The Eight Signs Of Speculation:

1. Never speculate on something that was hot when it was ordered. Unless any of the below apply. If it was that hot, there will have been enough orders.

2. Separate elements of demand don't just combine, they multiply exponentially. Jim Lee on a book is semi-hot. But hey, Divine Right never did the business. Batman is semi-hot, but he's been down in the sales charts too long. There was untapped potential in both. Together, they're not just hot, they're at the top of the sales chart. Lather, rinse, repeat with Kevin Smith on Daredevil and Green Arrow, while his Clerks comics sales remain low.

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3. Restricted markets equals money. Sell licensed titles to foreigners when the distributors aren't distributing. See: Transformers, See: Elseworlds Eighty Page Giant. I paid for a honeymoon with the latter.

4. eBay is your god. Respect eBay. Do not break its rules. Apart from the spamming one, you've got to do that, just be obsequious in your requests when asking permission to send people a link to your items. You will need eBay to sell your comics on. shops will only give you 40%, if that, of their on sale price. Make sure that Positive Feedback rating remains high.

5. Never spend more than you can afford to lose. You're a gambler, remember. And those comic book dealers are worse than the mob. Never run up a tab, or you'll discover why Bob's Comics Dungeon is so named.

6. Niche markets can surprise you, especially when they aren't being tapped right now. The nostalgia boom grabbed large amounts of this market, but even the likes of Formerly Known As The Justice League found a readership that much of the industry forgot existed. Hell, if The Outsiders can go up in price, anything can!

7. Take advantage of the dead cat bounce. When something falls in price so much, it can do nothing but go up a little. Quarter bins are a great way for comic shops to keep comics that may one day be worth loads, nice and safe. And when you spot a creator or character suddenly getting respect, make sure you dive in first. It's very difficult to lose money buying comics that cheap. Possible, but difficult.

8. Multi-media crossovers. For a split second when a property comes out as a film, and people are aware that it's comic based, there'll be a feeding frenzy. It will not last long, get in, get out.

Right, so what looks good right now?

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