Are there any sections you are particularly proud of?
Gus: My favorite by far is the Food chapter which spans 150 pages. It contains many obscure food items that few have ever heard about and is so diverse by country that even the most experienced collectors will find surprises. I'm also fond of the Automotive Accessories chapter, merely because I think it's funny that Star Wars memorabilia has reached a point where there are enough auto accessories to merit a separate chapter. I'm still waiting on Star Wars themed spark plugs and motor oil.
Duncan: I would have to agree with Food. There are more items in that one chapter than in a lot of other price guides (Star Wars or other fields). Another chapter I am really proud of is Apparel. Even though very few actively collect all the clothing almost all Star Wars fans have at least one item in their wardrobe. To me it really shows the extent of which Star Wars has influenced our lives. Our Apparel section is unparalleled in its breadth and depth. There are over one thousand different T-Shirts alone, ranging from Ecuador to Sweden, and all the other imaginable types of clothing from suspenders to handkerchiefs are well represented. There are photographs of most of the items so you can tell if your "Darth Vader with Lightsaber Black T-Shirt" is the same one listed or a different one.
Beyond being more thorough than guides of the past, are there any categories that stand out as being totally unique to this guide, perhaps overlooked or ignored by others in the past?
In the early stages of assembling this guide, we spent a great deal of time on the classification system for the book in order to pick one that was logical and would stand the test of time. There are several chapters that became logical groupings that we haven't seen before in much detail like Event Collectibles (e.g. Celebrations, Art of Star Wars Exhibits, Licensee events) and Sporting Goods (baseballs, fishing rods, and soccer balls).
What categories of collecting do you feel have become more popular in the last 10 years?
Over the past ten to fifteen years, a couple of newer categories have really become popular. Replica Props and Limited Edition Artwork (Sculptures, Lithos, Busts, etc) have given many current collections an added level of sophistication.
Some of the mainstream categories like Toys, Trading Cards, Posters, and Store Displays were beginning to take off even ten years ago. There are a few focused areas that have gained momentum in recent years. Some examples include niche apparel items like Underoos, Clone Wars Character Keys, and Coins.
Do you plan any updates in the future, or are you pretty spent after this project?
If Lucasfilm will agree to stop making more items, we will agree to not make any updates. Seriously, yes, we absolutely plan on creating new editions of this guide every several years. The great news is that all the work over the past five years that we invested in forming this first edition can be leveraged for future editions so that we are able to focus on the incremental updates to each chapter and add a lot more photography. Our hope is that this guide will spur on collectors to fill in the gaps and help to create the definitive repository of information on Star Wars memorabilia. We're going to continue doing this for some time. We wanted to make a guide that helped collectors with information they couldn't find anywhere else and will continue to raise the bar in subsequent editions.
Gus and Duncan's Comprehensive Guide to Star Wars Collectibles will have a limited print run and will only be available online from Paizo.com.
