MZB Enterprises

Name:	MZB Enterprises
Date(s):	January 1986-1990
Profit/Nonprofit:	profit
Country based in:	Berkeley, California
Focus:
External Links:
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MZB Enterprises was a company that was formed by Marion Zimmer Bradley in January 1986 to sell her fan newsletter called Darkover Newsletter as well as other publications, many which had been previously sold by Thendara House.

A 1986 flyer

In January 1986, Bradley announced the restart of her long-running newsletter, Darkover Newsletter: "At last, the second series of the Darkover Newsletter, Issue 31, resurrected as part of MZB Enterprises, soon to be MZB Enterprises, Inc." The newsletter has a copyright statement to "MZB Enterprises."

In March 1986, Bradley announced members of the staff line-up for the newly-formed MZB Enterprises: "For those of you who dislike writing to a faceless organization, our staff is as follows: Marion Zimmer Bradley, Elisabeth Waters (office manager and bookkeeper), Ann Sharp (newsletter editor), Patrick Breen (captive artist and gofer), and Kat Krischild (data base administrator)." There is no mention of Walter Breen.

In June 1986, the company moved to new building: "We have transferred the headquarters of the MZB Enterprises to a separate building, so that I no longer trip over Newsletters, spare volumes of STORMQUEEN, two extra computers, the copier, and the postage meter while I'm pacing the floor and working on the next Darkover novel."

Despite Bradley's 1986 statement about future incorporation, this actually never happened. From a June 1990 statement by Ann Sharp regarding Bradley's then-recent health crisis, and the closing of this company: "The editor says that Marion's close call made them much more conscious of her own mortality. "MZB's Fantasy Magazine is incorporated, so it can survive her, but MZB Enterprises is not. We are therefore closing down MZB Enterprises except for the Darkover Newsletter, which Marion wants to continue as long as she lives."

In the December 1990 issue of "Darkover Newsletter," there are two mentions of "MZB Enterprises" still being in operation: one was a list of published books by Bradley protégées and other DAW Books authors along with "Additions and corrections to this list should be sent to Elisabeth Waters, MZB Enterprises." The other was "Walter Breen is still employed by MZB Enterprises and is still working on an updated Darkover Concordance. He was sentenced on November 30th to three years' probation for the one count of sexually molesting a child under the age of 14 that he pled guilty to on June 8th."

The December 1990 issue also included this statement: "In the wake of Mrs. Bradley's 1990 heart attack, we decided to close out everything except the Darkover Newsletter. On 31 December 1990 any remaining inventory was returned to its author. Darkovan Costume and Clothing is now available from Diana L. Paxson, [address redacted]. "The Liturgy of the Lady" is available from The Fellowship of the Spiral Path, Box 5521, Berkeley, CA 94705. Wackademia, Dark Moon Circle, and other tapes and songbooks are available from Unlikely Publications, 839 37th Street, Richmond CA 94805. When writing for prices and ordering information please enclose a SASE."

"Darkover Newsletter" #53 (June 1991) had this notice: "MZB Enterprises, which has been publishing the DNL, is now a wholly-owned subsidiary of Marion Zimmer Bradley, Limited. Consequently, we have changed the return address, as you will see below, and the copyright notation on the first page. This will not affect the Friends of Darkover, which will remain exactly as it has always been—non-profit, unorganized, exhaustless—so any opinions expressed herein continue to be the writer's, unless expressly identified as MZB's or the Friends'."

Darkover Newsletter #47 was copyrighted by "MZB Enterprises" (December 1989). Issue #48 (March 1990) was copyrighted by Marion Zimmer Bradley. #49-#52 by "MZB Enterprises." #53 by "Marion Zimmer Bradley." #54 and onward, the issues were copyrighted by "Marion Zimmer Bradley, Ltd."

Morphed Into Another Company?

In Winter 1990, "Marion Zimmer Bradley's Fantasy Magazine" was published by Marion Zimmer Bradley, Ltd.," and then by Marion Zimmer Bradley Living Trust from Winter 1994 to 2000).

Some of the Things for Sale

• "How to Prepare a Manuscript" (may be one of these: Links to Essays and Articles on MZB's Website)
• "Why Did My Story Get Rejected?," see Why Did My Story Get Rejected? (1997), ^{Archived version}, by MZB
• Darkover Newsletter
• Darkover: Images of a World
• "Visit Scenic Darkover," a bumper sticker
• The Gemini Problem
• The Maenads
• The White Knight's Cookbook
• "Web of Light/Web of Darkness," Bradley's first novel
• Wackademia
• other pamphlets, such as one on astrology, by Walter Breen
• other occasional pro books by Bradley