Kathryn Lance

Kathryn Lance (1943 -- El Paso, Texas) is an American writer in many fields of fiction and non-fiction under both her own name and as a ghostwriter. Growing up in Tucson, Arizona, she was an undergraduate at the University of Arizona, then received a Master's Degree in Russian from the same school. After living in New York City for nearly 20 years, she returned to Tucson in 1989 and still lives there.

While in New York she wrote soap opera scripts for Another World, Somerset, All My Children, and One Life to Live from 1970 through 1973, then worked for Scholastic Magazines as associate editor until 1976. While there, she created and wrote The Halls of Haywood High, a successful teenage soap opera published biweekly in Senior Scholastic Magazine. In 1976 she published her first book, Running for Health and Beauty, which sold 500,000 copies in all editions. The first mass-market book about running, it is widely considered to have helped start the fitness boom.

Quit working at Scholastic to freelance fulltime. Wrote dozens of books, fiction and nonfiction, magazine articles, and stories, for adults and children. Author of dozens of articles on topics including diet, sports, fitness, sexuality, biotechnology, in corporate publications and such national periodicals as Family Circle, Parade, Self, Town & Country, Ladies Home Journal, and Writer's Digest. First science fiction novel for adults, Pandora’s Genes, was named to the Locus Recommended list, 1986, and chosen Best New Science Fiction of 1985 by Romanatic Times.

Returned to Tucson, 1989. Continued to write books, articles and stories, taught novel writing and other writing courses. Semi-retired, 2009. Still writing fiction; currently a docent at Tohono Chul Park, leading nature walks. (Wikipedia link)

Lance is a current member of Science Fiction Writers of America and Author’s Guild, and a past member and Board member of American Society of Journalists and Authors.

Lance’s published works include: ADULT NONFICTION BOOKS: Running for Health and Beauty. Bobbs-Merrill, 1977; Bantam, 1978. Getting Strong. Bobbs-Merrill, 1978; Bantam, 1979. First mass-market book on weight training for women. More than 150,000 sold.

A Woman's Guide to Spectator Sports. A & W, 1980.  --Alternate selection of Book of the Month Club. Total Sexual Fitness for Women, in collaboration with Maria Agardy. Rawson, Wade, 1981.

Sportsbeauty. Avon, 1984.

The Setpoint Diet, by Dr. Gilbert Leveille (ghostwritten). Ballantine, 1985. --New York Sunday Times paperback best-seller list,  six weeks; Publishers Weekly paperback best-seller list, five weeks. Over 400,000 printed. Low-Impact Aerobics, Crown, 1988. The Princeton Plan, by Edwin Heleniak, M.D., and Barbara Aston, M.S. (ghostwritten). St. Martins, 1990.  The Body Code,  by Jay Cooper with Kathryn Lance. Pocket, 1999.   -Alternate Selection of Book of the Month Club. The Botox Book, by Everett M. Lautin, M.D., and Suzanne M. Levine, D.P.M. and Kathryn Lance. M. Evans, 2002. British edition, 2002. You Don’t Need Plastic Surgery, by Everett M. Lautin, M.D., and Suzanne M. Levine, D.P.M. and Kathryn Lance. M. Evans, 2003. Heart and Soul: A Psychological and Spiritual Guide to Preventing  and Healing Heart Disease, by Bruno Cortis,  M.D., (ghostwritten).  Villard, 1995; Pocket, 1996. Unlocking the Animal Mind, by Franklin D. McMillan, D.V.M., with Kathryn Lance. Rodale, 2004 ADULT Fiction:

“Barbara Ann,” short story about sister’s death, in Story: Yearbook of Discovery, 1968. 

"Welcome to Valhalla," short story by Kathryn Lance & Jack McDevitt, Asimov’s Science Fiction, December, 2008. Anthologized in Cryptic: The Best Short Fiction of Jack McDevitt, Subterranean Press, 2009. Pandora's Genes. Questar, 1985. Winner, Best New Science Fiction Novel 1985, Romantic Times; Locus Recommended List, 1986. Smashwords and Kindle editions, 2011. Pandora's Children. Questar, 1986. Smashwords and Kindle editions, 2011. The Ptorrigan Lode (novella), Smashwords and Kindle, 2011. YA / JUVENILE NONFICTION (written as Lynn Beach): Dozens of articles on science, health, nutrition, consumerism, technology, lifestyles, in various national and regional publications, including Scholastic Voice, Future Tech, Fast Track, Bananas, and Creative Classroom. Booklets on such topics as space exploration, scientific experiments, and libraries, for McMillan and other publishers. YA / JUVENILE NOVELS  Written as Kathryn Lance:   Going to See Grassy Ella. Lothrop, Lee & Shepard, May, 1993. Named Recommended Book for Reluctant Young Readers 1994  by Young Adult Library Services Association of the ALA; German edition 1995. Smashwords and Kindle editions, 2011.  Written as Lynn Beach:  "Phantom Valley." YA paranormal mystery series (nine books in all), Minstrel Books (Pocket), 1991-1993.  Seven books in the "Give Yourself Goosebumps" series, Scholastic, 1995 - 1999.  Night of the Werecat and Caution: Aliens at Work, in the "R.L. Stine's Ghosts of Fear Street" series, Minstrel Books (Pocket), 1997 and 1998.   (Twelve ghost-written YA series novels for major publisher, 1990-98.)

• Invisibility Island, Parachute Press, 1988
• Operation Time Machine, Random House, 1987
• Operation Jungle Doom, Random House, 1987
• Invasion from Darkland, Avon, 1986
• Conquest of the Time Master, Avon, 1986
• Attack of the Insecticons, Ballantine, 1985
• The Haunted Castle of Ravencurse, Avon, 1985
• Secrets of the Lost Island, Scholastic, 1985.