Donations

MITSFS gets a lot of donations and questions about donation processes. For some of the more common questions, please refer to this list. For more complicated or detailed questions, please email mitsfs@mit.edu

Frequently Asked Questions

• Q. What can I donate?

  A. While you can donate almost anything, we will not be able to keep anything that is not within the realm of science fiction or fantasy. If you are unsure, please ask us and we'll give you an educated guess. Books and magazines are the most common donations, but we will selectively accept other fantasy or science fiction items that might be of interest to our members. If you want to know if we can use something that is not a bound volume, stop by the library or email mitsfs@mit.edu

• Q. What can I donate that will be most useful to the library?

  A: We are primarily looking for

  • Money Money to run the library is always welcome!
  • Books Space is a bit tight, so we are unlikely to be able to add a book to the collection if a version already exists in that format. Depending on the condition, we may be able to replace a worn version with a better version, so if yours is pristine, that will be appreciated. You can see what we have in the Book Catalog
  • Magazines We love to fill holes in our magazine collection. What he have is listed in the Magazine Catalog. If it shows as bound, then we do not need it. If it is owned, we might be able to use a pristine copy to upgrade our shelf one. If it is listed as missing, or not on our list, we'll be excited to receive it!
  • Space Please donate space. We need it more than anything! Email mitsfs@mit.edu if you have ideas.

• Q. I want to give a monatary donation to the library; how do I do that

  A. You can buy a permenant membership or donate to MITSFS's Endownment:

  1. Go to giving.mit.edu
  2. You should see a box to give to the Science Fiction Library Fund
  3. Follow the instructions

• Q. I have a large collection to donate. Can you take it off my hands?

  A. Maybe. If the donation is larger than a couple hundred books, please discuss it with us first. Email mitsfs@mit.edu with details and we'll discuss if we can take your collection.

• Q. Can I send my donation in multiple batches?

  A. Yes, but unless we know how many boxes to wait for, we'll process each batch of boxes we receive separately.

• Q. Can I donate books/magazines in another language?

  A. Yes, we have a collection of science fiction and fantasy in foreign languages. Please make sure that the donations are within the realm of science fiction or fantasy. We also appreciate a translation of the title and author into English if possible.

• Q. How can I let you know a donation is coming?

  A. Please email trojan@mit.edu in advance so we know a donation is coming. Please let us know if you want library credit or just a thank you note.

• Q. How can I get the donation to you?

  A. Small donations can be mailed to us or dropped off at the library when it is open. We are willing to pick up larger donations from locations in the Boston metro area, but scheduling may be awkward, as our keyholders have classes and/or work and busy schedules.

• Q. Can I get library credit?

  A. You can receive library credit for your donation. Just let us know that you want it when you send in your donation.

• Q. Is my donation tax deductable?

  A. All donations for which you don't recieve library credit are tax deductible. Appraising your donation (if required) and filling out any IRS paperwork is your responsibility. We will be happy to send you a letter of acknowledgement (which you may need). See MIT Library's Tax Information for Donors for more concrete information.