Anyone here collect 1st/1st signed editions?

Theydon Bois

Nope, his death has made zero difference to price, apart from the fact that we wont get anymore new stories.

Theydon Bois

I may have recently replaced a trade paperback version that I bought for £10 on release with a signed hardback edition of Vol I for double what I paid for Vol II above

I have Vol III (signed limited edition) already, so don't need that.

As for expense, like any author that has 30  books under his belt, they are rare, as in many cases only a few thousand were sold as hardbacks (with most going to librarys) and 25  years old. To buy the three books contained in Vol 1 that I paid £180 for, you would at least ten times that, possibly 15 times (signed and near mint condition).

Take a look at Light Fantastic by Pratchett, and see how much change out of £3k you would get....

light fantastic - pratchett - Hard Cover - First Edition - AbeBooks

Edit: Then for his first, Colour of Magic, double that....

Fozzybear

No idea what to say about that really - it boggles the mind!

Theydon Bois

Each to their own The world would be boring if we all liked the same thing, and plus the books I want are expensive enough without more people wanting to collect them

As for price, its taken me a bloody long time to get some books, you watch ebay for a bargin, never catch one, and so stick a few pennies in a jar, get a bonus, have a travelcard holiday or something and then treat yourself to a book you have wanted for 6 years

Sadly my hardback versions of the first 6 or so Pratchett's are all 3rd/4th/5th/6th prints - they are all signed and stamped when (the only time) I met him in the pub round the corner from FP (at its old location)

While there are people that want books and will pay these prices, then there will be people that will sell them.....

Fozzybear

My pratchetts are mostly paperbacks that are clapped out having been re-read so much. Their only value is in propping up a table leg.

Edit: I've not heard of stamping books before!

Theydon Bois

By stamping, I mean his little official Ankh Morpork arms stamp which he uses normally with a signature.

His signature really changes as well, I have seen some that look like a butterfly, and others a scribble (no jokes about dementia please!)

Smurfin

I must admit I'm enjoying scouring ebay, as there's plenty of bargains to be had.  

Specific ones I'm trying to get cheap are:

Scott Lynch - Lies of Locke Lamora (generally around £100 currently)
Carlos Ruiz Zafon - The Shadow of The Wind (up to £150 currently)
Sebastian Faulks - Birdsong (£150 I've seen them for, but mint ones look to be around the £300 mark)
Khaled Hosseini - The Kite Runner (£800!!!!!   Doubt I'll ever get this one... )
George R R Martin limited editions - damn I wish I'd bought them when I first asked about them on the forums.  

There's an unsigned set on ebay currently with 1 bid at £300...and they aren't even signed.  According to that auction, there were 3 impressions of this edition too, which I didn't realise.  I think I may well end up buying the other 4 editions cheap on amazon (£26 each), and just try to get a signed copy of the first one on ebay at some point.

And finally, all of the works of William Horwood.  It's quite handy that his old books aren't that well (or not in demand).  One of the greatest authors I've ever read imho, and I'm managing to pick up almost mint 20 year old 1st/1sts for £5, not signed mind.

Theydon Bois

You got the bug mate.......

Theydon Bois

Dont have the money to start collecting Martin, but if you are set upon that path, then this is pure gold mate:

A Game of Thrones Uncorrected Proof Copy | eBay

Smurfin

How much will that go for you, do you think?

To be honest, I do have the bug, but for hardbacks only.  First and foremost, I want to build a nice collection to have on the shelf, and HBs/limited edition slipcases, is where it's at for me atm

Tempted to buy that set on ebay, but £300 for non-signed editions just looks too much imho...