I have been thinking a lot about how people build and enjoy their collections, so I figured this would be a good place to start a discussion.

I recently moved back to physical books after years of mostly reading digital. For years I felt that physical books simply took up too much space, but there is something about having the actual book in hand that feels right. I have been picking up collected editions and volumes instead of single issues so I can reread them more easily. My current shelves include Preacher, Gideon Falls, Watchmen, The Walking Dead, Geiger, Junkyard Joe, Locke and Key, Department of Truth, Farmhand, and a few others I am slowly rebuilding.

I also have a growing stack of volume ones from different series from Image, Vault, Dark Horse, Marvel, DC, etc. I like starting with the first volume to see if it pulls me in enough to buy the rest. It has created a little reading queue that keeps getting bigger.

I always look for used books too. I like giving them another life on my shelf and it feels like I am helping preserve physical media in a small way. I have been teaching my kids the value of having something real that you can hold. It is a different experience than reading on a screen.

I am also building a small creative studio and I want it surrounded by books. Having shelves around me feels inspiring in a way digital files never could.

One of my hobbies is hunting around places like 2nd and Charles, thrift stores, and other local bookstores. Finding a good copy in the wild is part of the fun.

Curious how everyone else approaches this.

Do you read mostly digital or physical?
Do you collect singles, trades, omnibuses, or a mix?
Do you prefer new copies or used?
How do you store or display your collection?

Would love to hear what everyone is doing with their setup.

I'm about half and half in terms of still reading digital vs physical, though my digital reading is on apps like Marvel Unlimited and Hoopla (the library) and not new titles which I still buy physically.

Currently, I focus on single issues and omnibus for the most part and limit my trades to specific characters/franchises I want to complete (Daredevil and the extended Hellboy world).

Mix of new and used to be honest, too. I have no qualms about buying a used copy of something as long as it's not literally falling apart.

As for display, we won't talk about all the piles on the floor that are creatively staged to create walking room.

11 hours ago, FantasticJerome said:

I have been thinking a lot about how people build and enjoy their collections, so I figured this would be a good place to start a discussion.

I recently moved back to physical books after years of mostly reading digital. For years I felt that physical books simply took up too much space, but there is something about having the actual book in hand that feels right. I have been picking up collected editions and volumes instead of single issues so I can reread them more easily. My current shelves include Preacher, Gideon Falls, Watchmen, The Walking Dead, Geiger, Junkyard Joe, Locke and Key, Department of Truth, Farmhand, and a few others I am slowly rebuilding.

I also have a growing stack of volume ones from different series from Image, Vault, Dark Horse, Marvel, DC, etc. I like starting with the first volume to see if it pulls me in enough to buy the rest. It has created a little reading queue that keeps getting bigger.

I always look for used books too. I like giving them another life on my shelf and it feels like I am helping preserve physical media in a small way. I have been teaching my kids the value of having something real that you can hold. It is a different experience than reading on a screen.

I am also building a small creative studio and I want it surrounded by books. Having shelves around me feels inspiring in a way digital files never could.

One of my hobbies is hunting around places like 2nd and Charles, thrift stores, and other local bookstores. Finding a good copy in the wild is part of the fun.

Curious how everyone else approaches this.

Do you read mostly digital or physical?
Do you collect singles, trades, omnibuses, or a mix?
Do you prefer new copies or used?
How do you store or display your collection?

Would love to hear what everyone is doing with their setup.

I have been on the mostly digital side of most things for a while now, especially over the past 5 years. I've got about 2 boxes of single issues, but most of my weekly reading is done through digital, and I tend to buy trades and hardcovers in physical media. I'm totally okay with used copies, and agree that I like to give them a new home. Most of my collection is in my office, and what I can't fit there is in tubs so I can kind of rotate every so often.

I was a physical comic die-hard for the longest time. But now I am a true digital convert. I lived in Asia for several years, where digital is the rule rather than the exception. The medium is much more convenient and accessible. Also, while abroad, I had to put all of my physical comics into storage, which ultimately ended up costing me way more than I ever expected.

I was a physical collector all the way, until I had to move from one continent to another... That process led me to sell some books and comic books and store others. However, I moved between continents for work or family reasons five (!) times in the span of seven years. The hassle of dealing with physical goodies all the time made me a full digital convert, just like @MAG .
I've been living in the same place for a few years now, and I don't see any major change in the future, so I'm allowing myself to grab a couple of physical books of things I really enjoy (like The Nice House on the Lake hardcover, and Luana Velcchio's Lovesick). But these are the exception.

I'll always embrace physical, but the space issue is something that continues to cause problems in my life. For example, I'm buying most games digitally these days, unless I just can't resist the cover art or have the rest of the series in physical form already.

I like to have the physical copies of things, but a long time ago, when digital was first starting to be A Thing, I implemented a personal rule that if I got a digital copy of something, I also had to have the physical copy. To this day, when that is possible, I do exactly that. So I tend to have both for each thing I collect and keep.

Which is why I have a coat closet that doubles as a VHS/DVD cave.

For almost everything, I prefer physical. However, owning physical copies of everything requires a ton space and so digital in some instances is far more practical. I always like to have physical copies of my favorites, but for anything else I'm ok with digital. The only exception to that is books – I need the book in my hand rather than on a tablet.

For books, I love having physical copies around. But the reality of a small house and the fact that I read a lot of advanced copies means I do a little over half my reading digitally these days. I always want a physical copy of books from my favorite authors and any manga I read, but the fact is my shelves are running out of room so I have to make choices.

With other media, I've pretty much gone fully digital. I don't buy physical copies of games or movies because I just don't have any place to store them, and I don't personally like the look of displaying them like I do my books anyway.