What Should be in a Book Listing?

We have a number of fields associated with the books that we include within our database. After you complete the application to be a bookseller on AbeBooks, you will be notified when your application has been processed. Once you have been welcomed as a bookseller, please send in your list of books. We will record your list in our database.

We recommend you use our HomeBase inventory management system, however we accept data from various database systems. If you have an existing inventory system, please let us know and we'll send you instructions on how to upload your files to us.

If you choose to use a spreadsheet, database or a work processing file to list and manage your book inventory you will need to create your own fields.

Mandatory Data Fields

These are the mandatory fields in our database; please ensure you have these fields in your inventory management program. You may have additional fields as well, however the following fields must be included or your books will not appear on our Web site.

BookID: We REQUIRE the number to be unique for each book record in your file.
Author: We can combine first and last names if you have your data formatted this way. The acceptable order for listing the author names is "LastName, FirstName." We also use this field for Illustrator.
Title: The title of the book
Price: We remove currency symbols.
Status: Use this field for status updates when you send your file. For example, include an "S" in the column if a book is sold and an "A" if the book is available, or "Y" and "N" to represent "yes and "no." AbeBooks does not recognize the status "On Hold" in any inventory management software. Books marked with this status are listed as for sale on the AbeBooks Web site.
Description: In this field you can enter any other pertinent information you would like to have displayed on AbeBooks, including book condition and book attributes such as edition, binding or whether or not the book is signed.

Plot or subject matter is often overlooked in book descriptions, however some buyers search by general terms, and your book may come up in a list of search results. Without a plot description, the buyer may not know what your book is about and will not order it.

Here are two examples of good book descriptions:

1. Heinemann imprint: 1969 First published: 1964. Hardback with dustjacket 68 pages, Dustjacket has some stains and a small triangular section missing from front top edge, otherwise in very good condition. Condition: Good

2. Toronto: Oxford University Press, 1976. First edition. An encyclopedic compendium of information on all things Canadian. Includes entries on people, institutions, historical events, the arts, etc. A very useful single-volume reference. A VG+ hardcover (one corner bumped) in original full navy blue cloth, in a VG+ dustwrapper which has a few edge tears but is otherwise complete. ISBN: 0195402537

Book record in a spreadsheet or database

The file you send us is required to match the information provided regarding fields and what order they appear in. If there is no information for a particular field, leave it blank. You are required to save the file as a tab delimited (*.txt) file.

Field allocation

The body of the e-mail message you send should include the fields you use and the order in which they appear.

field 1 ... bookID
field 2 ... author
field 3 ... title
field 4 ... publisher
field 5 ... condition
field 6 ... description
field 7 ... catalog
field 8 ... keywords
field 9 ... price
field 10 ... status (to indicate whether a book should be put online or removed from the Web site)

A file sent in this format may look like this:

Book ID	Author	Title	Publisher	Condition	Description	Price	Status
1001	King, Stephen	Cujo	Signet, NY, 1982	Very Good Torn pages, softcover	General fiction, Horror, fiction	2.50	For Sale

Suggested Data Fields

You will often want to include further information in your book listing than what we have listed in the book listings. This information can be listed in the appropriate fields or within the book description.

Publisher Information: This can include any or all of the publisher's name or location, and the date of publication.
Keywords: These describe the subject of a book; many book buyers search using keywords.
Bibliographic information: This can include publication date, edition, printing, and ISBN.
Book attributes: Including binding, bibliography, illustrations, maps, cover type, cover description, decorations, dust cover,

Edition/Printing: Determining the edition and/or printing of a book can be complex. The same publisher can re-issue the same edition. For example, a book can be a first edition but a second or third printing. In addition, a book can be re-issued by a different publisher and be technically a first edition. However, this is not a true first edition, as the book has been previously published. Thirdly, there are different publication dates depending on geography. Therefore a book could be a first edition in Canada, but a previous edition could have been published in the United Kingdom.

In addition, publishers have different methods of indicating the edition and printing, and books rarely indicate whether there has been a previous printing by another publisher. To accurately determine the edition and printing of your book please refer to several reference books that are available through your local library or bookseller.

Pricing: Pricing is a factor that requires some research, especially if your book is rare. There are many resources available to assist you in accurately pricing your books.

Use AbeBooks as a tool. Search for your book with a similar description. This will provide you with an approximate value for your book.
Look in your yellow pages for an appraiser. A local bookseller may even be able to help. To local a bookseller near you, please click on the ‘Bookstores’ link at the top of the AbeBooks Web sites.
Contact a bookseller that specializes in the type or subject matter of the book. You can browse by topic on the AbeBooks Web sites by clicking on the ‘Browse’ link at the top of the Web sites.
Go to your local library and ask for reference books that list auction prices. You can also visit the "Quill and Brush" Web site specializing in pricing guides and books about book collecting. Visit them at: www.qbbooks.com.