Is My Right to Life a First Edition?

The points of issue

• Cemetery Dance Publications first edition, 1998, in the Cemetery Dance Novella Series; signed limited edition of 450 numbered copies
• Gauntlet Press issued a later trade paperback
• adding two previously unpublished stories

How Cemetery Dance Publications marked a first edition

• Limited states identified by a signature/limitation sheet near the front, e.g. 'This is one of 1000 signed Limited copies'
• Traycased LETTERED editions run either 26 (A–Z) or 52 (AA–ZZ) signed copies; there are NO second printings of lettered editions

Full Cemetery Dance Publications first-edition guide →

How to verify your copy, step by step

1. Find the copyright page — the verso (back) of the title page.
2. Confirm the first-edition statement — look for “First Edition,” “First Printing,” or the publisher’s equivalent wording.
3. Check for a number line or dated printing — the lowest number present is the printing; a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the tell.
4. Rule out a book-club edition — a blind-stamp on the rear board or a jacket with no printed price marks a book-club copy.
5. Photograph four things — the front cover, spine, title page, and copyright page — the standard record for identification.

The dust jacket

For a collectible first edition the dust jacket matters as much as the book. Confirm the jacket is present and unclipped — the printed price should still be at the corner of the flap (a clipped corner or a price-less flap can indicate a book-club issue). First-state jackets can differ from later ones in the cover art, blurbs, or review quotations; where a specific first-state jacket point is known for this title it is noted above.

Binding & format

Where multiple bindings exist, the hardcover trade issue is usually (but not always) the precedence copy — confirm against the points above. Later printings often show cheaper cloth, thinner boards, or simplified spine stamping. A simultaneous signed or limited issue, when one exists, is a distinct state from the trade first.

Is this the true first?

The Cemetery Dance signed limited of 450 copies is the true first; the Gauntlet trade paperback is a later, expanded first-thus.P-013046

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

N/A; limited-press edition with no book club issue.P-013047

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Right to Life a first edition?

A first edition of Right to Life by Jack Ketchum (Cemetery Dance Publications) is identified by: Cemetery Dance Publications first edition, 1998, in the Cemetery Dance Novella Series; signed limited edition of 450 numbered copies.

How do I tell the first printing from a later one?

Check the copyright page. A stated first edition, a number line ending in 1, or a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the key. The Cemetery Dance signed limited of 450 copies is the true first; the Gauntlet trade paperback is a later, expanded first-thus.

Is the book-club edition the same as the first?

N/A; limited-press edition with no book club issue.

I have a first edition of Right to Life — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap — an unclipped, priced jacket matters. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and use the free First Edition Checker to decode the printing. To sell, the author’s collecting guide covers the market. And if you are clearing books in the Albuquerque area, the New Mexico Literacy Project offers free pickup, any condition, and makes sure collectible copies are identified rather than discarded.

Glossary

First edition

Every copy printed from the first setting of type. Collectors usually want the first edition, first printing (the true first).

First printing / impression

A single press run from that setting. The first printing is the earliest and most desirable; later printings are still the first edition but not the true first.

Number line (printer's key)

A row of numbers on the copyright page (e.g. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1). The lowest number present is the printing — a line including 1 marks a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2).

Points of issue

Specific physical details — a stated edition, a number line, a typo, a jacket state — that identify the true first printing.

Book-club edition (BCE)

A reprint made for a book club. Tells include a blind-stamped dot or square on the rear board and a dust jacket with no printed price. Not the true first.

First thus

The first appearance of a particular version (first paperback, first illustrated, first U.S. printing) — a first of that kind, not the first edition of the work.