Charlie learned his writing craft in college, but it wasn't as a result of any course he took. Rather he found that he could skim through his college assignments and turn out a lengthy term paper the night before it was due. This skill was inherited from Charlie's older sister Mary (sadly deceased) who was a fantastic writer with a wonderful sense of humor.

Assignment Potsdam; Countdown To War is his first novel and is inspired by real events that occurred in East Berlin in 1961, where Charlie's father was assigned due to his expertise in the Russian language and intimate knowledge of the workings of the Soviet Military High Command and Order of Battle.

The book has been received very well. A review by Book Viral describes it as "..(a) taut, exciting read that throws surprises at the reader on a regular basis, Assignment Potsdam; Countdown To War proves a powerful debut for Charlie FitzGerald’s Colonel Mc Desmond Series and a must-read for fans of Military and Historical Fiction Espionage Thrillers.”