A friend of mine asked me to help her get her book published. Although it had been a best-seller in another country several years ago, she was frustrated by the lack of interest from American publishers. I suggested she let me help her self-publish her book. Unsure of the process, and wondering if there was a market for her book, she asked if we could publish her book in a limited quantity to test the market. Her father was a passionate collector of First Edition books, so we decided to self-publish a Limited First Edition, tied to a special year-long event. Even before the book was off the press, a buzz has been building and requests for the book have started to come in.

That got me thinking about the allure of First Editions, Limited Editions, and Limited First Editions. Book collecting, especially collecting special editions, is like faith: if you don’t understand the passion, I can’t explain it to your; if you have the passion, I don’t need to explain it to you.

The first printing of a book is called the first edition, although later printings of an unchanged manuscript may also be called first editions. Collectors most value the very first printing because it is the one the author saw through the production process and is closest to the time the book was written. If a publishing company owns the rights to a book, its editors usually can go to town in subsequent editions, revising as they deem fit to meet their marketing needs. Collectors like to have books that reflect the author’s – not the editor’s — intentions.

Limited editions range from as few as 50 copies to as many as 1,000 copies. They come in various forms, including those from trade (mass market) book publishers, small fine press publishers and private publishers. At the highest end, a signed, numbered and slipcased limited first edition will cost three to five times the cost of a regular first edition. An established book can be reissued with new material in a high quality Limited First Edition, offering handsomely bound books or with the author’s autograph, which also has added value to collectors.

Many websites offer first editions, limited editions and limited first editions. But if you’ve never held a limited first edition of a book in your hands – often a magical piece of history and culture — you might want to visit antiquarian bookstores, book fests, maybe even your local independent bookstore. Catch the passion!