Gourse wrote for magazines and newspapers including Downbeat, JazzTimes, the New York Times, Stagebill, and the Village Voice, as well as the Post.
Her books included biographies of Louis Amstrong, Art Blakey, Wynton Marsalis, Sarah Vaughan, and Ella Fitzgerald. She had a particular interest in women in jazz, and her 1995 Madame Jazz: Contemporary Women Instrumentalists was well received.
She also wrote The Best Guided Walking Tours to New York City and such children's biographies as Pocahantas: Young Peacemaker, Jim Henson: Young Puppeteer, and Gloria Estefan: Pop Sensation.
