Laser Books

Laser Books was a line of 58 paperback SF novels published from 1975 to 1977 by Canadian romance publisher Harlequin Books.

Laser published three titles per month, available by subscription as well as in stores. The books were limited to 50,000-60,000 words, and were numbered as a series, although each was a standalone novel.

Authors of novels in the series included Ray Nelson, Raymond F. Jones, J. F. Bone, Juanita Coulson, Gordon Eklund, K. W. Jeter, Tim Powers, Don Glut, George Zebrowski, J. Hunter Holly, and J. T. McIntosh.

All the covers were painted by Kelly Freas, yielding a very definite series look, but one whose attractiveness quickly wore out for fans and is thought by many to mark a long-term decline in the quality and originality of Freas' work.

The Laser line was important to beginning writers and greatly expanded the market for 50,000 to 60,000 word books. Several Laser books were later reprinted by other publishers, including Ace Books and Tor.

On the other hand, the first book in the series, Seeds of Change by Thomas Monteleone was given away for free in very large numbers and probably hurt Monteleone's career. Copies of Seeds of Change were so very common that jokes were made thereafter that he'd written a book you couldn't even give away.

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Publisher

This is a publisher page, referring to science fiction book and prozine publishers.