David Grann is one of the most celebrated narrative nonfiction writers working in the English language today, a staff writer for The New Yorker whose books have repeatedly topped the New York Times bestseller list, won major literary awards, and been adapted into major motion pictures by some of Hollywood’s most prestigious directors.
Born on March 10, 1967, in New York City, Grann has built a career around an unusual gift: the ability to take forgotten or overlooked historical events and reconstruct them with the precision of a detective, the prose of a novelist, and the moral seriousness of a historian committed to confronting uncomfortable truths about American society.
His 2017 book Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI brought national attention to one of the most disturbing episodes of racial injustice in American history, the systematic murder of wealthy Osage Nation members in 1920s Oklahoma for their oil rights, and was adapted into a sweeping 2023 Martin Scorsese film starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, and Lily Gladstone.
His first book, The Lost City of Z (2009), about the disappearance of British explorer Percy Fawcett in the Amazon jungle, was translated into more than 25 languages and adapted into a critically acclaimed 2016 film directed by James Gray.
His most recent book, The Wager (2023), about an 18th-century British naval shipwreck and the competing accounts of its survivors, debuted at number one on the New York Times list and remained on the bestseller list for 65 weeks.
Described by critics as simply the best narrative nonfiction writer working today, Grann has demonstrated over two decades that rigorously reported journalism and genuinely compelling storytelling are not in competition with each other. His work serves both as entertainment of the highest order and as a form of moral reckoning with the American past.
Profile
| Full Name | David Elliot Grann |
| Born | March 10, 1967 |
| Age | 59 years old |
| Birthplace | New York City, New York, USA |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Journalist, Author, Staff Writer (The New Yorker) |
| Spouse | Kyra Darnton (married 2000) |
| Net Worth | $5–$7 million |
Early Life
David Elliot Grann was born on March 10, 1967, in New York City.
He grew up in a family that valued intellectual curiosity and has described an early and deep love of reading and storytelling that drew him toward writing as a vocation from an early age.
His path to journalism was not direct, however, he initially hoped to become a novelist, a goal he pursued through his academic years before the demands of serious reporting captured his imagination more fully.
Education
David Grann graduated from Connecticut College in 1989 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Government.
While still in college, he received a Thomas J. Watson Fellowship and conducted research in Mexico, an experience that launched his career in journalism.
He subsequently earned a Master’s degree in international relations from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University in 1993.
That same year, he also earned a Master’s degree in creative writing from Boston University, where he also taught courses in creative writing and fiction, a dual academic formation that has been visible ever since in the journalistic work that combines political understanding with novelistic craft.
Career
David Grann began his professional writing career as a freelance journalist in Mexico following his Watson Fellowship.
In 1994 he was hired as a copy editor at The Hill, the Washington DC congressional newspaper, where he was promoted to executive editor in 1995. In 1996 he became a senior editor at The New Republic. In 2003 he joined The New Yorker as a staff writer, the position he has held ever since and in which he has produced the investigative and narrative long-form work that defines his reputation.
His New Yorker articles have addressed subjects ranging from a wrongful execution in Texas (Trial by Fire, which influenced a US Supreme Court opinion and won a George Polk Award) to the mysterious death of the world’s foremost Sherlock Holmes expert to an Antarctic explorer’s extraordinary journey. His pieces have been collected in several anthologies and in his own collection The Devil and Sherlock Holmes (2010), named by Men’s Journal one of the best true crime books ever written.
The Lost City of Z (2009), his debut book, was the product of years of research into the disappearance of British explorer Percy Fawcett in the Amazon in 1925. The book debuted on the New York Times bestseller list at number four before reaching number one and was translated into more than 25 languages.
The 2017 film adaptation directed by James Gray starred Charlie Hunnam, Sienna Miller, Robert Pattinson, and Tom Holland. Killers of the Flower Moon (2017) was even more successful and culturally impactful, spending years at or near the top of the bestseller list, winning the Edgar Allan Poe Award for best true crime book, and being named a finalist for the National Book Award. Martin Scorsese’s 2023 adaptation was one of the most acclaimed films of its year. The Wager (2023), about the 1741 wreck of HMS Wager and the competing testimonies of its survivors, debuted at number one and stayed on the bestseller list for 65 weeks.
Awards & Nominations
- George Polk Award (Trial by Fire).
- Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best True Crime Book (Killers of the Flower Moon).
- National Book Award finalist (Killers of the Flower Moon, 2017).
- Barnes and Noble Author of the Year Award (2023).
- Multiple works cited in Best American Writing anthologies.
- Multiple New York Times bestseller list positions including number one for three separate books.
Social Media
David Grann maintains a presence on X (formerly Twitter) and has been noted for an eclectic and widely followed Twitter feed, which went quiet for five years while he worked on Killers of the Flower Moon.
He is not a prolific social media presence, consistent with his preference for long-form, deeply researched work over immediate commentary.
Personal Life
David Grann married Kyra Darnton in 2000. The couple has two children and lives in New York City.
He is by reputation a meticulous, introverted researcher who can spend years on a single book project and is known for his personal integrity and his commitment to finding and accurately representing the experiences of people who have been overlooked, silenced, or wronged by history.
Net Worth
David Grann’s net worth is estimated at between $5 million and $7 million, accumulated through book royalties on multiple international bestsellers, film adaptation rights sales for three separate books, his salary as a New Yorker staff writer, speaking engagements, and teaching.
The film rights for Killers of the Flower Moon and The Lost City of Z each generated significant income, and The Wager is reportedly in development for screen adaptation.
Bibliography
- The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon (2009).
- The Devil and Sherlock Holmes: Tales of Murder, Madness and Obsession (2010).
- Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI (2017).
- The White Darkness (2019).
- The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder (2023).
- Killers of the Flower Moon: A Young Reader’s Edition (2023).
Conclusion
David Grann has made a distinctive and lasting contribution to American letters by insisting that journalism at its highest level can be as artistically powerful as fiction and more morally important. Each of his major books has not only succeeded commercially but has prompted reckoning, with historical injustice,
with the stories nations tell about themselves, with the silences that power imposes on the marginalized.
As Hollywood continues to adapt his work and as readers around the world discover his books through film and word of mouth, David Grann’s influence on narrative nonfiction and on public understanding of American history will continue to grow. He is, without question, one of the most significant American journalists of his generation.