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.

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.^[1][2] After the war, from 1972 to 1980 he worked as the assistant town attorney in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.^[3] In 1981 he transitioned to full-time writing of science fiction literature.^[3] With Karl Edward Wagner and Jim Groce, he was one of the initiators of Carcosa, a small press company. He lived in Pittsboro, North Carolina.

On November 17, 2021 he announced he was retiring from writing novels, due to unspecified cognitive health problems.^[4] Drake died on December 10, 2023, at the age of 78.^[5]

His best-known solo work is the Hammer's Slammers series of military science fiction. His newer Republic of Cinnabar Navy series are space operas inspired by the Aubrey–Maturin novels. 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. 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".^[6] He did not "consider [his] involvement to be that of a real co-author."^[6] Drake also contributed to the Heroes in Hell series.

Drake's plots often use history, literature, and mythology; in his foreword to The Lord of the Isles, Drake explained that while he had an academic background in history, he regarded himself as an antiquarian rather than a historian and that this perspective informed his approach to writing. Starting with Northworld in 1990,^[7] he generally explained the background of each book in an afterword or preface. Additionally, Drake's plots frequently involve a contest of political systems.^{[citation needed]}

John Clute stated in the entry on Drake in the 1993 edition of The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, "Today there seems very little to stop [Drake] from writing exactly what he wishes to write."

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

• Mayfair Games produced the licensed Hammer's Slammers board game (1984) based on David Drake's novel Hammer's Slammers.^[8]: 167
• Mongoose Publishing adapted Drake's novel as the licensed setting Hammer's Slammers (2009) for the Traveller role-playing game.^[8]: 401
• John Treadaway has adapted Hammer's Slammers into a wargame, of which several editions have been published.^[9] The game utilizes various miniatures from companies such as Brigade Models, Old Crow Models, and Ground Zero Games.^[10]