I come here to the message boards on a daily basis and have occasionally posted. I enjoy the book threads most of all because that is what I sell.
I have a question though for booksellers. How many of you have a private collection that is not for sale? And, if you do, what do you collect and what type do you sell? Just fiction or non-fiction. Not looking for selling information. Also, how long have you been collecting before you began selling?
Just to get started. I collect in both areas and have around 4000 books that are not for sale at anytime. Becoming very large and probably need to weed out some of it and put it for sale. Just can't bring myself to do so.
posted on August 30, 2001 11:04:25 PM
I sell all kinds of books, but mostly non-fiction. My private (not-for-sale) collection is huge because if I really like a book I want my own copy (that way if I want to read it at 3 am, I can) . For this reason, my collection contains all sorts of books.
I do go out of my way to collect books on animal actors, YA SF/Fantasy in hardcover, and certain authors like Frances Hodgson Burnett and Andre Norton. Because I do storytelling, I am also always on the lookout for folktale collections.
posted on August 30, 2001 11:27:33 PM
My private collection is almost entirely fiction...primarily old-fashioned mysteries, but also some favorite authors, such as P.G. Wodehouse. I admit sometimes I read the books I've acquired for resale. I call it "Quality Control"...checking each page carefully. The only time I ever wished for a deadbeat was when one of my Rex Stout books sold on BIN and I hadn't finished it yet. Blessed (blasted) buyer paid online and I stayed up all night reading it so I could still ship it the next day.
Is a love of books a prerequisite for bookselling? I'm not sure, but in my case it makes it more fun.
posted on August 30, 2001 11:43:48 PMIs a love of books a prerequisite for bookselling?
I think so. That, and a feel for what will sell. I don't sell rare or collectible books (except for once in a blue moon). But I've done very well by following my feelings about whether a book will sell or not.
posted on August 31, 2001 12:47:51 AM
I'm more of a books collector than seller. I collect children's books, illustrated children's books. I've over 6000 books, accumulated over a 5 years period. About 10% of them are rare/collectible children's books. Others are spreaded in many categories, fiction and on fiction. I've decided to sell a few of them, to get some money for other books. But I am too lazy to take pictures put it up on Ebay. Maybe somedays ... right now there's at least 1000 books that are not for sale at anytime. Besides that, I'm willing to sell the rest to make up some space for my apt. and get some new books for my collection.
A love of books is an absolute prerequisite for books selling. As in any business, you need to know about your business in order to prosper. You can get lucky and sell a few good books, but in order to maintain a business, you don't have any other choice.
posted on August 31, 2001 01:58:52 AM
I totally agree! You have to love books to sell them, because you have to appreciate the value in order to be able to pass them on to someone else and be excited about it.
I collect:
Stephen King (any condition, PB or HC)
Any old series books for children (Happy Hollisters, Nancy Drew, Fury horse books, etc.)
Old school readers (prefer Ginn, as that is what I was taught to read with)
Art books (textbook-type)
Southern literature from early seventies and before
Any well illustrated old children's books/readers
Other odd miscellaneous books.
Don't know the numbers.
I know I have more for keeps than for sale and I currently have 200+ for sale.
I have always loved reading, it started out with "the littles" back in the seventies. You have no idea how many pictures my mother has of me with my nose in a book. I was a total bookworm, and read my first Stephen King book when I was 10 and I was HOOKED. I wish my children cared about reading, but really they don't. I really feel it enriched my life greatly. I read everything lying around!
posted on August 31, 2001 07:52:38 AM
I don't collect rare books. Which is probably a good thing because then I'd hate to ever let go of some of the books that have brought me the most money.
I keep books I love. And being kind of politically to the left, I've always waited for something to come out in pb before I bought it - it's a kind of "reading for the masses" mentality.
I have a couple of paperbacks I've carted from coast to coast in my many moves since the 70's - they evoke great memories whether they're relevant to my life anymore or not.
But I'm sure glad there are collectors with deep pockets out there because I love buying and selling books, and the customers I've "met" since I started this have been the best! (Not only that, they READ the entire auction/description!)
posted on August 31, 2001 10:22:08 AM
I collect science and history books, and some literature if it is of a favorite author like Mark Twain.
I will generally keep ante-bellum books since I have found sales of these - even on rare titles - disappointing. Some of these I've set aside for eventual repair and then sale. Amazing how a rotted spine can kill a value. Even though leather rarely survives the centuries.
I have books that are simply priceless. I cannot find a listing or a price for them anywhere, though the authors works sometimes sell in the hundreds and even thousands. Definitely not eBay items at this time. I'll probably put some up on Bidville with a reasonable price and point collectors to them in my EOA's and web links.
My favorite right now for my collection is a 1934 German particle physics text with a list value of $30 ($3 ebay dollars). With a forward by Max Planck and with photos of positron tracks this was probably one of the great texts of its day that led to the 1938 discovery of fission in Berlin. I'll never give this up, even though it pales in price comparison with the eighteenth century texts I picked up for two dollars last night. Some day I might even learn German.
posted on August 31, 2001 10:40:17 AM
I am sure there are sellers who just market them. Good books to me are like jewels--I have the same feelings for them as anything of great value. After eBaying and having to hunt for books that I used for work, I was in just the right frame of reference to sell them. I worked for a book publisher and also a retail bookstore, so I probably have as much insider info as anyone doing this.
I'm clearing out a portion of my private collection. However, there are some books I really would not part with. My favorites are reference and technical works, but there are a few in other categories.
Nearly one hundred percent of my regular work and home business income is largely the result of self-study and application of what I've read in books. Just about doubled my income inside of a couple of years.
. For this reason, my collection contains all sorts of books.