How to Identify a Colin Smythe First Edition

How to identify a first printing

• No printer's number line on the Colin Smythe hardbacks. On its 1970s-80s first editions (The Carpet People 1971, Strata 1981, The Colour of Magic 1983, The Light Fantastic 1986) Smythe relied on a stated 'First published in [year] by Colin Smythe [Ltd/Limited], Gerrards Cross' line on the title verso, not a numeral string. Absence of a number line is normal for a Smythe first, never a red flag.
• A true first impression shows the 'First published in [year]...' statement and carries NO 'Reprinted 19XX' line. The presence of a 'Reprinted 19..' line on the copyright page marks a later impression; a first has none. (Convention documented in Discworld collectors' guides, data credited to Colin Smythe.)
• Confirm the ISBN and stated year on the copyright page match the recorded first values: The Carpet People 0-900675-49-7 / 1971; Strata 0-901072-91-5 / 1981; The Colour of Magic 0-86140-089-5 / 1983; The Light Fantastic 0-86140-203-0 / 1986. A wholly different ISBN generally signals a later or revised edition (e.g. the 1992 rewritten Carpet People). Note one Smythe-specific trap: unsold 1981 Strata sheets were re-issued in 1985 with a pasted title-verso label bearing a NEW ISBN (0-86140-232-4) over the original 0-901072-91-5 - a label-over-original is a later issue, not the 1981 first.
• Check the 'By the same author / By this author' list in the front matter: if it lists titles published AFTER the book in hand, the copy is a later impression regardless of the title-page date.
• US-distributed copies of the UK sheets carry a Dufour Editions distributor label affixed to the title page (documented on The Carpet People; L.W. Currey). A verso instead bearing Library of Congress CIP data, a US printer/binder credit, or a reworded/deleted 'First published' line is a US reprint, not the UK first.
• Title-specific first-issue points: The Carpet People (1971, ~3,000 copies) has a tipped-in corrected leaf carrying pp.33-34 because the p.34 illustration was first printed upside down - all published copies have the correction. The Colour of Magic (1983, 506 copies, ~400 to libraries) normally carries a pasted label on the dust-jacket front flap correcting the inaccurate US-supplied blurb; the labeled state IS the standard first issue, and the uncorrected state lacking the label is the rarest, earliest state (only a handful known).

Notable points & cautions

• Publisher succession: after The Light Fantastic (June 1986, the last sole-Smythe Discworld first) the next three titles - Equal Rites (Jan 1987), Mort, Sourcery - appeared as 'Victor Gollancz in association with Colin Smythe,' then under Gollancz's sole imprint (later Doubleday/Transworld for hardcovers). A Gollancz-only or Doubleday copyright page on any title is identified by that house's convention, not Smythe's; a Gollancz-imprint copy of a title Smythe first published is a later edition.
• Official facsimile editions of Colin Smythe firsts exist (e.g. The Light Fantastic and The Colour of Magic facsimiles sold via Discworld.com) that are identical to the original in almost every respect except for a small added notice on the copyright page - inspect the verso closely before calling a copy a first.
• US Science Fiction Book Club editions of The Colour of Magic carry a Colin Smythe copyright line yet state 'Printed in the United States of America,' have a book-club code instead of an ISBN, and are reset to fewer pages (184pp vs 206pp in the Smythe/St Martin's setting) - these are never firsts, though after the UK first sold out Smythe imported 400 of them for UK sale (bearing a Smythe price sticker). Do not confuse these 400 imported book-club copies with the 400 of the 506-copy first printing that went to libraries.
• Number lines are a red herring for this house: they appear only on the much later Gollancz/Doubleday-era Pratchett hardbacks, never on a Colin Smythe first. Do not look for a '1' in a number line on a Smythe title.

Imprints

First editions also appear under: Colin Smythe Ltd, Colin Smythe Limited, Victor Gollancz in association with Colin Smythe, Colin Smythe (US distribution via Dufour Editions). Each generally follows the house convention above.

Frequently asked questions

How do I know if my Colin Smythe book is a first edition?

Check the copyright page. No printer's number line on the Colin Smythe hardbacks. On its 1970s-80s first editions (The Carpet People 1971, Strata 1981, The Colour of Magic 1983, The Light Fantastic 1986) Smythe relied on a stated 'First published in [year] by Colin Smythe [Ltd/Limited], Gerrards Cross' line on the title verso, not a numeral string. Absence of a number line is normal for a Smythe first, never a red flag. A true first impression shows the 'First published in [year]...' statement and carries NO 'Reprinted 19XX' line. The presence of a 'Reprinted 19..' line on the copyright page marks a later impression; a first has none. (Convention documented in Discworld collectors' guides, data credited to Colin Smythe.)

Does Colin Smythe use a number line?

A true first impression shows the 'First published in [year]...' statement and carries NO 'Reprinted 19XX' line. The presence of a 'Reprinted 19..' line on the copyright page marks a later impression; a first has none. (Convention documented in Discworld collectors' guides, data credited to Colin Smythe.)

Is a book-club edition a Colin Smythe first edition?

No. Book-club editions reprint the text but are not the true first edition. Publisher succession: after The Light Fantastic (June 1986, the last sole-Smythe Discworld first) the next three titles - Equal Rites (Jan 1987), Mort, Sourcery - appeared as 'Victor Gollancz in association with Colin Smythe,' then under Gollancz's sole imprint (later Doubleday/Transworld for hardcovers). A Gollancz-only or Doubleday copyright page on any title is identified by that house's convention, not Smythe's; a Gollancz-imprint copy of a title Smythe first published is a later edition.

What era does this cover?

This covers Colin Smythe (founded 1966; sole-imprint Pratchett first editions 1971–1986). Conventions changed over time, so confirm the era of your copy.