Time till Paperbacks are getting out-of-print?

[Kopernikus]

After I took a look at Amazons offers for Diane Duanes "The Empty Chair" (Link) I started to wonder: How is it possible that a book, which is just a little bit older than two years, is already out of print and obviously so rare that the online-dealers are charching rather ridicolous prices? On which factors is it decided, that a book will not be reprinted (Assuming this is really the case here) and roughly how many pieces are printed anyway in the first place?

P.S.
Does anybody have any recommendations on how to get a copy of this particular book for a reasonable price?

 

[William Leisner]

In a nutshell, it depends on how many more copies the publisher thinks it will be able to sell to their accounts. If that number is high enough, they'll order a reprint. If not, they'll let the title go OP.

As for actual numbers, as always, it depends on the book.

 

[Therin of Andor]

Does anybody have any recommendations on how to get a copy of this particular book for a reasonable price?

A second hand bookshop where the staff isn't savvy about Internet prices?

"Out of print" essentially means "no longer in stock at the warehouse". There could be hundreds of copies still in book shops all over the world. If bookshops get enough requests, Pocket might do a reprint. However, a huge problem for bookshops is that customers drift in, check the shelves and drift out again, without ever telling the shops what they were seeking.

Shops try to "sell out" of most new titles pretty quickly these days. After the initial order of 5-30 "new title" copies, they are then likely to order in a random batch of single copies. It's no point having ten of every book two and three years after they've come out.

I'd order it as an eBook, but keep an eye out for a cheap hardcopy to turn up. And it will, eventually.

 

[seigezunt]

Geez, those prices are ridiculous. And I was hoping to read that book at some point.

Funny, since so many of the earlier books out of print are selling for like one cent.

That's thievery.

 

[Reanok]

I was recently looking for a used copy of Enterprise's Last Full Measure and some of the prices for the used book online are twentyfive dollars and one was Fiftyfour dollars. That's a ripoff.for a used book that came out in 2006.

 

[DimesDan]

I was recently looking for a used copy of Enterprise's Last Full Measure and some of the prices for the used book online are twentyfive dollars and one was Fiftyfour dollars. That's a ripoff.for a used book that came out in 2006.

This won't help at all but the Waterstones near me still has a copy of that in for the recommended retail price of £6.99

 

[William Leisner]

It's only a ripoff if someone pays that amount.

 

[Reanok]

After looking through my bookshelves and a big stack of books over the past week. I finally found my Enterprise book Last Full Measure. Now I don't have to get a used copy.Thanks for the info about the book I appreciate it.

 

[seigezunt]

It's only a ripoff if someone pays that amount.

True, but how did they arrive at that figure.

"This cook has been out print for a couple years, so I'll mark it up, say 10 times."

wtf?

Makes some of the Trek shwag prices at conventions look like a steal...

 

[William Leisner]

For a couple of weeks before Losing the Peace was released, someone on the Amazon Marketplace was listing a "used" copy for $999.99. Clearly, this person could not have actually had a copy in hand, and even if they did somehow get the book early, they had to know it wasn't actually worth that kind of money. (Some will no doubt argue it wasn't worth the $7.99 cover price.)

How do they arrive at their figures? I have no doubt in my mind that their figures, for the most part, are pulled straight out of their asses.

 

[Thrawn]

There are usually a fairly large number of people willing to sell any particular Trek book on Amazon, though, and the prices are all over the place, but obviously anyone wanting to buy it will buy the cheapest option, and so usually what it means when you see a Trek book marked up that highly is that if someone didn't pay exactly that amount, they paid something pretty close to it.

 

[Steve Roby]

I dunno... I've seen that sort of thing (resellers offering copies of books that haven't been printed yet for ridiculous prices) and I've wondered if it's just a placeholder kind of thing, with the high price to ensure that no one orders a book that the reseller doesn't have yet.

 

[Jbarney]

I was looking on line for some of the books I don't have, hoping to puchase some older "used" copies....and yah, some of the prices listed were pretty nuts.

 

[seigezunt]

I was looking on line for some of the books I don't have, hoping to puchase some older "used" copies....and yah, some of the prices listed were pretty nuts.

It only seems to be the more recent ones, though. I've been filling up the gaps of my TOS collection, and they are pretty much all 1 cent plu 3.98 shipping.

 

[Elemental]

I've been paying about $20 a book (shipping included) for a lot of the older New Frontier books. That's after searching for the best deal between amazon.com, amazon.ca, and Ebay.

 

[Thrawn]

^ Does it really cost $16 or $17 to ship from the US Amazon store to Canada?

 

[Therin of Andor]

True, but how did they arrive at that figure.

Supply and demand. And a bit of wishful thinking. I just recently found remaindered copies of "Mission Gamma" Books 1-3 (about one-third the regular price), and we know how "expensive" second hand copies of Book 1, and then Book 2, were until the omnibus. I guess asking prices for Book 3 are now higher, due to know next omnibus on the horizon.

 

[OmahaStar]

I've been paying about $20 a book (shipping included) for a lot of the older New Frontier books. That's after searching for the best deal between amazon.com, amazon.ca, and Ebay.

Are you collecting just to have in hard copy? If not, it might be worth it for you to track down one of the recent hardcover New Frontier books. I can't remember which one it was, someone here will though ... The book came with a cd-rom containing every previous New Frontier story as a free bonus. You might be able to save money, if you just want the stories.

 

[Defcon]

I've been paying about $20 a book (shipping included) for a lot of the older New Frontier books. That's after searching for the best deal between amazon.com, amazon.ca, and Ebay.

Are you collecting just to have in hard copy? If not, it might be worth it for you to track down one of the recent hardcover New Frontier books. I can't remember which one it was, someone here will though ... The book came with a cd-rom containing every previous New Frontier story as a free bonus. You might be able to save money, if you just want the stories.

It was Stone & Anvil, put if I'm not mistaken only the first printing of the HC had the CD-Rom with previous stories.

 

[Therin of Andor]

It was Stone & Anvil, put if I'm not mistaken only the first printing of the HC had the CD-Rom with previous stories.

Correct, and it was printed just as a new version of Adobe Acrobat Reader was being released, and people who'd already upgraded needed to track down and reinstall the previous version to make some of the CD-ROM's content playable.