ATA Handbooks      skip to Price List

Occasionally, we will have Internet Specials with great prices on specific handbooks or on handbook bundles! Click on the above link to see if any are available today!

Listed here are the handbooks that are currently available from the ATA Central Office. While some of the older handbooks are dated, they are still quite useful, especially when starting a new topical collection. The Handbook Order form is available in either WORD or PDF format. Please print the form, complete it and mail or fax to the locations stated on the form. (Mail: American Topical Association, PO Box 8, Carterville, IL 62918-0008; Phone: 618-985-5100; Fax: 618-985-5131.) Note that the ATA accepts checks/money orders (drawn on a US bank, in US funds only), Visa and MasterCard for handbook purchases. We also now are able to accept PayPal payments, sent to americantopical@msn.com. Allow 2-3 weeks for receipt in the USA. Most foreign shipments are made via surface mail and will take longer.

For orders that are to be paid through PayPal, calculate the total cost of your order (including shipping charges) from the Price List below. Then, enter the total amount of your order in the PayPal form, and in the notes section list the handbooks you wish to purchase.

Please verify your order before submitting; incorrect information will only delay the arrival of your handbooks. If you are unsure of how to order through PayPal, please contact the ATA Office with your requests. They will calculate shipping based on your address, and send PayPal payment instructions to you via e-mail.

For access to the complete handbook Listing, click here or continue scrolling down.

Thinking about writing a handbook ? click here  or continue scrolling down.

Women on Stamps Handbook, click here  or continue scrolling down.
         by Helen Cockburn

New Civil War Handbook, click here  or continue scrolling down.
         by Larry Dodson

Topical Hotline, click here  or continue scrolling down.
         by Don Beuthel

New Computers on Stamps Handbook, click here  or continue scrolling down.
         by Larry Dodson

Audubon on Stamps, click here  or continue scrolling down.
         by Lois Herrmann

New Insects on Stamps Handbook, click here  or continue scrolling down.
         by Donald Wright, Jr.

New JFK (The Life and Times) Handbook, click here  or continue scrolling down.
         by Melvin Morris, David Kent, Jr.

Presidents of the 20th Century Handbook, click here  or continue scrolling down.
         by Melvin Morris.

Topical Stamp Collecting
A Universal Hobby for Seniors
By John Groet and Ray Cartier
ATA Handbook #148 (16 pages)

If you are seeking a creative, educational, fun and relaxing outlet, topical collecting can fill that need for you. Seniors want to keep their minds active. That is why  seniors are the most active members of the stamp collecting community. This book is a great introduction to the new way to enjoy stamp collecting.

NOTE: to read most of this handbook FREE on our site, click here or use the "Collecting for Seniors" link on the left or along the bottom of any page! You don't have to be a senior to learn more about this interesting and rewarding hobby!

You may also order a printed copy of this booklet from the Central Office. See Handbook #148 in the chart below.

ABOUT WRITING ATA HANDBOOKS

The ATA Handbooks are written by dedicated members of the American Topical Association. The information in them is up to date through the time of publication, and in most cases is very good background for topicalists who are starting up on a new topic, or for those who need more information. Subsequent books on the same subject must pick up from where any previous handbook on the same subject left off, unless the old books have been sold out. New information that supplements the original book(s) should be added to any new book.

In order to make the handbooks more than just a checklist with a few illustrations, some new guidelines are now in place for future authors. The purpose of a handbook should be two-fold. First, it should serve as a research tool for topical collectors. Second, it should have additional information in it that would attract non-collectors and lead them to discover this fascinating hobby of topical collecting.

Before starting on a book for the ATA, please acquaint yourself with these guidelines for preparation.

1. Let the ATA office know if you are considering a new handbook. We expect to create no more than four titles per year due to time constraints and limited human resources. We cannot automatically print every handbook given to us. A committee must decide whether or not to add any particular title.
   
   
2. When sending scans of stamps, identify the Scott catalog numbers to be used as captions.
   
   
3. Type standard text in all the same type size (11 or 12 point) except for section headers and titles.
   
   
4. Always use a single space wherever a space is used. It is no longer necessary with computers to use a double space after periods.
   
   
5. Always enter a blank line between paragraphs to help our formatting layout.
   
   
6. To indent paragraphs always hit the indent button one time only.
   
   
7. If you use a dash, make sure to include a single space on either side of it. The computer then recognizes it as a dash and not a hyphen.
   
   
8. Before sending your draft in, run and review a spell check. Make sure that all country’s names and people’s names are consistent in spelling throughout your book.
   
   
9. Include an index, and use both first and last names wherever they exist.
   
   
10. Rather than type a word in all capitals use Bold, bold and italics, bold and underline or change to a different font. When using fonts other than Times New Roman or Arial, check with the ATA Office to ensure that we have that font. If not, you will have to send a copy of the unusual font to us; else your work may look strange in conversion.
    
    
11. Be consistent in the style used for numbering items in a list. Use Roman Numerals for section headings. Where standard Arabic numerals are used, if you place a period or a bracket behind one, make sure that you to the same for all. Go back and check to insure that some numbers haven’t been skipped or have been duplicated.
    
    
12. Use tab stops at the top of your page when you are listing things, rather than using tabs, spaces or “Enter” to get to where you want to. Set up a tab stop for where the catalog numbers and/or the descriptions will be. To set a tab stop, make sure that your layout is showing a ruler bar at the top. If one is not shown, click “View” and then go down to “Rulers” and click that. Also make sure that the “Normal” layout (View>Normal) is selected. To add a tab stop, click on the ruler where you want the tab stop to be set and you will see a symbol that looks like a small dark “L” where you clicked. You can drag it wherever you want it to be place. To eliminate a tab stop, drag it off the ruler bar.
    
    
13. Type all your text using only these two tab stops, or the first two tabs if you used the defaults, but do not format the wrapping or add any extra tabs or unnecessary “Enters”. You’ll do that in the next instruction. Your description will need to wrap to the correct spot, without the need for inserting extra tabs or “Enters”. To do this, highlight the entire list of items that need to be formatted after it is completely typed. Then click at the beginning of the first line of text to be formatted. Next use the elevator bar on the right side to move down to the lat line you wish to format. When you get to the last line, hold the “Shift” key down and click at the end of the last line. This will highlight all the text between where your first and last clicks were. On the far left side of the ruler (See “View>Rulers” in the menu bar, you will see two “triangles” with the top one upside down. Click and hold on the box and drag it to the second tab stop. Both triangles will move. If you created tab stops, they will disappear and need to be reinstated when you are done. Now click and hold the top triangle and drag it back to the far left of the ruler bar. This will leave the bottom triangle and the box behind. This sets up a paragraph wrap. When you hit “Enter” the formatting will start all over again so that each paragraph starts at the far left and wraps all additional lines.