# Is "By Bizarre Hands" by Joe R. Lansdale a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of By Bizarre Hands by Joe R. Lansdale (Mark V. Ziesing, 1989) is identified by: Lansdale's first short-story collection. The Ziesing hardcover is the true first; a later Avon paperback followed and is not the first edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Lansdale's first short-story collection
- Mark V. Ziesing first edition hardcover (Shingletown, CA), with an introduction by Lewis Shiner; a signed limited state was limited to 500 copies
- Confirm via the Ziesing imprint and the limitation page on the signed limited
- Publisher imprint reads Mark V. Ziesing
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Joe R. Lansdale |
| Publisher | Mark V. Ziesing |
| Year | 1989 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Lansdale's first short-story collection |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
Lansdale's first short-story collection. Mark V. Ziesing first edition hardcover (Shingletown, CA), with an introduction by Lewis Shiner; a signed limited state was limited to 500 copies. Confirm via the Ziesing imprint and the limitation page on the signed limited.

## Is this the true first?
The Ziesing hardcover is the true first; a later Avon paperback followed and is not the first edition. The signed limited is the collectible issue.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Not applicable.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *By Bizarre Hands* by Joe R. Lansdale a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/by-bizarre-hands
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-03.