P. T. Deutermann

College and return to the military In 1968 Deutermann entered the University of Washington for two years, which made two deployments to the Mediterranean over the following two years. He returned to the Pentagon in 1978 as a staff officer in the politico-military policy division of the Navy headquarters staff. He published his first book in 1980, a handbook for navy operations officers, through the Naval Institute Press in Annapolis, Maryland.

First command In 1981 Deutermann assumed command of the guided missile destroyer for a three-year tour of duty, In 2012, he was named the recipient of the W.Y. Boyd Literary Award for Excellence in Military Fiction by the American Library Association for his novel Pacific Glory.

In 2023 he was again honored by the American Library Association for his novel, Last Paladin, as recipient of the W.Y. Boyd Literary Award for Excellence in Military Fiction. He was honored a third time by the American Library Association in 2024 for the novel Iwo, 26 Charlie.

Other ventures Since the late 1990s, Deutermann has served on the board of directors for two high-tech companies and on the board of advisors of the SpaceVest Venture Capital Group in Washington, D.C.

Personal life Deutermann married Susan Cornelia Degenhardt, of Gainesville, Florida in 1968. They presently live in Rockingham County, North Carolina, where they run a Dartmoor pony breeding farm. Their son Daniel retired after 20 years active duty in both the Navy and the Coast Guard in 2011. Daniel's previous assignments included being a flight instructor in Pensacola, Florida. Their daughter, Sarah, flew in Navy F-14 fighter jets, as a radar intercept officer (RIO). She is now an attorney in Greensboro, North Carolina. Deutermann's father, two of his uncles, as well as both of his brothers served in the armed forces, as have some of their children.

Deutermann's hobbies include the design and construction of formal gardens, reading American Civil War history, and the study of the 1st century Roman Near East.