# Is "Women in Love" by D.H. Lawrence a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Women in Love by D.H. Lawrence (Privately printed, 1920) is identified by: The true first is the privately printed subscribers' edition (Thomas Seltzer, New York, dated 1920), issued 9 November 1920 in a limitation of 1,250 numbered copies, available only to subscribers because of the controversy surrounding Lawrence's earlier The Rainbow. The privately printed Seltzer New York 1920 limited edition (1,250 numbered copies) is the true first and precedes the first UK trade edition, Martin Secker, London, 1921, by roughly seven months.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- The true first is the privately printed subscribers' edition (Thomas Seltzer, New York, dated 1920), issued 9 November 1920 in a limitation of 1,250 numbered copies, available only to subscribers because of the controversy surrounding Lawrence's earlier The Rainbow
- Bound in blue cloth; the numbered limitation statement appears in the front matter
- A small number of copies (about twenty-five, apparently distributed at random) were additionally signed by Lawrence; most of the 1,250 are numbered only and not signed
- Publisher imprint reads Privately printed
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | D.H. Lawrence |
| Publisher | Privately printed |
| Year | 1920 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | The true first is the privately printed subscribers' edition (Thomas Seltzer, New York, dated 1920), issued 9 November 1920 in a limitation… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
The true first is the privately printed subscribers' edition (Thomas Seltzer, New York, dated 1920), issued 9 November 1920 in a limitation of 1,250 numbered copies, available only to subscribers because of the controversy surrounding Lawrence's earlier The Rainbow. Bound in blue cloth; the numbered limitation statement appears in the front matter. A small number of copies (about twenty-five, apparently distributed at random) were additionally signed by Lawrence; most of the 1,250 are numbered only and not signed.

## Is this the true first?
The privately printed Seltzer New York 1920 limited edition (1,250 numbered copies) is the true first and precedes the first UK trade edition, Martin Secker, London, 1921, by roughly seven months. Only a handful of the 1,250 carry Lawrence's signature; a numbered-but-unsigned copy is still a copy of the genuine first.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
The Secker UK trade edition and all later reprints are unlimited and lack the numbered limitation leaf; the presence of the numbered 1,250-copy limitation statement in blue cloth confirms the 1920 Seltzer private first.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Women in Love* by D.H. Lawrence a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/women-in-love
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.