# Is "The Dream Master" by Roger Zelazny a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Dream Master by Roger Zelazny (Ace, 1966) is identified by: Ace paperback original, catalog number F-403, October 1966, with cover art by Frank Kelly Freas; 155 pages, with its printed price on the cover. US Ace paperback original (F-403) is the true first book edition; there was no simultaneous hardcover.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Ace paperback original, catalog number F-403, October 1966, with cover art by Frank Kelly Freas
- 155 pages, with its printed price on the cover
- Expanded from the novella 'He Who Shapes' (Amazing Stories, 1965
- 1965 Nebula winner)
- The Freas cover and the F-403 designation identify the first printing
- Publisher imprint reads Ace
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Roger Zelazny |
| Publisher | Ace |
| Year | 1966 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Ace paperback original, catalog number F-403, October 1966, with cover art by Frank Kelly Freas |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
Ace paperback original, catalog number F-403, October 1966, with cover art by Frank Kelly Freas; 155 pages, with its printed price on the cover. Expanded from the novella 'He Who Shapes' (Amazing Stories, 1965; 1965 Nebula winner). The Freas cover and the F-403 designation identify the first printing.

## Is this the true first?
US Ace paperback original (F-403) is the true first book edition; there was no simultaneous hardcover.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book club edition; as an Ace paperback original there is no hardcover book-club issue to confuse it with.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Dream Master* by Roger Zelazny a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-dream-master
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.