Book Collecting - How to Start your collection.

Book Collecting has to be one of the most rewarding of all hobbies. The problem that it brings is the sheer numbers of books out there that are collectible. Quite often people start their collections by accident; a book here, a book there, until there is a huge mixture of books on all topics that it is almost impossible to categorize into some sort of meaningful library.

Of course, some people start collecting the right way, without even thinking about it. Maybe, like me, they started book collecting by becoming hooked on a specific author, or maybe they had another hobby that they were lucky enough to find lots of books about. So the book collection starts and you didn't even know you were collecting!

The title of this website is "Collectible Books for Profit & Pleasure". By that I don't mean that you should become a book trader, that is a completely different hobby. The 'profit' can be twofold, firstly the joy of owning a rare and sought after book, second is the value-adding you will get by thinking about exactly what you should collect. A collection of related books will naturally assume a higher value as a whole, rather than as individual books. Of course, there are also books that are highly collectible on their own merits but the 'sum of the parts' model is a good one to start with when starting on your book collecting journey.

So the fact that you are reading this site would suggest that you've already started collecting books. A friend of mine is an avid comic collector, some of which I hope to offer up for sale on the site. Many of them are first editions in immaculate condition with a price tag to suit. That is an example of the way that collections start, pretty much by accident. It is also evidence of the fact that you don't need to start any collection by buying high-value books; these humble comics are undoubtedly worth many time their face value.

Popular and Collectible or Rare and Collectible?

Harry Potter, the modern day fictional invention of J.K. Rowling is unbelievably popular, but is it collectible? Well, it most certainly isn't rare, but I have seen first editions selling for quite outrageous sums of money. I would just say this; don't get caught up in the hype and hysteria of the day, you will lose money. In a few decades time we will all look back and wonder what all the fuss was about, and we would all be right. Don't get sucked in.

Of course, if that's what you like and want to collect, then that's just fine. It's what appeals to you that matters, no-one else. I have an almost complete collection of the Alfred Hitchcock labelled "The Mystery of" children's series, including the very rare 1965 First Edition series of "Mystery of the Green Ghost". What's it worth? Well, its pretty much priceless to me, but what someone would willingly part for it is anyone's guess. But then I don't care, I love these books!

Pricing is also at the mercy of the book seller. What I mean is that if a seller really doesn't know the true value of a book, they are highly likely to add a loading to the price. If they sell it, all well and good, if they don't, then nothing has been lost. So when you find a book that you would like to buy, be prepared to sometimes be surprised at the initial asking price. More often than not it will be higher than you think it should be, however occasionally you will find a genuine bargain. That is when you should waste no time in snapping up that collectible book!

When you have been collecting for a while and you have built up a knowledge bank about your chosen subject, that is when trips to book fairs and small book sellers can pay off big dividends. A lot of specialist book sellers get their books in this way. As soon as they are bought the price is elevated to many times what has been paid. There's no reason you can't do this too.

There are many collectible book price guides available that are a good learning source when starting out book collecting. The only caveat is that these are only guides, not set-in-stone price bibles. So treat them with some caution until you have some experience of pricing.

A good friend of mine collects Antique Pocket Watches. As we see the value of the U.S. Dollar slowly decline to nothing, we also see the price of real money - Gold - increasing in value substantially. Many of his pocket watches have solid gold cases, so they have some intrinsic worth. In fact, many watches are only worth their gold value. Unfortunately with books, there is no silver lining, and no intrinsic value either. So the point of this little message is to not expect to make your fortune by book collecting. But then again you never know...!

Book Collecting Conclusions

The only real conclusion at the end of the day is for you to collect whatever you want. Invariably your collecting habits will be all the more pleasurable if you adopt this practise. My own collection is many and varied, probably a little too varied but I know that every book in my collection is there for a very good reason. Whether values have increased or not really doesn't matter. While I do own some very rare and collectible books, many of these were bought almost by accident, when I was quite new at the hobby. This is when collecting gets very exciting!

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