#83, 11 December 2006

NAME: Travis McFarland

NAME OF BUSINESS: Bibliomanias

LOCATION: eBay Store

WEBSITE (if any): Bibliomanias

NUMBER OF YEARS IN BUSINESS: 2 years

PART TIME OR FULL TIME: Part time

BOOKSELLING VENUES USED (in order of importance): eBay is my only venue

SIZE OF INVENTORY: I currently have 136 books in my store and 8 books in auctions.

SPECIALTIES: I have a lot of modern signed first editions as well as a nice collection of rare children novels. I also deal in rare and unique fantasy and science fiction, mystery, military, and other modern fiction.

WHY I SELL BOOKS: The main reason for my being a bookseller is I truly love books. Searching for and finding rare books is a passion that I will have for the rest of my life. I like to envision myself as "book detective" Johnny Depp in the Ninth Gate). I have a personal collection, and that is what started my selling endeavors.

ADVICE FOR NEW BOOKSELLERS: Research, research, research. I can't emphasize this enough. When I first started selling, I was basically shooting from the hip. While I did make some sales, the overall quality of the books wasn't the best, and I ended up with a large quantity of books that I just couldn't move. There is a plethora of knowledge on the web and in books that will give you the information you need to become a top notch bookseller.

BEST BOOKSELLING TIP: Learn the book dealing language. This will be your best asset when dealing with customers and when searching for that elusive first edition. It can also mean the difference between a $5 book and a $500 book.

FAVORITE AUTHOR(S): Terry Goodkind, Stephen King, Clive Barker, Philip Pullman, J.K. Rowling, Oscar Wilde, Anne Rice, Dan Brown, Terry Brooks, Neal Stephenson, J.R.R. Tolkien, George R.R. Martin, Mark Twain - and I could keep going.

FAVORITE QUOTE: "Books are the carriers of civilization. Without books, history is silent, literature dumb, science crippled, thought and speculation at a standstill." Barbara Tuchman

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