Richard M. (Richard Mace) Elam

Richard M. Elam Jr. was an American author born in Richmond, Virginia, on July 16, 1920, and he died in Dallas, Texas, on March 15, 2013. Reference sources describe him as a writer whose early work was aimed mainly at young readers, especially boys, and note that much of it was science fiction.

His best-known books include Young Visitor to Mars (1953), Young Stowaways in Space (1960), and Young Visitor to the Moon (1965). He also published story collections such as Teen-Age Science Fiction Stories and Teen-Age Super Science Stories, with several pieces appearing in magazines including Boys' Life.

Outside his writing, his obituary says he served four years in the Army Air Force during World War II and later worked in the silk printing industry. Together, those details help place him as one of the many dependable, now lesser-known writers who helped introduce young readers to classic science-fiction ideas in the years before and during the early space era.