Hi guys sorry to annoy you again with these things but this is the PhD that won't go away... (this is voluntary and information will be deidentified in publications in academic papers I may write based on it) I have to write a paper by the end of the month for a conference in Australia and I'm looking at some of my interviews and comparing prices on eBay to look at the 'value' of Terry Pratchett's signature. I want to compare the monetary price versus the personal value of the signature... So here goes: Why do you like to get books signed? Would you pay extra to buy a signed copy of a PTerry Book and why? Does a book you've had signed have more value than a bought signed copy? Why / Why not? Do you treat your signed copies differently to your unsigned copies? The point is not to for this to be a questionnaire but for these to be more points for discussion amongst the group...So... discuss.
Alright well I've always been of the opinion that you get a book signed for the whole signing experience... To stand in long grueling lines for that one flash of a moment where pterry sticks his signature on a book for you...right in front of you...possibly personalises it...and smiles and you can say thank you in person. A plainly signed copy you bought in a book story would be nice but not quite as memorable as having to wait and get it done youself. I don't think I would pay any extra for asigned book because I really think it should be something that the author wants to do, and will do, for free for his fans. A signature means the author you admire has opened that book and taken the time to plant a signature on it specifically for fans of their work. That's why it means more than an unsigned copy - it's the time taken to go out and give people the chance to have a signed copy and I think I would treat that copy a lot better (when I finally get it).
Having met the man and had two books signed I can add a personal touch to the theoretical I hope. Why do you like to get books signed? I was 13 when I had Soul Music signed and had read every discworld book published by 1995 twice. The style of the stories was so stand alone from anything else I'd come across that I was an instant fan. He was there in full kit, hat and all. Would you pay extra to buy a signed copy of a PTerry Book and why? Quite simply, no. Testimant to his reputation for being close to his fans, Terry Pratchett has signed more books than most other authors. Having worked in a book store with somebody who'd spent their lives managing book stores I was told he'd even given birth to the phrase 'Pratchetting', the term for an author who does a lot of book signings, because he was such a prolific signer so they weren't as valuable as somebody who signed only occasionally. Does a book you've had signed have more value than a bought signed copy? Why / Why not? Getting the book signed was an [i:e74345307f]experience[/i:e74345307f], meeting the man himself, speaking to him, getting to ask questions... after that he was a hero to me. Somebody who'd gotten so far and didnt just thanks his fans but mixed with them and enjoyed it, he was having if anything a better time than the people queueing to meet him I think! The fact the book was signed gave me a physical mark to remember it by(especially as he personalised mine with a comment rather than just stamping and signing like he did for most others), but actually meeting him there with all those other fans in such a tiny book shop in a quiet corner of the world was so wonderful. Do you treat your signed copies differently to your unsigned copies? Certainly did, it had a reserved and hallowed place in my collection... till I let my mum read it and she spilt coffee on it, ripped the spine and left a ring from a wet mug on the back cover. Have had it restored to some extent and now I take extra special care of it. It may not be worth anything monetarily, but it means a whole heck of a lot to me personally.
[b:75a3a5cc9e]Why do you like to get books signed?[/b:75a3a5cc9e] Because it's that extra little detail that means not only did you enjoy the book, and appreciate the author's work, but just a step further, that you find the work special enough to deserve signing. Now going to an event and meeting the author in the flesh, getting to speak to him/her is an extra, and a signed book is a souvenir, a way to immortalize a special moment. [b:75a3a5cc9e]Would you pay extra to buy a signed copy of a PTerry Book and why?[/b:75a3a5cc9e] Already have, and twice for the same one I ordered a signed copy of Thud in december, and it got lost in the post... so after many months of patient waiting and despairing, I ordered it again, as there weren't many left. I just hope it arrives this time. As I have virtually no hope of ever attending a Diskworldcon or such an event, and as Pterry doesn't seem to ever come to this stupid country (and we all know how intelligent he is, don't we ? ) I guessed this would be the only way to ever get a signed book **sigh of deep dispair** [b:75a3a5cc9e]Does a book you've had signed have more value than a bought signed copy? Why / Why not?[/b:75a3a5cc9e] Of course !!!!! ( <== maniacal fan exclamation marks) Having it signed for YOU is quite different, it's a special link between you and the author, it makes the book priceless, and as I said a memento of the rare and magic moment where you shared the same space as someone you admire and he knew your name (even if he forgets it a moment later). A book you buy signed is more valuable than a normal book, but only as a special artefact, not as a personal memory. [b:75a3a5cc9e]Do you treat your signed copies differently to your unsigned copies?[/b:75a3a5cc9e] They go in my special display case with climate control and I only ever touch them with hand made white gloves made from lama wool by mystic monks who live on a mountain in a galaxy far far away. Oh alright... I'd look after them with more care, but I'm quite careful about my books anyway. I already have one personally signed book that was not only signed by the author but was given to me by the author, who was a friend of my Dad's. Monica Edwards, she wrote children's books, mainly about horses, and my Dad used to work on her farm. She was a lovely person and the signed book goes with fond memories.
This is all great. Thanks guys... I guess what got me started on this is my own experience with the mere 5 books I got signed when Terry was in Australia a couple of years ago. Those books are now ear-marked as never to be lent out ever again and I especially love the one where he drew a turtle and signed it for me... Even after I'd hassled him for info for my PhD Also in one of the interviews I did with a fan not on the board it was said that Terry had made a spelling mistake in her book and then an extra quote was added about it in the signing. She felt that because it was unique and Terry had made jokes about not being able to spell the book was extra special and she bragged to people about it. Now I just have to figure out why. As a record / souvenier of the signing experience is easy enough, but why do people then go and pay a fortune on ebay (or in Katcals case, twice) for a signed copy? I mean its not a record of their own experience, so why pay the extra money?
Well like I said, for me it's more a case of sadly giving up hope of meeting him ever to get a book signed "in the flesh", so it's still a book that he has signed "for a fan", I'd rather have a book that he signed for someone like me than buy feegle keyrings, figures and mousemats for the same price. He has still touched it, and thought of his fans while signing it, it still holds the intention, even if it's not a personalized intention. Also, there is a limit to the price I would pay, I mean this book was £25, I would easily have paid 2/3 of that price if I ordered it from Amazon France, so it's not that much more, I wouldn't go bidding for it on e-bay, and actually, I wouldn't go out of my way to find signed books, I just stumbled over this one while looking for something else, and thought, hey, why not... Now paying for it twice is just my general stubbornness (splg?) and is not specific to this book, it just pisses me off to wait for something I ordered and not get it because of the stupid post office.
[b:a550398a80]Why do you like to get books signed? [/b:a550398a80] I went to get mine signed purely for the fact of meeting him in person, if only for several seconds before I was bundled quickly out of the way to let the hoards of other people through. [b:a550398a80]Would you pay extra to buy a signed copy of a PTerry Book and why?[/b:a550398a80] I wouldn't pay extra to buy a signed copy. As I said before, it's more for the experience, rather than to have a piece of ink that if you squint and look sideways, looks vaguely like someone's name and could probably be done by a 2 year old [b:a550398a80]Does a book you've had signed have more value than a bought signed copy? Why / Why not?[/b:a550398a80] A book I have gotten signed does have more value than a bought signed copy (which I have none of). They have more value for me, perhaps because of the journey that was involved in getting it, the standing beside some seriously strange people in the queue who I will probably never forget, having to explain to Him about why exactly I wanted those particular dedications. It was a special time, and getting something through the post would have none of that meaning. Probably the only meaning it would actually have is that my VISA has an even bigger dent in it than normal. :shock: [b:a550398a80]Do you treat your signed copies differently to your unsigned copies?[/b:a550398a80] Most certainly! I keep mine beside my photo albums (in the event of a fire etc. somewhere easy to grab...) The unsigned copies sit in veg boxes under my bed for ease of access. The signed ones are treated as precious items. Dusted carefully, handled carefully, read carefully and proudly shown to anyone who wants to see them. While the others are replacable, the personally signed and dedicated books are irreplacable.
I only have one signed book - even after seeing him three times. That was a pre-release (proof) version of Monstrous Regiment, which was a little costly, and has never been read - it is kept in a padded envelope in a plastic bag. It means a lot to me, just because it was signed and I would never part with it. I wouldn't normally pay more for a signed copy, but that one does have it personally signed - Sadly I can't make out fully what it says, although it is roughly a quote from the book itself!!! There is a photo of the quotation on my webpage if anyone cares...
[quote:a68f9ef870="Victimov8"]There is a photo of the quotation on my webpage if anyone cares...[/quote:a68f9ef870] I care but where's you website?
Weeeellll... try the "www" button down the bottom of his posts, that might just have something to do with it ?
[quote:676839563b="Katcal"]Weeeellll... try the "www" button down the bottom of his posts, that might just have something to do with it ? [/quote:676839563b] It do be linked from there - You may have to select the correct gallery though... :badgrin:
I've got it !!!! Finally !!! Only 6 months of waiting !!! For an extra scribble !! Oh what the hell, it's a Pterry scribble !! (and also, I finally get to read Thud !) **goes dancing off towards the happy land of Lunchbreak with a signed copy of Thud! under her arm**
Dave thats really cool. Did I read it right when it says 'you are my little read"? Have fun Kat! I'm sure the squiggle will make it a better book.
That is pretty much what I thought - I did say it wasn't very legible... Maybe the little part was ironic?
I guess that Terry is referring to the book as 'you' and it's written as if from Dave's perspective. "This book is my little read and I will look after it."
Oooo Kaaaaay... That makes sense but my feable little mind was having conniptions trying to figure that out. Thank you Ben.
[quote:6a376e295f="Katcal"]I've got it !!!! Finally !!! Only 6 months of waiting !!! For an extra scribble !! Oh what the hell, it's a Pterry scribble !! (and also, I finally get to read Thud !) **goes dancing off towards the happy land of Lunchbreak with a signed copy of Thud! under her arm**[/quote:6a376e295f] You guys will never guess what arrived in my post box this morning. [color=white:6a376e295f]. . . . . . . . . . . .[/color:6a376e295f] Yep... Book number one. I now have two signed copies of Thud! :cooler: Well, I guess at least I didn't pay twice for nothing, at least... I would send it back but it took so long to get here, I think the poor thing deserves to stay... Maybe I'll give it to my Dad, if he promises to look after it.
[quote:f4d4453b52="spiky"]Yay! Kat, you could always resell it on eBay [/quote:f4d4453b52] Well I must admit I'd rather give it away than risk it getting lost in the post AGAIN... As Sandra Kidby said when I mailed her about this "wow, imagine all the stories that book could tell !" (or something like that, I don't have the mail handy right now...)
