For the past year I’ve been neck deep in the book writing and marketing business. I’ve learned a lot. I’ve learned all about how the publishing business works, and let me tell you, it’s pretty complex. I could go on for days about it all, and I will in future posts.

But today I want to talk about why I think it’s important for you to go to your local bookstore.

Sure, buying online is easy. Jeff Bezos created Amazon because he realized that people really didn’t want to have to drive to the store to buy a book. It would be much simpler to just go online and have it shipped directly to your house. And he was right in parts.

But I’m a big fan of bookstores. There’s an experience you get when you visit one that you cannot get by purchasing online. As a rule, if I see a Borders or a Barnes & Noble I always try to stop in just to have a look around.

The first place I go is the the business book section of course. I love to see all the different books stacked in the display and how they all look mashed together. I scan them and look for the titles and covers that draw my eye. I find it fascinating how they choose to put some books forward facing, and others just showing the spine. Then I pick them up and feel them; then open them up and scan the contents. Smell them. Nothing like the smell of a fresh book!

This is a totally different experience than buying online, and in my opinion, much better. There’s a feeling you get in a bookstore that you cannot get by surfing online. You know what I’m talking about. It’s like you’re in a library full of countless amounts of knowledge and entertainment. So much so that you feel empowered by it all. I do at least.

Next time you’re in the vicinity of a bookstore, stop in. Browse around and NOT just in your favorite category. I like to challenge myself by reading books that I know nothing about. Fiction and non-fiction. It helps me stay connected with things that are happening outside my industry. It also helps me generate a bunch of ideas.

I don’t want to see the day when there aren’t any more actual stores to go into. How do we make that happen? It’s all about support. You can take your first step tomorrow to help. Look up a local bookstore near you and go.