Michael  Archer was born and raised in Oakland, California, and served for a year in South Vietnam as a U.S. Marine, which included the 77-day siege of Khe Sanh in 1968.

His books include A Patch of Ground: Khe Sanh Remembered, which VIETNAM magazine called “The best first-hand account of the battle,” and The Long Goodbye: Khe Sanh Revisited, chronicling the author’s search for answers to a friend’s mysterious death at Khe Sanh. The Long Goodbye received Foreword Reviews INDIES Book of the Year Award for 2016, chosen from among hundreds of submissions by independent publishers and university presses nationwide. 

Michael’s third book in the trilogy, The Gunpowder Prince:  How Marine Corps Captain Mirza Munir Baig Saved Khe Sanh, received the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation’s 2019 Colonel Joseph Alexander Award for distinguished biographical literature. 

Michael is a frequent contributor to Naval History magazine, and his 2023 piece, "A Deadly Dilemma," was honored with the Marine Corps Heritage Foundation's Colonel Robert D. Heinl Award for Feature Writing.

Michael frequently speaks about his work at colleges, universities, and other organizations across the country. He lives in Reno, Nevada.