Finance: 13 Ways To Save Money on Manga (Part 2)

8. Create a list of titles 
            a. that you would like to read someday. 
             This list would help you to avoid buying titles from the bargain bins. If its not on your list don't buy it.
             b. of volumes that you already have.
             Its really hard to keep track of manga especially if your collection already exceeds 500 volumes. I've mistakenly bought doubles before because I didn't have an organized list.

9. Buy your favorite bookstore's discount card.
I have a Powercard from Powerbooks. They give me 20% off on books and I think if you went to their store and they have an ongoing sale you can get more discounts. ^_^ 


10. Do your research on the book before buying a title
This would save you from regretting  puchasing a title. I've had my share of not so good manga in the past. 


11. Know where the bargain bookstores are.
If you're going to place you haven't visited before. Google the place and see if they have a bargain bookstore nearby. If there's a possibility that it would take you a long time to visit the place or if you know you won't be going back there anytime soon. This is a perfect oppurtunity to scout out the place and get your hands on some manga. I went to Hawaii 2 years ago for work and I was able to find about 5 volumes of Yuyu Hakusho (Ghostfighter) for only $3.00 (or less) per book. I bought a total of 37 volumes of manga for only a fraction of the cost.


12. Manila International Bookfair and other events.
I always go to this event to check out if the stalls offer discounts on manga. You can also take note of other similar events that might be selling manga like anime conventions and comicons. 


13. Learn the language.
The original Japanese manga is just a quarter of the cost of the English translated one, Its really quite a bargain, Plus you can read a lot of titles that will never be translated to English. Each hiragana and katakana you memorize is a step closer towards cheaper manga. But memorizing the characters is only half the battle. You must also immerse yourself in the culture. Manga often contains references to customs that is different from ours so unless you know and understand what the stories mean, you will literallly be lost in translation.


There you have it. These are the things I do that enables me to buy cheaper manga. ^_^