Collector Spotlight Series: Marsden Dawn

Collector Spotlight Series: Marsden Dawn

March 23, 2015 0 By EVA

Everyone has their hobbies and in our world, comics reign supreme. So it was easy to turn the scope on our own staff and find GCE writer Marsden Dawn with an envious comic collection. Predominately collecting DC comics and related materials, Marsden hails from Middletown, Delaware and shares with us her comics, figurines, posters, and more.

At cons, among the rows and rows of white boxed comics there will also be plenty of figurines, intricately detailed and meticulously placed to catch a potential buyers eye. With companies like Hot Toys and Funko making some of the most sought-after collectibles it is no wonder the toy business is burgeoning. Read on as Marsden takes us on a stroll through her stacks and shelves and why being a collector is important to her.

 

What do you collect?

Everything. Literally everything. I collect prints, original artwork, comic books, action figures, collectible statues and a few other weird things here and there. I collect mostly comic related collectibles but I have a few video game related things (mainly Mass Effect) here and there as well.

 

Photo courtesy of Marsden Dawn.

Photo courtesy of Marsden Dawn.

 

When did you start collecting?

Not that long ago actually. I just started reading comic books back in 2012 and I didn’t start really collecting until about 2013. Since then I’ve been going to shops at least once a week looking for new things to add to my growing collection.

 

When you started collecting, why did you continue doing it?

It’s addicting. It really is. There are times where you keep saying I’m done, and that could either because it’s getting too expensive or simply because you just don’t have the room to display these wonderful things anymore, but then you see something and there’s just this feeling at you that makes you want to add just one more. That one more will easily change from one to five to twenty in just a matter of minutes.

 

How long have you been collecting?

For about three years now. But with how much I’ve managed to collect within just those few years alone it feels like so much longer then that.

 

How many items do you suppose (or know) are in your collection?

Oh my goodness I think about this all the time and sometimes it honestly terrifies me with how much I have.

There are probably almost a hundred figures/statues around my room in various places. Bombshell statues, collectible comic book Barbies, and nearly 20 vinyl Pop figurines. (They might be the most addictive thing to collect considering how cheap they can be and how easy they are to acquire)

I have nearly 1,500 single issues in my collection ranging from series like Painkiller Jane to Green Arrow and even the Dragon Age and Mass Effect. Among those are probably 120 graphic novels.

 

Photo courtesy of Marsden Dawn.

Photo courtesy of Marsden Dawn.

 

How much do you reckon (or know) your collection is worth?

I keep telling myself one day I’ll do it. One day I’ll sit down and value each and everything, but I think that might scare me even more then the amount of collectibles I have.

Let’s just put it this way I have a comic that I’ve seen valued at $500 (that being Superman Adventures #5 which has the first appearance of Livewire) as well as some comics I’ve seen valued from $100 to $50 (Like the infamous Catwoman mugshot cover Catwoman #51 done by Adam Hughes)

 

What is your most sentimental/valued item in the collection and why?

I’ve been trying to figure that out myself but to be honest I think everything holds a sentimental value. There isn’t one thing that I think I would part with. Each item has its own story and value.

Photo courtesy of Marsden Dawn.

Photo courtesy of Marsden Dawn.

 

Where do you purchase/receive most of the pieces in your collection?

 

Mostly at my local comic book shops and at local cons. I very rarely buy things offline because that takes the fun out of looking for things and getting all excited when you do finally find them.

 

How do you decide what you want in your collection?

Usually by character. There a characters that I will buy every item I can, like Catwoman, Black Canary and Green Arrow. It also is a matter of space and where I put it as well as price.

 

Photo courtesy of Marsden Dawn.

Photo courtesy of Marsden Dawn.

 

What was the hardest item to get and why?

I don’t think I have a hardest item to attain story merely for the sheer fact that I don’t go to cons or shops with the intention that I’ll find a particular item. I have crazy luck as it is in finding things I want, and if I go into a store with the intention of looking for just once item or one particular character then I miss out on tons of wonderful new things.

 

Do you have any crazy stories on attaining an item?

Probably what I found recently which is something I never in my wildest dreams would have ever thought I’d find. I was at a local comic con in town (the first comic con that my town had ever held), and my best friend have a back issue hunting system worked out. She knows the books and characters that I’m looking for and I know hers. It just saves time in terms of digging.

Well she had made the comment that she found a book she thought I would like (mostly because the cover had one of my favorite characters) but didn’t think I would be willing to pay the $10 dollars for it because it wasn’t in such good condition.

In her hands was the first appearance of Dinah Lance as the Black Canary. I screamed. What are the chances that I would find a first appearance book that normally sells for tons of money for just $10 dollars.

 

Photo courtesy of Marsden Dawn.

Photo courtesy of Marsden Dawn.

 

How does your collection make you feel?

Extremely happy and extremely proud. Like I said I’ve only been doing this for a few years, and the fact that I already have so much and it only makes me wonder what I will manage to find in the years to collect.

 

Why do you collect?

Because what else would I spend my money on? It’s the thrill that maybe tomorrow I’ll find that next new thing. Or maybe it’s just the sheer fact that I can look around and see my collection and realize that I’ve accomplished an amazing thing in finding all of these items. Collecting means the world to me and I don’t know what I would do without it.

Photo courtesy of Marsden Dawn.

Photo courtesy of Marsden Dawn.