He graduated from the United States Air Force Academy in 1977 with a dual major in physics and math. He started his first novel while at the Academy after returning there as an officer in the 1980s to teach physics. He is a retired Air Force Colonel with a PhD in physics. He is also a Fellow of the American Physical Society and has published two nonfiction books. His book Science and Technology Policy for the post-Cold War: A Case for Long-Term Research was awarded the National Defense University President's Strategic Vision award. He also worked on a few books, (e.g., Lifeline, The Trinity Paradox, and Nanospace) with Kevin J. Anderson. He is currently Associate Laboratory Director for Threat Reduction at the Los Alamos National Laboratory.
- "When the Desert Wind Turns: The Stormtrooper's Tale" — Tales from the Mos Eisley Cantina (1995)