Loving & Selling Old Books, Paper and Ephemera

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When I was a young girl....

.....I loved to read.  I spent many hours living in the stories I loved.  Books could not be long enough for me! The longer the better....I never wanted a good story to end.

My love for the look, feel and smell of an old book started in a small college I attended.  They had a very old library that they were cleaning out, and I offered to help, knowing that there were some treasures there that shouldn't be thrown away.  I was offered any of the books that I wanted, and came away with some that still sit in a small pile next to me as I type.

Now, I attend auctions and estate sales, and my interest has extended to just about anything that is paper.  I bring home boxes at a time of books, old letters, old magazines, cards and postcards, pictures and more.

The next challenge became what to do with all of these things....I enjoyed them, but couldn't keep them all, so began to sell them online through eBay and if newer books find their way into the things I bid on, Amazon Marketplace.

I hope you enjoy the basic "how to get started with ebay" information below, and the other things I've added, and please take a moment to leave a comment and share what you sell on ebay!

 

How to Start Selling on eBay Part 1. 

I "eBay" because it's fun, and because it brings in a little money to help supplement my husband's income. For me, it's not a full-time business, but it can be depending upon what you are offering, if you gain enough experience, and if you devote as much time to eBay as you would to a full-time job.

I'm going to tell you my story...I'm sure there's a few things you'll learn just from reading it.

For me, it started back in 1999. I had always heard of eBay, saw links to eBay, wondered what eBay was. Then I found out! A someone helped me to sell an autographed item I had acquired. I watched and watched as people bid, and the price went up higher and higher...it was fun!! I was hooked right then and there!

The first thing I had to do before selling was sign up with eBay with a user-name & password. You can use any user-name you want, but it's fun to be creative. Don't use your email address, or you'll start receiving "spam".

Once you've picked a name, you can change it, but it's nice to chose one you like right away so people get to know who you are. If you do change your name, be aware that people who have "bookmarked" you will not be able to find you. I settled on simply using claudias_corner_auctions :-)

(Now, page to Part 2 as Squidoo only allows me to use a certain number of characters in each module.)

Claudia' Corner Auctions 

HERE ARE MY CURRENT EBAY LISTINGS

MY LISTINGS AREN'T ALWAYS books, paper or ephemera items...in fact in the summer, I have an over-abundance of plants in my garden that I share. But your almost always going to find something paper.

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eBay

How to Start Selling on Ebay Part II 

Next, it would be wise to have a PayPal account as eBay owns and works together with PayPal. After a sale, if you are paid through PayPal, you can print your shipping label and postage right through PayPal. It is a wonderful feature that saves you a trip to the post office. You can arrange for post office pick up if your packages are large, or put smaller items out in the box for the mailman to take when he delivers your mail.

Okay, back to my story!! Once I got "hooked" on eBay, I had to have something to sell. I started going to auctions and garage sales with fellow eBayers. It wasn't long before we realized we had become so addicted that we had WAY more things than we could ever sell...but it was fun!

How do you decide what to sell? Though I started out selling just about anything, I finally decided to settle on what I loved. If you love something, you know more about it than you do other things. My love is vintage books, old paper items like postcards, magazines, letters, and other ephemera, so that is what I have been selling for the past 7+ years.

How do you know what price to start with? Spend some time at the site doing searches on things you think you might like to sell. When your search results come up, along the left there is a list. In the list, find where it says "completed items" and check it, then search. You'll see a list of the same items that have sold, and will see how much they went for. From this, you can determine whether your item is even worth listing, if none are selling, and there is a LONG list of them that didn't sell, it may not be worth it.

If you see one that went for a good price, look at the item in more detail, see what category it was listed in, study it a bit. I did most of my learning by looking at what others did. There is SO much more I could share, but I think I better let you get some "hands on" experience.

Ebay has many good helps at the site.

If you're new to eBay, you'll need a way to take a picture of the item you want to sell and "upload" it to a folder "in" your computer. I call my folder simply "Auction Pictures".

If you're not an ebay member, Click here for eBay!

Finding Thing to Sell on eBay 

Garage sale season runs from spring through fall in this part of the country, and longer in warmer states...this is a great way find things to sell on eBay.

Garage Sale Strategies is a guide that will teach you all you need to know to find treasures to sell on eBay, the only thing I can think of right now is get there early...but I've found many great things at great prices to resell throughout the day. Click here for more information.

eBook & Book Reviews and News 

eBook & Book Reviews

A blog that is an outlet for my love for eBooks and books. I do reviews for authors, share book related events that are coming up, offer free eBooks, and eBooks for no more than $1.25 with full resale rights.

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Other Things I'm Into 

Here's some links to other sites that I have enjoyed putting together besides my Squidoos.
Happy Nutritionist's Nuggets
My random thoughts about health and nutrition, with a few sponsored posts between.
Memories & Nostalgia
Just some special things from life I don't want to forget, this blog is fairly new.
Happy Nutritionist's Home on the Web
As a Certified Nutritionist, it was fun to put together this educational site, it "googles" on page one if you search "Nutritionist", yes, I'm a little bit proud of that :-)
HerBulletin: Medicinal Herbs & the Outdoors
I've used Medicinal Herbs for over 20 years, this site focuses on herbal remedies, an organ or body system is focused on each week.
Married to Politics
My view as only I can see it.
New Jersey Baby Boomer
Blogging from New Jersey about New Jersey
eBook & Book Reviews & News
I love to read, and am getting used to reading off a laptop screen :-) Book & ebook reviews, news about book related events, and more. Stop by, there's some free eBooks available!
Weeds & Seeds Swap Gardener's Exchange
Do you have plants that produce seeds in abundance and don't know what to do with them? How about plants that are taking over your garden that someone else may love to have for theirs? Come and see what the seed and plant exchange is all about...lots of posts about gardening and plants as well.

I'D LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU! 

SIGN MY GUESTBOOK :-)

Let me know what you sell if you sell on eBay, let us know your username, or add a link to your store.

Lensmaster

kristinedior wrote...

Wonderful source of Information!
If You would like to know more about
Free Books and how to get them, Please Go Here

ReplyPosted March 25, 2008

Lensmaster

Billco wrote...

Nice lense. Love paper and Ebay. I sell on eBay under 1-billco. I also have an squidoo ephemera lense you might like.

ReplyPosted February 15, 2008

Lensmaster

Lynx92 wrote...

Claudia,
Great story, I am a book lover and part time seller, too. If you get chance, please have a look at The books of John Le Carre and Martyns Books and Comics Showcase.

ReplyPosted November 27, 2007

Lensmaster

Pierce_This_2 wrote...

Hi Claudia, I sell the old books on Amazon too. Not sure why you only sell the newer books there. 5 star lens! How to measure a belly button ring

ReplyPosted October 04, 2007

Lensmaster

Ms_Appleseed wrote...

Readers unite! I, too, love books. Old, new, middle-aged I just love perusing and then finding time to explore. Thanks for sharing your passion and blog with us! If you get a minute, come by and say Hey!

ReplyPosted September 03, 2007

Lensmaster

sandymorgan wrote...

Claudia!

I just wrote a blurb here, but wasn't signed in :(. Anyway, I received an old book collection as kid cuz I read constantly! They were so cool, but the smelled of mold. After a week, Mom had to dispose of them because the smell took over our house! Nothing else worked to stop the smell!

ReplyPosted July 14, 2007

Lensmaster

Sandy Morgan wrote

Hey Claudia!

Thanks for visiting my Squid,as you call them! I must admit I used to read a lot more than I do now, but love to read! I was given a collection of old books as a kid that had a moldy smell. I was sad that we had to dispose of them. They stunk the house up!

Reply Posted July 14, 2007

Lensmaster

CrossCountry wrote...

Claudia ~

You and I must have been cut from the same cloth, so to speak. I've been an AVID reader since Kindergarten and just recently gave up my library of 1,500 hardback books. Great lens! Linda Hall, http://www.squidoo.com/crosscountry/

ReplyPosted July 03, 2007

Lensmaster

enetwal wrote...

Hi Claudia. I specialize in US Postal History which is a branch of stamp collecting. People collect the entire envelope and not the just stamps. First day covers, US Navy Ship covers, Postal Cards are among literally 1,000s of listings in my eBay store. Please Visit http://stores.ebay.com/etn-cover

ReplyPosted June 20, 2007

Lensmaster

Susan52 wrote...

Hi Claudia!
Your description of reading as a child brings back fond memories to me. I remember one very hot summer day reading a captivating book that had a winter setting. I had chills and was so cold! It took me a little while to come back to reality when I finally had to put that book down!

ReplyPosted June 20, 2007