When comic collecting becomes just checking a box 3 3

[Reno McCoy]

I've been selling off a bunch of my comics lately. When I do buy a book, it feels like I get the book and immediately put it in a box, rarely to be seen again. It's (almost) to the point in which it feels like I'm just crossing items off my want list and little else. As if it's the checking of that box, checking it off the list, that's the fun part these days. 

Is this a fairly common phenomenon? I've been incredibly introspective lately, and as I enter what might be my midlife drama period, I'm wondering if this is just part of growth, or if this is a sign that the end is near for my collecting. The thrill of the hunt is still alive and kicking, but the actual ownership of a particular book I've hunted isn't what it was was.

 

[punksdropdirtysrh]

I feel like I’ve been dealing with that recently as well. I haven’t bought any back issues yet this year. I’ve been buying omni’s and hardcovers a lot more and reading some new stories has restored a lot of the passion for me. I think when you have that feeling it might be time to mix it up a bit. Or maybe take a break. 

Sometimes the anticipation of getting a new book is more stimulating than actually receiving it. Not always but I’ve experienced it with big books that I expected to be more attached to than I actually turned out to be.

[Get Marwood & I]

I can relate to this and it's one of the reasons I sold everything a few years back. I think it's all about what you collect, and why. I was hell bent on collecting every Spidey comic for about 10 years. But I had to buy so much dross to achieve that goal. For a period, I loved it. Then it began to feel like a chore. How you describe the 'ticking of a box and then filing the book never to be seen again' is exactly how I felt in the latter stages @Reno McCoy

Everyone is different, but I came to learn that the best way to collect for me is to only buy what gives me pleasure. Don't be a completist, or a run collector unless you're confident that every book you're going to get will bring you satisfaction. Amazing Spidey 1-100, yes, will likely bring you pleasure. 101-200, probably. 201 up? Not so sure. Etc.

I've said this a few times elsewhere in different threads but if I could have my time again, I would only buy random books that I loved. I'd prefer to have 100 great books of all different titles / publishers than, say, Hulk 200-300. 

The urge to complete a run / set is a powerful collecting instinct however. So to balance the books, I now try to collect very small runs which mean something, e.g. the 30 or so Marvel western titles imported by L Miller. That's small enough to ensure that each book is treasured when it arrives, and that it doesn't become stale. If, for example, I tried to collect all 798 DC pence books, it would be a fun exercise to be able to say I have them all at the end, assuming I managed it, but I guarantee that over half the books needed to build the collection would mean nothing to me. So that would be a true box ticking / book filing exercise.

@punksdropdirtysrh makes a great point about the thrill of the hunt, and how you can feel underwhelmed when a book is finally in your possession. When that happens, it's time for a change or a break.

I love comics. They are in my DNA, and always will be. But there are times when I get fed up with it all. Sometimes, that comes across on the boards.  I had the most ridiculously complete Spidey collection and sold 98% of it. I love comics, sold them all, and don't regret it. I've started collecting again, and have set my sights on a modest run of something I've never collected before, or would even have looked at twice years back. I found something new, and it charmed the pants off of me. When you've had a break, it's invigorating to return. Especially when you find something completely new and different to collect. It's like a new car. Or wife! It reanimates your inner comic DNA.

Cripes, I can't half ramble on can't I. No idea if any of that stream of consciousness makes sense, or helps Reno. 

 

[CKinTO]

I do think that's part of human nature - that what we really like is the thrill of the chase. But once we get it, the happiness is short-lived, and we're on to the next thing. I try to be self-aware of that, and keep things in perspective when I'm hunting for my next big book purchase. I try to keep in mind that I don't "need it", and that once I get it it'll pretty much be back to normal and on to the next book... I think as a result of this awareness, I try to collect my main books keeping 2 things in mind:

1) Given I know it won't "make me happy", I try to be more disciplined when it comes to price paid. Not getting it unless it's also a good deal (especially for books that are fairly easily obtainable)
2) Try to extend the "happiness" I get from my books, by having readily accessible photos of the slabs on my phone (in an album). I end up going through all my slabs (and key raws) every couple days (or whenever I'm thinking about it), and I think seeing it in person helps me remember all the different books I have, and I get a little *jolt* of happiness seeing them. If I didn't, I agree I rarely take my books out of their storage boxes, so I wouldn't see them nearly as often

[Get Marwood & I]

1 hour ago, Reno McCoy said:

I've been incredibly introspective lately, and as I enter what might be my midlife drama period

Oh, and welcome to the human race by the way 

[Get Marwood & I]

1 minute ago, CKinTO said:

2) Try to extend the "happiness" I get from my books, by having readily accessible photos of the slabs on my phone (in an album). 

Good point CKinTO. I sold all my brothers Hulks for him. He kept a fantastic Deodato original art double page Abomination fight spread and a few of his favourite covers. He stuck them in frames, put them on the wall and looks at them every day. Prior to that, everything was tucked away in boxes, rarely seen. 

You've got to have them in your life, and interact with them. I think it was Buzzetta who recently said his collection isn't even at his home. What's the point of that? I don't mean that critically of him by the way, just making the point. Books in boxes in vaults don't bring joy, in my experience.

Rambling again. Too much cherryade tonight. Hic!

[1950's war comics]

1 hour ago, Reno McCoy said:

I've been selling off a bunch of my comics lately. When I do buy a book, it feels like I get the book and immediately put it in a box, rarely to be seen again. It's (almost) to the point in which it feels like I'm just crossing items off my want list and little else. As if it's the checking of that box, checking it off the list, that's the fun part these days. 

Is this a fairly common phenomenon? I've been incredibly introspective lately, and as I enter what might be my midlife drama period, I'm wondering if this is just part of growth, or if this is a sign that the end is near for my collecting. The thrill of the hunt is still alive and kicking, but the actual ownership of a particular book I've hunted isn't what it was was.

 

I know .... sometimes i feel i would be just as happy just looking at the comic  on line as opposed to buying it .......

[Get Marwood & I]

2 minutes ago, 1950's war comics said:

I know .... sometimes i feel i would be just as happy just looking at the comic  on line as opposed to buying it .......

Never! Touch, smell, caress, love. Paper Craig, paper!

[punksdropdirtysrh]

15 minutes ago, 1950's war comics said:

I know .... sometimes i feel i would be just as happy just looking at the comic  on line as opposed to buying it .......

Ha! I feel the same way sometimes. One of the benefits of visiting the boards is living vicariously through everybody’s amazing collections!

[Brian48]

It got that way when I completed Conan 1-100, which is why I stopped at 100.  Getting that way now while I'm collecting DC's Warlord 1-133. 

[Reno McCoy]

8 minutes ago, Brian48 said:

It got that way when I completed Conan 1-100, which is why I stopped at 100.  Getting that way now while I'm collecting DC's Warlord 1-133. 

Oooh, Warlord. Nice. How far along are you? Got any pics? 

[Reno McCoy]

51 minutes ago, 1950's war comics said:

I know .... sometimes i feel i would be just as happy just looking at the comic  on line as opposed to buying it .......

You know, I've been wondering about this type of thing. I loooove making lists, scouring eBay and other sites, reading sites about this or that comic series. It's all part of the fun. But the actual comic isn't the end all for me. Not the way it used to be, anyway. It's almost like a photo of my copy is more cool than the actual comic. But maybe that's just because it's easier to see and enjoy. 

[Phicks]

There are those feel that buying any CGC slabbed comic is ticking a box.  After all, you can't read the contents.  It's like a mint condition action figure, forever in the blister package, never to be played with.  A good investment perhaps, but the enjoyment it brings is questionable.

[Mercury Man]

I make it a point to read every comic I buy.   Once I read them, I file accordingly.  Sometimes I fall behind, but then buckle down on a quiet night and read a bunch.   Guess that explains why I only own two CGC books. 

[lizards2]

28 minutes ago, Phicks said:

There are those feel that buying any CGC slabbed comic is ticking a box.  After all, you can't read the contents.  It's like a mint condition action figure, forever in the blister package, never to be played with.  A good investment perhaps, but the enjoyment it brings is questionable.

I crack out most of the slabs I keep.  They're often cheaper than chasing raws.

[MGsimba77]

I'm so into vintage stuff that collecting books never gets old. I'm just fascinated by a vintage book in pristine condition! 

The thing that does get on my nerves is the challenge of having to secure them all. Buying a safe or safes/drilling them down/concealing the safes with plywood. Alarm system , impact windows (although you need those anyways). Then running out of room in the safes & having to buy another one etc...etc

So in my view security is the biggest pain in the a*s. This especially applies to me since I recently had a home invasion.

[Brian48]

1 hour ago, Reno McCoy said:

Oooh, Warlord. Nice. How far along are you? Got any pics? 

No pics.......yet.  Mind you, these are raw so they're nothing special.

Almost there through.  I'm short 12 issues from the regular run and missing annuals #3 and #4. 

One day, hopefully before I retire, I can set some time aside to read through the entire run. 

[Ken Aldred]

I’ve found myself happiest over the last couple of years by being comfortably distanced from situations involving ‘thrill of the hunt’ scenarios and their inevitable, emotional comedown at the post-acquisition stage, by focusing solely on reading digital comics.

I’ve often seen details in the remastered art that were hidden or obliterated by the original, poor-quality newsprint, and have enjoyed reading the stories again from a perspective very different to my teen or twenty-something years, and have discovered new details or subtext in the writing.

The complete opposite to the extreme, predatory, speculation frenzy we’re seeing around us at present.

I already have enough of the keys that are most significant to me and, at current prices, I can leave the rest to the more affluent or feral.
 

Edited January 23, 2018 by Ken Aldred

[Get Marwood & I]

4 minutes ago, Ken Aldred said:

I’ve found myself happiest over the last couple of years by being distanced from situations involving ‘thrill of the hunt’ scenarios and their inevitable, emotional comedown at the post-acquisition stage, by focusing solely on reading digital comics.

I’ve often seen details in the remastered art that were hidden or obliterated by the original, poor quality newsprint, and have enjoyed reading the stories again from a perspective very different to my teen or twenty-something years, and have discovered new details or subtext in the writing.

The complete opposite to the extreme, predatory, speculation frenzy we’re seeing around us at present.

I already have enough of the keys which are most significant to me and, at current prices, I can leave the rest to the more affluent or feral.
 

Nicely put Paul. You have a great turn of phrase. Getting back to actually reading comics is a good thing. I just can't warm to online reading though. The absence of paper....it feels like something important is missing. Given the wild prices nowadays though, I'll probably succumb one day, if I want to read certain books.

[lizards2]

38 minutes ago, MGsimba77 said:

I'm so into vintage stuff that collecting books never gets old. I'm just fascinated by a vintage book in pristine condition! 

The thing that does get on my nerves is the challenge of having to secure them all. Buying a safe or safes/drilling them down/concealing the safes with plywood. Alarm system , impact windows (although you need those anyways). Then running out of room in the safes & having to buy another one etc...etc

So in my view security is the biggest pain in the a*s. This especially applies to me since I recently had a home invasion.

jeebus - where do you live?  I just keep the Rottweilers and AR-15 handy.