Fiction Book Authors Who Died In 2013

This is a list of all the fiction book authors who died in 2013. Many well known names are among them, including popular authors such as Tom Clancy, Vince Flynn, Jack Vance, Seamus Heaney, Elmore Leonard and Tom Sharpe, among others. The world lost important literature gems with their passing.

James Herbert (April 08, 1943 – March 20, 2013) wrote 19 horror novels that have become very popular all over the world, with them being translated in over 33 languages.  His books included: The Rats, The Fog, The Survivor, Fluke, The Spear, Lair, The Dark, The Jonah, Shrine, Domain, Moon, The Magic Cottage, Sepulchre, among others.

Jack Vance (August 28, 1916 – May 26, 2013) was an American science-fiction author, best known for works like The Dying Earth series,  the Lyonesse series and Planet of Adventure series. He was also writing under the pseudonyms Peter Held, John Holbrook, Ellery Queen, John van See, Alan Wade, creating over 60 works of literature in various genres.

Tom Sharpe (March 30, 1928 – June 06, 2013) was a British author of satire with famous novels such as his Wilt series and Porterhouse Blue. Much of his work was inspired by his previously living in South Africa.

Vince Flynn (April 06, 1966 – June 19, 2013) was a famous American mystery author, best known for his Mitch Rapp series, a popular political thriller series which includes 14 books. Several of his novels, including Protect and Defend, became #1 New York Times bestsellers.

Richard Matheson (February 20, 1926 – June 23, 2013) was a prolific writer of horror and sci-fi novels. Some of his popular writings include  I Am Legend, The Shrinking Man, Hell House, What Dreams May Come and Bid Time Return. His classic novel Somewhere In Time has sparked the creation of the same titled movie with Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour. As a side note, this was the very book (and movie) that got me interested in the time travel genre.

Barbara Mertz (September 29, 1927 – August 08, 2013) was a famous author of archaeological mysteries, with her Amelia Peabody series (which she wrote under the pen name Elizabeth Peters). She also wrote under the name of Barbara Michaels. During her lifetime she wrote over 50 novels, most of which are related to archaeology.

Elmore Leonard (October 11, 1925 – August 20, 2013) started as an author of Western novels, but soon transitioned to writing mysteries and thrillers. Some of his novels have been made into movies, such as Get Shorty, Out of Sight, Hombre, Mr. Majestyk and Rum Punch.

Seamus Heaney (April 13, 1939 – August 30, 2013) was an Irish poet well known for works of literature including Death of a Naturalist and The Spirit Level. In 1995 he was awarded the Nobel Price in Literature. His works mostly focused on the British-Irish conflict of the 20th Century.

 Tom Clancy (April 12, 1947 – October 01, 2013) was and still is maybe the most famous political thriller author. His Jack Ryan series, which started with Patriot Games, has been made in several movies over the year, including The Hunt for the Red October, with renown actors such as Alec Baldwin, Sean Connery and Scott Glenn. His books focusing on espionage during the Cold War have opened the gates to a new breed of authors in the polit thriller genre.

Doris Lessing (October 22, 1919 – November 17, 2013) was a well known British author, playwriter and short story writer who received several awards during her lifetime, among others an Honorary Degree from Harvard University in 1995, the the Prince of Asturias Prize in Literature in 2001 and the the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2007. Some of her most popular works are The Grass is Singing, Children of Violence, The Golden Notebook and The Good Terrorist.

Colin Wilson (June 26, 1931 – December 05, 2013) was a British philosopher and author best known for his first novel, The Outsider, along with other works he published, including The Occult, Mysteries and The Philosopher’s Stone. His books are touching deeply on the occult, mysterious and paranormal, however he also wrote books on true crime.

Janet Dailey (May 21, 1944 – December 14, 2013), a romance novelist passed away this December. During her lifetime she has written around 90 novels, many of which have been translated in several languages. Some of her popular novels include the books in the Calder Saga, Americana and the Bannon Brothers.

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