Elliot Ackerman is the New York Times bestselling author of the novels 2054, Halcyon, 2034, Red Dress In Black and White, Waiting for Eden, and Dark at the Crossing, also the memoir The Fifth Act: America's End in Afghanistan, and Places and Names: On War, Revolution and Returning. His books have been nominated for the National Book Award, the Andrew Carnegie Medal in both fiction and nonfiction, and the Dayton Literary Peace Prize among others. He is a contributing writer at The Atlantic and is both a Marine and CIA veteran who served five tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, where he received the Silver Star, the Bronze Star for Valor, and the Purple Heart.

Ackerman holds a B.A from Tufts University and a Master's degree in international affairs from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. He has completed many of the United States military's most challenging special operations training courses and also served as a White House Fellow. Ackerman is currently a Senior Fellow at Yale University's Jackson School of Global Affairs. He serves on the board of the Atlantic Council and is a lifetime member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

He divides his time between New York City and Washington, D.C.