Bill Ransom

Bill Ransom (born 1945) is an American writer and educator best known for co-authoring the Pandora sequence with Frank Herbert, continuing the universe of Herbert's Destination: Void across three novels: The Jesus Incident (1979), The Lazarus Effect (1983), and The Ascension Factor (1988), following generations of colonists confronting a sentient, telepathic ocean creature on a hostile world. Ransom worked as a jet engine technician, firefighter, and emergency medical technician before an academic career that included founding the Port Townsend Writers' Conference and serving as Dean of Curriculum at The Evergreen State College. Beyond his Herbert collaborations, he has published solo science fiction novels including ViraVax, Jaguar, and Burn, and several poetry collections; his 1973 collection Finding True North & Critter received nominations for both the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award.