Too personal a question? We sure hope not – we really want to know how you do it!
But if we’re being honest, how comic book fans store their floppies and trade paperbacks after they finish reading them actually is pretty personal, because – as we found out among members of our staff alone – everyone seems to have a different approach.
Don’t believe us? Just see for yourself!
JJ Travers: I’ve been digital for some time now. The majority of the mini-series and runs of my favorite writers that I own are in single-issue format. Though, as you can see, I do have a small collection of trade paperbacks. 
It’s slowly growing and the format is one I wish I had stuck with originally. I’m not the most patient of readers, so it’s really nice to be able to read an entire story arc in one sitting. My single issues are in four large comic book boxes at the back of my closest and there they shall stay.
David Brooke: As AiPT!’s Media and Content Manager, most of the comics I get now are from publishers. As a result, I’ve stopped collecting physical and gone completely digital. That said, I have long boxes stacked and filled with everything I get, organized by solo heroes, teams, and then alternative books, like DC Young Animal and Vertigo titles. I’m in dire need of organizing!
Eric Cline: I collect print copies. It takes up a lot of space, but I just prefer not to read off of screens, personally. My boyfriend and I kind of share our collections, so if he buys something and I like it more than he did, I’ll keep the copy with my books, and vice versa. We keep our single issues in a couple of long boxes, but most of our collection is in trades. We just keep those on bookshelves along with some comic booky knick-knacks (Funko Pops, action figures, etc.).
Cam Petti: Now, I haven’t gone to town and organized my comics in MANY years, BUT any filing instincts I have, I gained from working at a comic shop. So my long boxes that ARE sorted go alphabetical by series, then chronological by volume, then numerical by issue number. Of course, it’s more an art than a science figuring out what goes where and with whom or if it’s a one-shot spin-off or an annual or just a Free Comic Book Day comic. It’s can be a real headache sometimes.
Otherwise, I just dump them in the box as I get them, so you can find books by excavating into the layers of comics, digging back through time as you would through layers of rock, which I will be the first to admit is not a perfect system.
As for trades, I keep the bulk of them in a filing cabinet, which I think my 13-year-old self would find pretty cool. I’m pretty pleased with that.
Pretty cool, Cam – looks like Professor Xavier approves! But that’s just four different ways of organizing collections. What about you? Let us know how you keep your comics and trade paperbacks in order in the comment space below!
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