David Drake

David A. Drake (September 24, 1945 – December 10, 2023) was an American author of science fiction and fantasy literature. A Vietnam War veteran, he worked as a lawyer before becoming a writer in the military science fiction genre.

Biography

Drake graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Iowa, majoring in history (with honors) and Latin. His studies at Duke University School of Law were interrupted for two years when he was drafted into the U.S. Army, where he served as an enlisted interrogator with the 11th Armored Cavalry (the Black Horse Regiment) in Vietnam and Cambodia.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> After the war, from 1972 to 1980 he worked as the assistant town attorney in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite web</ref> In 1981 he transitioned to full-time writing of science fiction literature.<ref name=":0" /> With Karl Edward Wagner and Jim Groce, he was one of the initiators of Carcosa, a small press company.<ref name=":0" /> He lived in Pittsboro, North Carolina.

In 2019, he announced that he may be suffering from Parkinson's disease.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On November 17, 2021 he announced he was retiring from writing novels, due to unspecified cognitive health problems.<ref name="newsletter 123">Template:Cite web</ref> Drake died on December 10, 2023, at the age of 78.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Works

His best-known solo work is the Hammer's Slammers series of military science fiction.<ref name=":0" /> His newer RCN Series was a space opera inspired by the Aubrey–Maturin novels.<ref name=":1">Template:Cite web</ref> In 1997, Drake began his largest fantasy series, Lord of the Isles, using elements of Sumerian religion and medieval technology. In 2007, Drake finished the series with its ninth volume.

Drake co-authored novels with authors such as Karl Edward Wagner, S. M. Stirling, and Eric Flint.<ref name=":0" /> Typically Drake provided plot outlines (5,000–15,000 words) and the co-author did "the real work of developing the outline into a novel".<ref name=outlines>Novel Plot Outlines, David Drake, May 26, 2010</ref> He did not "consider [his] involvement to be that of a real co-author."<ref name=outlines/> Drake also contributed to the Heroes in Hell series.<ref name=":1" />

A common element in most of his works was the focus on military, in particular, lives of regular soldiers.<ref name=":0" />

Some of Drake's works are available for free download in the Baen Free Library.

Adaptations

• Mayfair Games produced the licensed Hammer's Slammers board game (1984) based on David Drake's novel Hammer's Slammers.<ref name="designers">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp
• Mongoose Publishing adapted Drake's novel as the licensed setting Hammer's Slammers (2009) for the Traveller role-playing game.<ref name="designers"/>Template:Rp
• John Treadaway has adapted Hammer's Slammers into a wargame, of which several editions have been published.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The game utilizes various miniatures from companies such as Brigade Models, Old Crow Models, and Ground Zero Games.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

External links

• David Drake's web site
• Template:Isfdb name
• David Drake at Fantastic Fiction
• "Drake, David A" at The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, Third Edition
• David Drake's Papers are housed at the University of Iowa