Michael Punke was born and raised in Wyoming and now lives with his family in Missoula, Montana.  In addition to writing, Punke is an adjunct professor at the University of Montana.

Punke has an undergraduate degree in International Affairs from George Washington University.  He received a J.D. with Specialization in International Legal Affairs from Cornell Law School, where he was elected Editor-in-Chief of the Cornell International Law Journal. 

Punke’s professional career began with 14 years of legal and government experience in Washington, D.C.  He first worked with the international trade group at the law firm of Hogan & Hartson.  In 1991, he took a position as International Trade Counsel to Senator Max Baucus (Montana), then chairman of the Finance Committee’s International Trade Subcommittee. 

In 1993, Punke began two years on the White House Staff.  As Director for International Economic Affairs, he held a joint appointment to the National Security Council and the National Economic Council.  From 1995-1996, Punke served as Senior Policy Advisor in the Office of the United States Trade Representative, the White House agency with lead responsibility for international trade negotiations.         

Punke’s final position in Washington was as a partner in the international practice group at the law firm of Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw.  There, he worked with US companies and agricultural groups seeking to export into foreign markets.

While working at Mayer Brown in 2002, Punke published a novel, The Revenant, based on the true-life adventures of a frontiersman in the 1820s West.  The Revenant was a finalist for a Spur Award, a Denver Post bestseller, and is currently in development for a film project with Anonymous Content.  

Punke’s Fire and Brimstone was a finalist for the Mountains and Plains Booksellers Award.  An early draft of Last Stand was a Lukas Prize finalist for a work-in-progress.  The Lukas prizes are presented jointly by the Harvard and Colombia journalism schools.   

Punke’s current book project is No More Forever (Bloomsbury), the story of the dramatic, 1877 Nez Perce Indian War.  Punke is also the History Correspondent for Montana Quarterly.       

Punke is an avid fly-fisherman, cyclist, and outdoorsman.  He is married to Traci Silk Punke, a native of Livingston, Montana.  They have two children, Sophie (10) and Bowman (7).