A press release from Joshua Palmatier:

Fantasy author Joshua Palmatier (also published under the pseudonym Benjamin Tate) has just launched a new small press located in Binghamton, NY, called Zombies Need Brains LLC.

Zombies Need Brains LLC will be a small press focusing on producing science fiction and fantasy themed anthologies, initially funded by Kickstarters. The intent is to produce two anthologies a year, then branch out into more anthologies and other stand-alone books once the press has gained its footing. He believes that the publishing industry has shifted with the advent of ebooks and crowdfunding platforms such as Kickstarter and that using such new resources will change the business model for small presses in general.

“Launching ZNB LLC wouldn’t have been possible ten years ago, but changes in the publishing industry, including the rise of ebooks and crowdfunding platforms such as Kickstarter, have created new opportunities for writers. In the traditional publishing model, readers go to a bookstore and choose from the books that have already been selected by the publishers. In the Kickstarter world, readers tell the publisher what books they want to read, voting with their dollars, creating a partnership between authors and their audience. Readers can become part of the publishing process at the beginning stages of a book. And the short story market has been shrinking at an astounding rate recently. I think this crowdfunding model will allow ZNB LLC to fill this short story niche with anthologies.”

Zombies Need Brains LLC’s first Kickstarter launched on Wednesday, July 17, and runs through August 15. Its goal is to raise enough funding to produce a science-fiction/fantasy anthology titled Clockwork Universe: Steampunk vs. Aliens. When aliens reach Earth, they encounter the clockwork mechanisms and Victorian sensibilities of a full-blown steampunk civilization. Inspired by the classic science fiction adventure tales of the nineteenth century, leading fantasy and science fiction authors will bring us tales of first contact with a twist, as steam power meets laser cannons… and dirigibles face off against flying saucers. Edited by Patricia Bray and Joshua Palmatier, it will contain approximately 14 stories with an average length of 6000 words each. The anthology will include short stories by: Bradley Beaulieu, Caitlin Kittredge, Gini Koch, Scott Lynch, Gail Z. Martin, Seanan McGuire, Ian Tregillis, and others.

Patricia Bray & Joshua Palmatier have edited two other anthologies in the past: After Hours: Tales from the Ur-Bar and The Modern Fae’s Guide to Surviving Humanity. Both are published authors in the science fiction and fantasy field, with over a dozen books on the shelves between them.

Check out the Kickstarter at this link. Check out the webpage at www.zombiesneedbrains.com

[At press time, the project has 71 backers pledging 27% of the financing goal, with 28 days left to run.]