Jonah Patel
First editions of books are highly sought after by collectors. In publishing, an edition is all copies of a book that are produced and printed at the same time. However, the term 'first edition' is used differently by publishers and collectors. A 'first edition' is classified as the first time a book is printed by a publishing company and distributed commercially, but the 'true' first edition always refers to the book's original printing date with the initial publisher. In collecting terms, a first edition is when it is the first appearance of a work in question.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Definition | The first time a book is printed by a publishing company and distributed commercially |
| The first appearance of a work | |
| The first printing of the first edition | |
| The original printing date with the initial publisher | |
| All copies of a book that are printed without major changes | |
| The original cover art | |
| Original typos |
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What You'll Learn
The first time a book is printed by a publishing company and distributed commercially
A “first edition” is classified as the first time a book is printed by a publishing company and distributed commercially. In publishing, an edition is all copies of a book that are produced and printed at the same time. When a new book is released, it is classified as a first edition book. If sales take off and the book becomes popular, it goes through several re-printings, yielding multiple editions.
In publishing terms, an edition is technically all copies of a book that were printed from the same setting of type and the book is only described as a second edition if substantial changes are made to the copy. In collecting terms, a very rough description of first edition would be when it is the first appearance of a work in question. To shed a little more light, the first time a publisher releases a new book, all copies of that book that are printed without major changes can be considered a first edition.
First editions are prized because they are as close as a reader can get to the source. This is the way the book first appeared to readers, with the original cover art, and sometimes even the original typos. The first edition isn’t actually the earliest form of the book, of course. Before the book was printed, bound and shipped out to its final form, a book goes through a number of prepublication versions. The earliest form of the book is the author’s original manuscript.
An author with a proven market interest may have a new work first released as a limited edition. These editions are uniquely designed for the book collector market directly, and are typically never read by their owners. The edition released to the general market after that signed limited edition is usually called the First Trade Edition.
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The original printing date with the initial publisher
In publishing, an edition is all copies of a book that are produced and printed at the same time. However, the term 'first edition' is used differently by publishers and collectors. For publishers, a first edition is the first printing of the first edition, but for collectors, a first edition is the first appearance of a work.
A first edition is prized because it is as close as a reader can get to the source. This is the way the book first appeared to readers, with the original cover art, and sometimes even the original typos. However, the first edition isn't the earliest form of the book. Before the book was printed, bound and shipped out to the book stores in its final form, a book has gone through a number of prepublication versions. The earliest form of the book is the author's original manuscript.
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The first appearance of a work
In publishing, an edition is all copies of a book that are produced and printed at the same time. However, the term 'first edition' is used differently by publishers and collectors. Publishers will refer to a book's first edition as the first printing of the first edition, but collectors will refer to the first time a publisher releases a new book as a first edition.
A first edition is not the earliest form of the book. Before a book is printed, bound and shipped out to book stores, it goes through a number of pre-publication versions. The earliest form of the book is the author's original manuscript.
Sometimes, an author with a proven market interest may have a new work first released as a limited edition. These editions are uniquely designed for the book collector market directly and are typically never read by their owners. The edition released to the general market after that signed limited edition is usually called the First Trade Edition.
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The first printing of the first edition for modern works
A “first edition” is classified as the first time a book is printed by a publishing company and distributed commercially. The "true" first edition always refers to the book’s original printing date with the initial publisher. In publishing, an edition is all copies of a book that are produced and printed at the same time.
Collectors value first editions because they are as close as a reader can get to the source. This is the way the book first appeared to readers, with the original cover art, and sometimes even the original typos.
However, the first edition isn’t the earliest form of the book. Before the book was printed, bound and shipped out to the book stores in its final form, it has gone through a number of prepublication versions. The earliest form of the book is the author’s original manuscript.
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The original cover art
First editions are prized by collectors because they are the closest a reader can get to the source. They are the way the book first appeared to readers, with the original cover art, and sometimes even the original typos.
The first edition isn't the earliest form of the book, of course. Before the book was printed, bound and shipped out to the book stores in its final form, it has gone through a number of prepublication versions. The earliest form of the book is the author's original manuscript.
Sometimes, an author with a proven market interest may have a new work first released as a limited edition. These editions are uniquely designed for the book collector market directly and are typically never read by their owners. The edition released to the general market after that signed limited edition is usually called the First Trade Edition.
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Frequently asked questions
A first edition book is the first time a book is printed by a publishing company and distributed commercially.
A first edition is the first time a book is printed and distributed. A first printing is the first time a book is printed, but it may not be the first time it is distributed.
A first trade edition is the first edition released to the general market after a signed limited edition.
A second edition is when substantial changes are made to the copy.
First editions are the closest a reader can get to the source. They are the way the book first appeared to readers, with the original cover art and sometimes even the original typos.
