Friday - November 5, 2004:

No, people will not generally pay you money for your crappy old books. I have twenty long boxes of proof on this one. Oh sure, they'll pick off the odd twenty dollar gem that you've marked a buck and a half, but, generally, people don't want your crappy old books. I've done four shows now, turning a slim profit at each. I was amazed at what sold, but more amazed at what didn't sell. I had mint copies of all five volumes of the Hellboy trades sitting at half cover, the Cerebus phone books at half cover, the Powers trades at half cover, even the first few Transmetropolitan trades at half cover. None of it sold. What people asked me for was even more amazing, Transformers, G.I. Joe, Star Trek, the Next Generation, Peter Porker, the Spectacular Spider-Ham and guest appearances of the Punisher. I wasn't disappointed to see any of the books go, well maybe a couple. A former student of mine bought the Kingdom Come series and another bought my coveted copy of Sandman number one. I talked him into buying the Midsummernight's Dream episode to go along with it. Those each show at least a bit of taste. The last broke my heart and I know I'll buy it again some day. Of my twenty long-box collection I held back only one box. In it was the Jeff Smith (Bone), Linda Medley (Castle Waiting), Paul Pope (THB), and Chris Ware (Acme Novelty Library). I'm proud to say every one of the books I actually have an attachment to, minus the Sandman-Shakespeare, was independently published. What's on your all-time keep list?

-Bob Stevenson