Shasta Publishers was a

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...

and

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy literature and d ...

small press specialty publishing house founded in 1947 by Erle Melvin Korshak, T. E. Dikty, and Mark Reinsberg, who were all

science fiction fans Science fiction fandom or SF fandom is a community or fandom of people interested in science fiction in contact with one another based upon that interest. SF fandom has a life of its own, but not much in the way of formal organization (although ...

from the

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

area. The name of the press was suggested by Reinsberg in remembrance of a summer job that he and Korshak had held at

Mount Shasta Mount Shasta ( Shasta: ''Waka-nunee-Tuki-wuki''; Karuk: ''Úytaahkoo'') is a potentially active volcano at the southern end of the Cascade Range in Siskiyou County, California. At an elevation of , it is the second-highest peak in the Cascades ...

History

and book collectors, Mel Korshak, Mark Reinsberg, Ted Dikty, and Fred Shroyer recognized the need for a comprehensive list of science fiction and fantasy published up to that time. In 1940 they made plans to compile such a list and began writing letters to the readers' letter columns in the science fiction and fantasy pulp magazines, asking for help with the project; a card file was started, as was a manuscript. Unfortunately, these materials were put into storage when Dikty was drafted for service in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. After the war, the file and manuscript were unable to be located, and the work would have to begin again from scratch. Korshak and Dikty began a book selling business in 1946, while still eager to publish the earlier attempted list. Korshak soon after met Everett F. Bleiler through a newspaper ad offering books for sale. Bleiler expressed interest in their project, and he eventually took it over; the result was '' The Checklist of Fantastic Literature'', which was finally published under the Shasta imprint in 1948. Originally planning to primarily publish reference books on science fiction and fantasy, the new specialty press instead went on to publish fiction by John W. Campbell, Jr.,

L. Ron Hubbard Lafayette Ronald Hubbard (March 13, 1911 – January 24, 1986) was an American author, primarily of science fiction and fantasy stories, who is best known for having founded the Church of Scientology. In 1950, Hubbard authored '' Dianeti ...

Robert A. Heinlein Robert Anson Heinlein (; July 7, 1907 – May 8, 1988) was an American science fiction author, aeronautical engineer, and naval officer. Sometimes called the "dean of science fiction writers", he was among the first to emphasize scientific accu ...

A. E. van Vogt Alfred Elton van Vogt ( ; April 26, 1912 – January 26, 2000) was a Canadian-born American science fiction author. His fragmented, bizarre narrative style influenced later science fiction writers, notably Philip K. Dick. He was one of the ...

, and others. Ultimately, however, they were not successful and finally ceased publishing in 1957, having produced 19 volumes under the Shasta imprint. According to Robert Weinberg, "Using an involved, multicolor printing process, Shasta featured some of the finest color jackets ever done in the small press field. Some of these were the jackets for

The Wheels of If "The Wheels of If" is an alternate history science fiction story by American writer L. Sprague de Camp. It was first published in the magazine '' Unknown Fantasy Fiction'' for October, 1940,Laughlin, Charlotte, and Levack, Daniel J. H. ''De Camp ...

by L. Sprague de Camp,

Slaves of Sleep ''Slaves of Sleep'' is a science fantasy novel by American writer L. Ron Hubbard. It was first published in book form in 1948 by Shasta Publishers; the novel originally appeared in 1939 in an issue of the magazine ''Unknown''. The novel presents ...

and Kinsmen of the Dragon by Stanley Mullen, with the art for all three by Hannes Bok. "Science Fiction Specialty Publishers" in Hall, Hal W. (ed) ''Science Fiction Collections: Fantasy, Supernatural & Weird Tales'', Haworth Press, 1983, pp. 124-25

Works published by Shasta

* '' The Checklist of Fantastic Literature'', by Everett F. Bleiler (1948) * ''

Who Goes There? ''Who Goes There?'' is a 1938 science fiction horror novella by American author John W. Campbell, written under the pen name Don A. Stuart. Its story follows a group of people trapped in a scientific research outpost in Antarctica with shap ...

'', by John W. Campbell, Jr. (1948) * ''

'', by

(1948) * ''

'', by L. Sprague de Camp (1949) * ''

The World Below ''The World Below'' is a science fiction novel by British writer S. Fowler Wright. It was first published in 1929 by Collins. The novel was originally intended as a trilogy, but the third part was never written. The first part was originall ...

'', by S. Fowler Wright (1949) * ''

The Man Who Sold the Moon "The Man Who Sold the Moon" is a science fiction novella by American author Robert A. Heinlein, written in 1949 and published in 1950. A part of his '' Future History'' and prequel to "Requiem", it covers events around a fictional first Moon lan ...

'', by

(1950) * ''

Sidewise in Time "Sidewise in Time" is a science fiction short story by American writer Murray Leinster that was first published in the June 1934 issue of ''Astounding Stories''. "Sidewise in Time" served as the title story for Leinster's second story collection ...

'', by

Murray Leinster Murray Leinster (June 16, 1896 – June 8, 1975) was a pen name of William Fitzgerald Jenkins, an American writer of genre fiction, particularly of science fiction. He wrote and published more than 1,500 short stories and articles, 14 movie ...

(1950) * '' Kinsmen of the Dragon'', by Stanley Mullen (1951) * '' Space on My Hands'', by

Fredric Brown Fredric Brown (October 29, 1906 – March 11, 1972) was an American science fiction, fantasy, and mystery writer.D. J. McReynolds, "The Short Fiction of Fredric Brown" in Frank N. Magill, (ed.) ''Survey of Science Fiction Literature'', Vol. 4 ...

(1951) * ''

The Green Hills of Earth "The Green Hills of Earth" is a science fiction short story by American writer Robert A. Heinlein. One of his Future History stories, the short story originally appeared in ''The Saturday Evening Post'' (February 8, 1947), and it was collecte ...

'', by

(1951) * ''

Cloak of Aesir ''Cloak of Aesir'' is a collection of science fiction stories by American writer John W. Campbell, Jr. It was published in 1952 by Shasta Publishers in an edition of 5,000 copies. The stories originally appeared in the magazine '' Astounding SF ...

'', by John W. Campbell, Jr. (1952) (short fiction collection) * ''

This Island Earth ''This Island Earth'' is a 1955 American science fiction film from Universal-International, produced by William Alland, directed by Joseph M. Newman and Jack Arnold, starring Jeff Morrow, Faith Domergue and Rex Reason. It is based on the 1 ...

'', by Raymond F. Jones (1952) * '' Murder in Millennium VI'', by Curme Gray (1952) * ''

The Demolished Man ''The Demolished Man'' is a science fiction novel by American writer Alfred Bester, which was the first Hugo Award winner in 1953. An inverted detective story, it was first serialized in three parts, beginning with the January 1952 issue of '' G ...

'', by

Alfred Bester Alfred Bester (December 18, 1913 – September 30, 1987) was an American science fiction author, TV and radio scriptwriter, magazine editor and scripter for comic strips and comic books. He is best remembered for his science fiction, incl ...

(1953) * '' Space Platform'', by

(1953) * '' Revolt in 2100'', by

(1953) * '' Science Fiction Carnival'', edited by

and

Mack Reynolds Dallas McCord "Mack" Reynolds (November 11, 1917 – January 30, 1983) was an American science fiction writer. His pen names included Dallas Ross, Mark Mallory, Clark Collins, Dallas Rose, Guy McCord, Maxine Reynolds, Bob Belmont, and Todd Har ...

(1953) * ''

Space Tug ''Space Tug'' is a young adult science fiction novel by author Murray Leinster. It was published in 1953 by Shasta Publishers in an edition of 5,000 copies. It is the second novel in the author's Joe Kenmore series. Groff Conklin gave it a mixed ...

'', by

(1953) * '' Empire of the Atom'', by

(1956)

Notes

References

* * * {{Authority control American speculative fiction publishers Small press publishing companies Book publishing companies of the United States Science fiction publishers Fantasy book publishers Publishing companies established in 1947 1947 establishments in the United States