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Daniel Ransom was one of the pen names of crime, horror, and western author Ed Gorman. Gorman was vastly influential and prolific throughout his career. He forged relationships with many writers over the years, serving as a mentor and friend to many. When he passed away in late 2016, the loss was felt deeply within the writing community. He was, of course, also highly regarded as an author, and many felt he never received the level of recognition or popularity that his work truly deserved. He was the author of over 140 books and was a frequent contributor to top genre magazines. He was co-founder and editor of Mystery Scene magazine, which published its first issue in 1985 and is still being published today. Gorman edited or co-edited more than 100 anthologies, including the five-volume run of The World’s Finest Mystery and Crime Stories.
Gorman wrote nine novels as Daniel Ransom. The first Ransom novel was Daddy’s Little Girl, published by Zebra Books in 1985.  This was followed by two more from Zebra, Toys in the Attic and Night Caller in 1986 and ’87. Gorman landed a deal with St. Martin’s for his next few novels, including The Forsaken (1988), The Babysitter (1989), and Nightmare Child (1990). His last two horror novels as Ransom were The Serpent’s Kiss and The Long Midnight, published by Dell in 1992 and ’93.  He later wrote a couple of science fiction novels as Daniel Ransom for DAW books in the mid-1990s.
Ed Gorman lived in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. An informative obituary appears on the Cedar Memorial site, and a nice tribute was published after his death in the local newspaper, The Gazette. He passed away on October 14, 2016Â at the age of 74.
Many of these books were reissued as by Ed Gorman in new ebook editions. To view a complete list of Daniel Ransom books available on Amazon, click here.
The cover scans below are from the library of author Christopher Fulbright.
