David Drake

David Drake (born September 24, 1945) is an author of science fiction and fantasy literature. A Vietnam War veteran who has worked as a lawyer, he is now one of the premier authors of the military science fiction subgenre.

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 by the U.S. Army, where he served as an enlisted interrogator with the 11th Armored Cavalry in Vietnam and Cambodia. He now lives in Pittsboro, North Carolina. His best-known non-collaborative work is the Hammer's Slammers series of military science fiction. His newer Republic of Cinnabar Navy (RCN) series, space operas inspired by the Aubrey–Maturin novels, focus much more heavily on his characters and less on the military aspects.

In 1997 Drake began his largest fantasy series, Lord of the Isles, using elements of Sumerian religion and medieval technology. As of 2006, the series has eight books published, with one more planned to finish.

In addition to his own works, he often provides a military perspective to many collaborative writing projects, such as his contributions to the Heroes in Hell series. His co-authors include Karl Edward Wagner, Janet Morris, S.M. Stirling, and Eric Flint. With Wagner and Jim Groce, he was one of the founders of Carcosa Press.

Drake frequently works in collaboration with other authors by providing detailed plot outlines (5,000 to 15,000 words), after which they do "the real work of developing the outline into a novel". He doesn't "consider [his] involvement to be that of a real co-author".

Drake's plots often draw heavily on his extensive knowledge of history, literature and mythology. Starting with Northworld in 1990, he has generally explained the background to each book in an afterword or preface. Additionally, Drake's plots frequently center around a clash of political systems. Drake's heroes are usually right-leaning military personnel with individualistic, iconoclastic personalities. Bureaucrats, professors, politicians, religious fanatics and political leftists serve as enemies.

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

Influence and recognition

Partial Bibliography

A complete bibliography, with Drake's comments, is available at http://david-drake.com/bibliography.html.

Anthologies edited

• Armageddon (1986) - with Billie Sue Mosiman
• A Century of Horror 1970-1979: The Greatest Stories of the Decade (1987) - with Martin H. Greenberg
• Space Gladiators (1989)
• A Separate Star: A Science Fiction Tribute to Rudyard Kipling (1989) - with Sandra Miesel
• Heads to the Storm (1989) - with Sandra Miesel
• Space Infantry (1989) - with Martin H. Greenberg
• The Eternal City (1989)
• Space Dreadnoughts (1990) - with Martin H. Greenberg and Charles G. Waugh
• Dogs of War (2001)
• Foreign Legions (2001) - with Eric Flint and David Weber
• The World Turned Upside Down (2005) - with Jim Baen and Eric Flint

Battlestation

With Bill Fawcett

• Battlestation (1992)
• The Vanguard (1993)

Fleet

With Bill Fawcett

• The Fleet (1988)
• Counterattack (1988)
• Breakthrough (1989)
• Sworn Allies (1990)
• Total War (1990)
• Crisis (1991)

War and Honor

With Gordon R. Dickson, Christopher Stasheff and Chelsea Quinn Yarbro

• Blood and War (1993)

ARC Riders

With Janet Morris

• ARC Riders (1995)
• The Fourth Rome (1996)

Belisarius series

Written by Eric Flint. David contributed to the outlines only, but is listed as a co-author from the publisher.

• An Oblique Approach (1998)
• In the Heart of Darkness (1998)
• Destiny's Shield (1999)
• Fortune's Stroke (2000)
• The Tide of Victory (2001)
• The Dance of Time (2006)

Car Warriors

• The Square Deal (1992), nominally set in Steve Jackson Games's Car Wars universe.

Collections

• Time Safari (1982)
• From the Heart of Darkness (1983)
• Lacey and His Friends (1986)
• Vettius and His Friends (1989)
• Old Nathan (1991)
• The Military Dimension (1991)
• The Military Dimension Mark II (1995)
• All the Way to the Gallows (1996)
• The Warmasters (2002) - with Eric Flint and David Weber
• Grimmer Than Hell (2003)
• Mountain Magic (2004) - with Eric Flint, Henry Kuttner and Ryk E. Spoor
• Other Times Than Peace (2006)

Crisis of Empire

• An Honorable Defense (1988) - with Thomas T. Thomas
• Cluster Command (1989) - with William C. Dietz
• The War Machine (1989) - with Roger MacBride Allen
• Crown of Empire (1994) - with Chelsea Quinn Yarbro

The General series

Written by S.M. Stirling. David contributed to the outlines only, but is listed as a co-author from the publisher. World of Bellevue story-line ends at The Sword.

• The Forge (1991)
• The Hammer (1992)
• Warlord (2003) - Omnibus edition
• The Anvil (1993)
• The Steel (1993)
• The Sword (1995)
• Conqueror (2003) - Omnibus edition

World of Visager:

• The Chosen (1996)

World of Hafardine:

• The Reformer (1999)
• The Tyrant (2002) - written by Eric Flint

Hammer's Slammers

• Hammer's Slammers (1979)
• Cross the Stars (1984)
• At Any Price (1985)
• Counting the Cost (1987)
• Rolling Hot (1989)
• The Warrior (1991)
• The Sharp End (1993)
• The Voyage (1993)
• Paying the Piper (2002)
• The Complete Hammer's Slammers Volume 1 (2005) - Includes all the short stories.
• The Complete Hammer's Slammers Volume 2 (November 2006) - Omnibus edition; includes At Any Price, Counting the Cost, Rolling Hot, The Warrior
• The Tank Lords - Includes Under the Hammer, Rolling Hot, Night March, Code-Name Feirefitz & The Tank Lords. Available for free download at Baen Free Library.

Heroes in Hell

• Explorers in Hell (1989) - with Janet Morris

Honor Harrington

• A Grand Tour (1998, short story in the anthology More Than Honor)

Lord of the Isles

1. Lord of the Isles (1997)
2. Queen of Demons (1998)
3. Servant of the Dragon (1999)
4. Mistress of the Catacombs (2001)
5. Goddess of the Ice Realm (2003)
6. Master of the Cauldron (2004)
7. The Fortress of Glass (2006)
8. The Mirror of Worlds (2007)
9. The Gods Return (2008)

Northworld

• Northworld (1990)
• Vengeance (1991)
• Justice (1992)
• Northworld Trilogy (1999) - Omnibus edition

Venus series

• Surface Action (1990)
• The Jungle (1991)
• Seas of Venus (2000) - Omnibus edition

Non-series Novels

• The Dragon Lord (1979)
• Skyripper (1983)
• The Forlorn Hope (1984)
• Birds of Prey (1984)
• Killer (1985) - with Karl Edward Wagner
• Active Measures (1985) - with Janet Morris
• Lacey and his Friends (1986-10) - plus Travellers and Time Safari
• Ranks of Bronze (1986)
• Fortress (1986)
• Bridgehead (1986)
• Kill Ratio (1987) - with Janet Morris
• Target (1989) - with Janet Morris
• The Undesired Princess and the Enchanted Bunny (1990) - with L. Sprague de Camp
• The Hunter Returns (1991) - based on Jim Kjelgaard's Fire-Hunter, for his estate
• Starliner (1992)
• Tyrannosaur (1994)
• Enemy of My Enemy (1995) - with Ben Ohlander
• Redliners (1996)
• Patriots (1996)

Reaches

• Igniting the Reaches (1994)
• Through the Breach (1995)
• Fireships (1996)
• The Reaches (2004) - Omnibus edition

Starhunters

• Men Hunting Things (1988)
• Things Hunting Men (1988)
• Bluebloods (1990)

Thieves' World

• Dagger (1988)

RCN Series

• With the Lightnings (1998) - Author's note
• Lt. Leary, Commanding (2000)
• The Far Side of The Stars (2003)
• The Way to Glory (2005)
• Some Golden Harbor (2006)
• When the Tide Rises (2008)

World of Crystal Walls

• The Sea Hag (1988)

Short Stories

• "Denkirch"

Travellers by Night (1967)

Balefires (2007)

• "Lord of the Depths"

Dark Things (1971)

• "Arclight"

The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (April 1973)

• "Contact!"

Analog Science Fiction/Science Fact (October 1974)

Body Armor: 2000 (1986)

• "Under the Hammer"

Galaxy Science Fiction (October 1974)

Hammer's Slammers (1979)

• "The Butcher's Bill"

Galaxy Science Fiction (November 1974)

Combat SF (1975)

Hammer's Slammers (1979)

Combat SF (1981)

Hammer's Slammers (1987)

• "Something Had to Be Done"

The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (February 1975)

The Year's Best Horror Stories: Series IV (1976)

From the Heart of Darkness (1983)

100 Vicious Little Vampire Stories (1995)

• "Ranks of Bronze"

Galaxy Science Fiction (August 1975)

There Will Be War (1983)

Vettius and His Friends (1989)

• "But Loyal to His Own"

Galaxy Science Fiction (October 1975)

Hammer's Slammers (1979)

• "Awakening"

Nameless Places (1975)

• "Black Iron"

Nameless Places (1975)

Vettius and His Friends (1989)

Balefires (2007)

• "Children of the Forest"

The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (November 1976)

The Year's Best Horror Stories: Series V (1977)

From the Heart of Darkness (1983)

Balefires (2007)

• "Blood Debt"

The 4th Mayflower Book of Black Magic Stories (1976)

From the Heart of Darkness (1983)

• "Firefight"

Frights (1976)

From the Heart of Darkness (1983)

• "The Hunting Ground"

Superhorror (1976)

From the Heart of Darkness (1983)

• "Nation Without Walls"

Analog Science Fiction/Science Fact (July 1977)

• "The Last Battalion"

Analog Science Fiction/Science Fact (September 1977)

• "The Barrow Troll"

Savage Heroes (1977)

Whispers (1977)

The World Fantasy Awards Volume Two (1980)

From the Heart of Darkness (1983)

Vettius and His Friends (1989)

Balefires (2007)

• "Dragons' Teeth"

Swords Against Darkness (1977)

Dragon Tales (1982)

From the Heart of Darkness (1983)

Vettius and His Friends (1989)

• "The Shortest Way"

First World Fantasy Awards (1977)

From the Heart of Darkness (1983)

Vettius and His Friends (1989)

Balefires (2007)

• "Smokie Joe"

More Devil's Kisses (1977)

Terrors (1982)

From the Heart of Darkness (1983)

Balefires (2007)

• "Nemesis Place"

Fantastic (April 1978)

The Year's Best Horror Stories: Series VII (1979)

Vettius and His Friends (1989)

• "Best of Luck"

The Year's Best Horror Stories: Series VI (1978)

From the Heart of Darkness (1983)

• "Caught in the Crossfire"

Chrysalis 2 (1978)

Hammer's Slammers (1979)

Caught in the Crossfire (1998)

• "The Mantichore"

Swords Against Darkness III (1978)

Vettius and His Friends (1989)

• "Cultural Conflict"

Destinies (January/February 1979)

Hammer's Slammers (1979)

• "The Predators"

Destinies (October/December 1979)

• "Hangman"

Hammer's Slammers (1979)

Supertanks (1987)

• "The Red Leer"

Whispers II (1979)

From the Heart of Darkness (1983)

Balefires (2007)

• "Standing Down"

Hammer's Slammers (1979)

• "Underground"

Destinies (February/March 1980)

• "Men Like Us"

Omni (May 1980)

From the Heart of Darkness (1983)

• "The Automatic Rifleman"

Destinies (Fall 1980)

From the Heart of Darkness (1983)

• "Goddess"

Tales from the Vulgar Unicorn (1980)

Sanctuary (1982)

• "Than Curse the Darkness"

New Tales of the Cthulhu Mythos (1980)

From the Heart of Darkness (1983)

Balefires (2007)

• "Time Safari"

Destinies (Spring 1981)

Tyrannosaur (1993)

• "Travellers"

Destinies (Winter 1981)

• "King Crocodile"

Whispers III (1981)

Vettius and His Friends (1989)

• "The Dancer in the Flames"

From the Heart of Darkness (1983)

Whispers IV (1983)

• "Votary"

The Face of Chaos (1983)

• "Out of Africa"

From the Heart of Darkness (1983)

Horrorstory: Volume 4 (1990)

• "Code-name Feirefitz"

Men of War (1984)

• "From the Dark Waters"

Isaac Asimov's Magical Worlds of Fantasy 5: Giants (1985)

Vettius and His Friends (1989)

• The Guardroom

Afterwar (1985)

• The Great Beer Shortage with Janet Morris

Far Frontiers Vol. VI (Fall 1986)

• "The Tank Lords"

Far Frontiers Vol. VI (Fall 1986)

Hammer's Slammers (1987)

Call to Battle (1988)

• "'Cause I Served My Time in Hell"

Rebels in Hell (1986)

• "The Hand of Providence"

Heroes in Hell (1986)

• "The Interrogation Team"

Warrior (1986)

Caught in the Crossfire (1998)

• "The Fool"

Whispers VI (July 1987)

• "Bargain"

Masters in Hell (1987)

• "Learning Curve"

Angels in Hell (1987)

• "Liberty Port"

Alien Stars IV: Freelancers (1987)

• "Springs Eternal"

Crusaders in Hell (1987)

• "Wisdom"

Crusaders in Hell (1987)

• "Rescue Mission"

The Fleet (1988)

• "Safe to Sea"

Spacefighters (1988)

• "When the Devil Drives"

The Fleet: Counterattack (1988)

• "Dreams in Amber"

Vettius and His Friends (1989)

• "The False Prophet"

Vettius and His Friends (1989)

• "Killer" with Karl Edward Wagner

Vettius and His Friends (1989)

• "Exile"

Prophets in Hell (1989)

• "Elfin Pipes of Northworld"

The New York Review of Science Fiction (December 1990)

• "Looking Forward: Excerpt from Northworld: Justice"

Amazing Stories (March 1992)

• "Looking Forward: Excerpt from The Sharp End"

Amazing Stories (October 1993)

• "Boundary Layer"

Tyrannosaur (1993)

• "King Tyrant Lizard"

Tyrannosaur (1993)

• "Cannibal Plants From Heck"

Alien Pregnant By Elvis (1994)

• "Airborne All the Way!"

Magic, the Gathering: Tapestries (1995)

• "To Bring the Light"

Locus (August 1996)

• "The Waiting Bullet"

Locus (August 1996)

• "A Grand Tour"

More than Honor (1998)

• "The Immovable Object"

Caught in the Crossfire (1998)

• "With the Sword He Must Be Slain"

Armageddon (1998)

• "A Very Offensive Weapon"

All the Way to the Gallows (1995)

• "The Tradesmen"

Grimmer Than Hell (2000)

• "A Death in Peacetime"

The Complete Hammer's Slammers Volume 1 (2005)

• "Dragon, the Book"

External links

• David Drake's web site
• Interview with David Drake at SFFWorld.com
• Interview with David Drake at FlamesRising.com
• Another bibliography
• All of David Drake's audio interviews on the podcast The Future And You (in which he describes his expectations of the future)
• David Drake books published by Tor Books
• Catalog of David Drake books published by Baen Books
• Baen Free Library
• Review: With the Lightnings & Starliner
• International Fortean Organization (INFO), Drake FortFest Conference tapes, Issues 17, 38, 40

of the "INFO Journal: Science and the Unknown"

• The David Drake CD online Several free, legal e-book editions of Drake's work, some of which are unavailable at the Baen Free Library.