 2014) * ''

The Black Hood The Black Hood is a fictional character created by MLJ Comics (later known as Archie Comics) during the period known as the " Golden Age of Comic Books". The Black Hood first appeared in '' Top-Notch Comics #9'', October 1940 and became one of ...

'' vol. 4 #1-11, ongoing series, (Archie Comics, 2015-2016) * ''

'' vol. 5 #1-5 (Archie Comics, 2016-2017) * '' Star Wars: Rogue One: Cassian &

K-2SO K-2SO (also referred to as K2 or Kaytoo-Esso) is a droid character in the ''Star Wars'' franchise, first appearing in the 2016 film ''Rogue One''. He is a CGI character voiced and portrayed through motion capture by Alan Tudyk. In the film, ...

'' #1 (Marvel, 2017)

Conferences

*
NoirCon:
2007-2022'' (

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Swierczynski, Duane 21st-century American novelists American male novelists American comics writers Living people 1972 births American people of Polish descent Anthony Award winners Writers from Philadelphia 21st-century American male writers Novelists from Pennsylvania