David Drake has been a published author for the better part of thirty-five years. Renown for his military science fiction, such as Hammer's Slammers, he is a prolific author who works across the gamut of science fiction and fantasy, writing everything from space opera (Lt. Leary, Commanding) to epic fantasy (Lord of the Isles) to sword-and-sorcery (The Dragon Lord). Though working steadily on his next novel, he was gracious enough to spend some time answering our questions, giving us insight into his writing and giving us his thoughts on markets and genres.

You can learn more at his website, David-Drake.com.

I have a notion for an end-stopped trilogy. It was actually one of the things I was working at back in 1996. When "The Isles" worked, I dropped the idea for the time being, but I still have about 4,000 words of a partial plot. I'm going to work on that, developing it with the benefit of things I've learned from "The Isles."

And I'll still be writing SF, I hope and expect. I've never written only the one or the other, though "The Isles" seemed to be a shock to people who only knew the military sf.

You have often remarked on the influence of your Vietnam combat experience on your writing. This appears notable in your military science fiction work, but how has your military experience affected the way you approach fantasy?

Vietnam (well, and Cambodia) was the experience that most shaped what I am now. I try to think about how life would've been different without it, but that's like trying to look through a brick wall. My mind won't accept a reality of which that isn't a part.

Ilna's mindset is my mindset. It's really regrettable, but it is. There are other specific aspects, but that one is the biggest.

Given that you have a strong knowledge of ancient history (Rome in particular), are well-versed in Latin (even so far as translating Ovid on your web page), and often cite Rudyard Kipling, how do you feel the classics affect your own work? Do you find it gives you insight or an edge that other writers might miss?

I think knowing another culture is a huge benefit to a writer. That's particularly true because America (because of our power) is a very parochial culture, and an American who doesn't have close experience of other ways of thinking will be writing as if the whole world was America or wanted to be. (No, they don't. They may be wrong, but they don't.)

What I get specifically from surviving Latin authors and from Kipling's short stories in an example of craftsmanship. There are lots of different ways to tell a story, but drawing character in two lines is an amazingly difficult thing to do well. Most people wouldn't even consider doing it…and if you've got 100,000 to150,000 words, why should you? To which I would answer that the exercise makes you think about the impact of every word, and that gives everything you write more impact.

There are better writers than I am—probably not as many as think there are, but they exist. There are few if any who can write as tightly as I do and remain vivid.

You have previously stated that writing Killer with Karl Edward Wagner was a difficult experience. Do you have a more pleasurable anecdote concerning Mr. Wagner? Do you recall your involvement with his Bran Mak Morn novel, Legion from the Shadows?

My knowledge of and interest in pulps is entirely a result of contact with and learning from Karl. I'm complete on all U.S. SF pulps and digests now and most of the fantasy titles (I'm missing about half the Weird Tales from before 1930 or so). These are a continuing delight to me.

Karl and I were friends for a very long time. I deeply regret what booze and insecurities made of him at the end.

Concerning markets: you are usually considered an author of military science fiction, even though that accounts for only about a quarter of your output. As a fantasy author, you've written both sword-and-sorcery and heroic epic fantasy (as in Lord of the Isles), so your spectrum on genres is quite broad; but do you still find problems with sub-genre pigeonholing, especially concerning military science fiction?

I got very frustrated in the mid '90s when I saw that military SF was going to stumble when the armed forces were reduced after the collapse of the Soviet Union. I kept writing things that were not military SF and having "THE KING OF MILITARY SF" splashed over the covers.

Not so much now, though. I make a distinction between space opera and military SF. Not everybody does (more fools them) but there's general awareness that the RCN series differs from Hammer's Slammers. (Which wasn't the case when I wrote Northworld, which isn't military SF by any stretch of the imagination.)

Are there any of your previous works or characters that you would like to revisit, perhaps in a sequel, but haven't had the chance yet?

That's an interesting question. No, I guess not. That is, whatever I'm doing is the thing I'm focused on. If Tom Doherty or Jim Baen says, "Say, write me another X," my brain would turn to that and I'd be happy as a pig in, well, mud. But I'm in the middle of an RCN space opera now, and I'm having a ball.

Why do you think sword-and-sorcery has been so hard to find in the last years? Do you think the genre is dead?

S&S had a largely male audience. Epic fantasy has a significant—40% or so—female readership. I regard them as a single genre but on opposite ends of the spectrum. Obviously Robert Jordan can write both ends as I can write both ends and lots of other people too. But if the publisher prefers to boost sales by adding all those potential female readers, who can quarrel with his judgment? (And I happily bank larger checks, too.)

What do you think are the most important elements to remember when an author is crafting writing sword-and-sorcery?

Believable characters, just as with any other form of fiction. I'm personally very focused on plot, but not everybody is or needs to be.

Do you have any tips on world building you'd like to share with writers and readers? What do you keep in mind when you're trying to bring a setting to life?

Have an economy that works. Know how people interact in groups. Jeepers, the numbers of scenes I've read in which I got the impression that the writer had never been at a meeting—work, PTA, whatever.

Remember that you never get something for nothing. Remember that everything costs, and that often you don't understand the real cost until a long time afterwards. (Anybody who's been in combat knows this one, or will know it.)

Ryan Harvey would specifically like to add: "Mr. Drake, reading about your experience writing The Dragon Lord helped me immensely in discovering the kind of writer that I am. You helped me finish writing my very first book, and that's a debt I can never repay. Thank you."

Good luck. But you know, none of it's magic. Keep putting one foot in front of the other.

Paul McNamee would like to add: "Mr. Drake, I see you as a living connection to sword-and-sorcery writers of the past, such as Manly Wade Wellman and Karl Edward Wagner, and going back further to Robert E. Howard and the pulps. I'm very pleased that you have continued your fantasy writing, even through the success of your science-fiction titles. 'Old Nathan' remains, to me, one of the finest and most original fantasy works I have ever read. Thank you."

Ed Price said to me, "Shake the hand that shook the hand of Robert E. Howard!" And I did. I know exactly what you mean.