Stephen Coonts (born July 19, 1946) is an American

spy thriller Spy fiction is a genre of literature involving espionage as an important context or plot device. It emerged in the early twentieth century, inspired by rivalries and intrigues between the major powers, and the establishment of modern intelligen ...

and

suspense Suspense is a state of mental uncertainty, anxiety, being undecided, or being doubtful. In a dramatic work, suspense is the anticipation of the outcome of a plot or of the solution to an uncertainty, puzzle, or mystery, particularly as it aff ...

novelist.

Early life, education, and military career

Stephen Coonts grew up in

Buckhannon, West Virginia Buckhannon is the only incorporated city in, and the county seat of, Upshur County, West Virginia, Upshur County, West Virginia, United States, and is located along the Buckhannon River. The population was 5,299 at the 2020 United States Census ...

, a small

coal mining Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from ...

town. Following high school graduation, he earned a

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

degree in

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

West Virginia University West Virginia University (WVU) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Morgantown, West Virginia. Its other campuses are those of the West Virginia University Institute of Technology in Beckley, Potomac State College ...

in 1968. After joining the

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...

upon graduation and then going to

Officer Candidate School An officer candidate school (OCS) is a military school which trains civilians and Enlisted rank, enlisted personnel in order for them to gain a Commission (document), commission as Commissioned officer, officers in the armed forces of a country. ...

, Coonts went to flight school at

Naval Air Station Pensacola Naval Air Station Pensacola or NAS Pensacola (formerly NAS/KNAS until changed circa 1970 to allow Nassau International Airport, now Lynden Pindling International Airport, to have IATA code NAS), "The Cradle of Naval Aviation", is a United State ...

and earned his wings as a

Naval Aviator Naval aviation is the application of military air power by navies, whether from warships that embark aircraft, or land bases. Naval aviation is typically projected to a position nearer the target by way of an aircraft carrier. Carrier-based a ...

in 1969. Coonts was later assigned to

Naval Air Station Whidbey Island Naval Air Station Whidbey Island (NASWI) is a naval air station of the United States Navy located on two pieces of land near Oak Harbor, Washington, Oak Harbor, on Whidbey Island, in Island County, Washington (state), Washington. The main p ...

and

VA-128 State Route 128 (SR 128) is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of Virginia. Known for most of its length as Mayflower Drive, the state highway runs from SR 163 north to U.S. Route 460 Business (US 460 Business) and US 501 Business wi ...

to train in the

A-6 Intruder The Grumman A-6 Intruder is an American twinjet all-weather attack aircraft developed and manufactured by American aircraft company Grumman Aerospace and operated by the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps. It was designed in response to a 1957 ...

, a medium attack, all-weather,

carrier Carrier may refer to: Entertainment * ''Carrier'' (album), a 2013 album by The Dodos * ''Carrier'' (board game), a South Pacific World War II board game * ''Carrier'' (TV series), a ten-part documentary miniseries that aired on PBS in April 20 ...

-based jet. After training, Coonts was attached to and deployed with VA-196 to

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

. With 196, he served aboard the USS ''Enterprise'' (CVN-65) on two cruises and accumulated 1600 flying hours in the A-6. Coonts was awarded several commendations, including the Distinguished Flying Cross. After Vietnam, Coonts served as an A-6 flight instructor for two years, then was assigned as an assistant

catapult A catapult is a ballistic device used to launch a projectile a great distance without the aid of gunpowder or other propellants – particularly various types of ancient and medieval siege engines. A catapult uses the sudden release of stored p ...

and

arresting gear An arresting gear, or arrestor gear, is a mechanical system used to rapidly decelerate an aircraft as it lands. Arresting gear on aircraft carriers is an essential component of naval aviation, and it is most commonly used on CATOBAR and STOBA ...

officer aboard USS ''Nimitz'' (CVN-68). Coonts separated from the active duty Navy as a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

in 1977 but remained as

reserve Reserve or reserves may refer to: Places * Reserve, Kansas, a US city * Reserve, Louisiana, a census-designated place in St. John the Baptist Parish * Reserve, Montana, a census-designated place in Sheridan County * Reserve, New Mexico, a US vi ...

officer, retiring as a

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

with a total of 21 years of service.

Post military career

Lawyer

After leaving active duty, Coonts pursued a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree at the

University of Colorado The University of Colorado (CU) is a system of public universities in Colorado. It consists of four institutions: University of Colorado Boulder, University of Colorado Colorado Springs, University of Colorado Denver, and the University of Co ...

, graduating in 1979. He then worked as a lawyer for several oil and gas companies, pursuing his writing interests in his free time.

Writer

Coonts began writing ''

Flight of the Intruder ''Flight of the Intruder'' is a 1991 war film directed by John Milius, and starring Danny Glover, Willem Dafoe, and Brad Johnson. It is based on the novel of the same name by former Grumman A-6 Intruder pilot Stephen Coonts. The film received n ...

'' in 1984, with the book being published by the US Naval Institute Press in 1986. The novel, based in part on his experiences as an A-6 pilot during the Vietnam War, remained for 28 weeks on the ''New York Times'' bestseller list, and later (1991) was made into a movie. This launched his career as a novelist, and he continued writing adventure-thrillers, most of them based on the main character from his first book, Jake Grafton. Coonts has also written several other series and stand-alone novels, but is best known for the Grafton books. In 1992, he was inducted into the Academy of Distinguished Alumni at his alma mater,

. In 2014 West Virginia University awarded him an

honorary An honorary position is one given as an honor, with no duties attached, and without payment. Other uses include: * Honorary Academy Award, by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, United States * Honorary Aryan, a status in Nazi Germany ...

Doctor of Letters degree. Today, Coonts continues to write, having had sixteen ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' bestsellers (out of 36 books). He lives in

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

with his third wife, Deborah Jean. He is divorced from romantic mystery novelist

Deborah Coonts Deborah Coonts (born Deborah Buell) is an American novelist and lawyer best known for her ''Lucky O'Toole Las Vegas Adventures'' series of romantic, humorous mystery novels. Early life and education Coonts grew up in Dallas, Texas, where she at ...

Bibliography

Jake Grafton series

:''Note: The list below represents Stephen Coonts' suggested reading order.''

Jake Grafton and Tommy Carmellini series

:''Note: The list below represents Stephen Coonts' suggested reading order.''

Saucer series

Anthologies

Deep Black series

Others

*''Fortunes of War'' (1998), , *''The Garden of Eden'' (2006) (writing as Eve Adams) *''The Sea Witch'' (May 2012), ,

As editor

*''The 17th Day'' (1999) *''Combat'' (2001) *''Victory'' (2003)

Non-fiction

*''The Cannibal Queen: A Flight into the Heart of America'' (1992), *''War In The Air: True Accounts'' (1996), *''On Glorious Wings: The Best Flying Stories'' (2003), *''Victory'' (2003),

References

External links

Official siteCoonts' JournalStephen Coonts audio interview with National Review Online
*
Author Interview
at the

Pritzker Military Museum & Library The Pritzker Military Museum & Library (formerly Pritzker Military Library) is a non-profit museum and a research library for the study of military history on Michigan Avenue in Chicago, Illinois. The institution was founded in 2003, and its spe ...

on February 13, 2008
Modern Signed Books BlogTalkRadio Interview with Rodger Nichols about The Art of War March 2016
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Coonts, Stephen 1946 births Living people 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists American male novelists American military writers Military personnel from West Virginia United States Navy personnel of the Vietnam War American thriller writers Aviators from West Virginia Nevada lawyers Nevada Republicans People from Buckhannon, West Virginia Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) West Virginia University alumni Novelists from West Virginia United States Navy officers United States Naval Aviators 20th-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers American male non-fiction writers 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers