QUESTION: How can I tell if a book is out of print? If Amazon isn't selling new copies, can I sell it for more than the original retail? With some of my books, I don't know the original price.

ANSWER: Technically, a book is "out of print" when its publisher declares it "out of print," and stops supplying it to wholesalers and bookstores. This can happen a few years after publication if sales have dropped off substantially. If sales remain healthy for a nonfiction book, the publisher may declare it "out of print" and print a second edition. This cuts the value of used copies, except of course in cases where the first edition is collectible.

If Amazon isn't selling new copies, that's a good indication a title is out of print. I suppose you could find a few examples of in-print books that aren't sold by Amazon, but these would likely be titles with virtually no demand -- and probably dead weight for your inventory.

For our purposes, any scarce book is a potential winner, and whether it's technically "out of print" is beside the point.

Setting your price is an art, not a science. The correct price is whatever the buyer is willing to pay, so long as you both believe the deal is fair. Pricing your copy above retail is your only smart option when the title is in demand and copies are scarce.

In the early days of Amazon Marketplace, only "collectible" books could be priced above the original list price, but this has changed. In my inventory today, I have several titles I've managed to find (in quantity) where the Marketplace price is significantly above retail. I'm not referring here to collectible books, but current books that are simply hard to find. This happens with certain titles when, for whatever reason, Amazon doesn't keep it in stock. Instead Amazon may special-order a copy when a customer buys, indicating: "Usually ships in 4 to 6 weeks."

Here's one example: "The Art of Peruvian Cuisine." For a specialized, high-end cookbook, it sells exceptionally well, with an Amazon Sales Rank under 20,000. The retail price is $49.95, and Amazon sells it for $31.47 - if you're willing to wait several weeks. I sell my copies at $89.98 like clockwork, because buyers understand I'll ship it within two days. I was lucky enough to find a large, odd quantity of this book for about $10 apiece. This book provides a nice lift to my bottom line, and I've never had anyone complain about paying more than retail - they wanted a hard-to-find book quickly, and I provided the service.

With older books, I've sold tons with a similar markup. Obviously, it has to be a scarce book and there has to be some demand for it. But if you're the only seller with a copy, you only need one customer to sell out. Let's say, for example, six copies are listed on ABE.com, priced from $50 to $75. In this case, my rule of thumb is to price the book at $100 to $150 on Amazon.

These days it's easier than ever to get a feel for a book's value with a quick Internet search, but don't go faster than you're comfortable with.