# Is "Only Forward" by Michael Marshall Smith a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Only Forward by Michael Marshall Smith (HarperCollins UK, 1994) is identified by: UK HarperCollins mass-market paperback original, 1994, ISBN 0-586-21774-6; Smith's debut novel; first printing. The UK HarperCollins paperback original of 1994 is the true first.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- UK HarperCollins mass-market paperback original, 1994, ISBN 0-586-21774-6
- Smith's debut novel; first printing
- Publisher imprint reads HarperCollins UK
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Michael Marshall Smith |
| Publisher | HarperCollins UK |
| Year | 1994 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | UK HarperCollins mass-market paperback original, 1994, ISBN 0-586-21774-6 |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
UK HarperCollins mass-market paperback original, 1994, ISBN 0-586-21774-6; Smith's debut novel; first printing.

## Is this the true first?
The UK HarperCollins paperback original of 1994 is the true first. Won the British Fantasy (August Derleth) Award in 1995 and the Philip K. Dick Award presented in 2000 for the US edition. The US Bantam edition was the award-eligible form.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Later Voyager and Harper reissues are reprints or first thus. The US edition is the first US printing. The first hardcover appearance was a separate later Subterranean Press edition (2002), not a 1994 issue.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Only Forward* by Michael Marshall Smith a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/only-forward
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.