--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Know something about the world, and by…" description: "\"“Know something about the world, and by this I mean the world outside of books. This might require joining the Marines, or working on an oil rig or as ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/942/douglas-wilson-2686_book_know-something-about-the-world-and-by-th_2377218.jpg" --- # Know something about the world, and by this I mean the… ![“Know something about the world, and by this I mean the world outside of books. This might require joining the Marines, or working on an oil rig or as a hash slinger at a truck stop in Kentucky. Know what it smells like out there. If everything you write smells like a library, then your prospective…” quote by Douglas Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/942/douglas-wilson-2686_book_know-something-about-the-world-and-by-th_2377218.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/942/douglas-wilson-2686_book_know-something-about-the-world-and-by-th_2377218.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/942/douglas-wilson-2686_book_know-something-about-the-world-and-by-th_2377218.jpg) > ““Know something about the world, and by this I mean the world outside of books. This might require joining the Marines, or working on an oil rig or as a hash slinger at a truck stop in Kentucky. Know what it smells like out there. If everything you write smells like a library, then your prospective audience will be limited to those who like the smell of libraries.”” [Douglas Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-wilson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote urges gaining real‑world experience beyond academic study, suggesting hands‑on work in demanding jobs to broaden perspective and connect with a wider audience. **In simple terms:** Real experience expands understanding and audience. Key Takeaway Seek practical, diverse experiences. Themes experience learning authenticity Mood reflective inspirational Type advice motivational When to use this quote - journalism - creative writing - public speaking - teaching Key Concepts empirical knowledge sensory perception Questions to Reflect On - How can you simulate real‑world exposure? - What biases arise from only academic learning? A Different Perspective Practical work may not be feasible for everyone. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Books Require](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books-require-1323261/) [Know Smells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know-smells-3641100/) [Library](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/library/) [Outside Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/outside-books-922857/) [Smell Libraries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smell-libraries-5875265/) [Write Smells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/write-smells-5875266/) [Writing advice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-advice/) ## Related quotes > [Outside books, we avoid colorful characters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/outside-books-we-avoid-colorful-characters/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [“The world outside the books was not a happy one, Maggie felt; it seemed to be a world where people behaved the best to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/the-world-outside-the-books-was-not-a-happy-one-maggie-felt-it-seemed/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [I couldn't imagine any other way of living, outside of books, outside my work. Which doesn't mean I am not interested in other things,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/i-couldn-t-imagine-any-other-way-of-living-outside-of-books-outside/) [Mario Vargas Llosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/) > [I know how to live here, I know how everything smells, and tastes, and is. What could I ever search for in the world,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-s-beagle/i-know-how-to-live-here-i-know-how-everything-smells-and-tastes-and/) [Peter S. Beagle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-s-beagle/) > [“What do I smell like?" she asked, ignoring his question. He gave this some thought before answering, "Purple." "Purple?" "Um-hmm." "I didn't know smells…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frankie-rose/what-do-i-smell-like-she-asked-ignoring-his-question-he-gave-this/) [Frankie Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frankie-rose/) > [You know when someone smells soo good, and then you get captivated by them. Enchanting...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-know-when-someone-smells-soo-good-and-then-you-get-captivated-by/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“You’d think you’d know when something smells bad; But if you’ve lived among sewage your whole life, bad smells are normal. Everything else seems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-abigail/you-d-think-you-d-know-when-something-smells-bad-but-if-you-ve-lived/) [Melissa Abigail](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-abigail/) > [Many books require no thought from those who read them, and for a very simple reason; they made no such demand upon those who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/many-books-require-no-thought-from-those-who-read-them-and-for-a-very/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) > [Our books still do not require batteries. But I am no fool. It is a slender advantage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sloan/our-books-still-do-not-require-batteries-but-i-am-no-fool-it-is-a/) [Robin Sloan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sloan/) > [“Books require titles; reading them doesn't”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-moore/books-require-titles-reading-them-doesn-t/) [Alan Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-moore/) > [I don't see myself as experimenting in any conscious way, it's perhaps that certain books require different densities of language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-scott/i-don-t-see-myself-as-experimenting-in-any-conscious-way-it-s-perhaps/) [John Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-scott/) > [The book is a uniquely durable object, one that can be fully enjoyed without being damaged. A book doesn't require fuel, food, or service;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-buzbee/the-book-is-a-uniquely-durable-object-one-that-can-be-fully-enjoyed/) [Lewis Buzbee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-buzbee/) > [Books do not require either symbols or enemies to be worth reading.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ff/books-do-not-require-either-symbols-or-enemies-to-be-worth-reading/) [Ff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ff/) > [“But let the wise be warned against too great readiness at explanation: it multiplies the sources of mistake, lengthening the sum for reckoners sure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/but-let-the-wise-be-warned-against-too-great-readiness-at-explanation/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [“The best kind of praise is intelligent praise.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-heffington/the-best-kind-of-praise-is-intelligent-praise/) [Rachel Heffington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-heffington/) ## More by Douglas Wilson > [“The ground for the necessity of Christian schools lies in this very thing, that no fact can be known unless it be known in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-wilson/the-ground-for-the-necessity-of-christian-schools-lies-in-this-very/) [Douglas Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-wilson/) > [Throughout the country, I see the same design problems and solutions over and over.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-wilson/throughout-the-country-i-see-the-same-design-problems-and-solutions/) [Douglas Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-wilson/) > [“You do not create ex nihilo. You rearrange and recombine. You are the same old flour and eggs in search of a new recipe.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-wilson/you-do-not-create-ex-nihilo-you-rearrange-and-recombine-you-are-the/) [Douglas Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-wilson/) > [“Sensory experience should not be draped on top of the story as sort of a last-minute decoration. Done right, it is woven into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-wilson/sensory-experience-should-not-be-draped-on-top-of-the-story-as-sort/) [Douglas Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-wilson/) > [“When the travesties scattered throughout our modern art museums are set alongside the glories of ancient Greece, the Christian heart should swell with pride.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-wilson/when-the-travesties-scattered-throughout-our-modern-art-museums-are/) [Douglas Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-wilson/) > [Immodest and attractive is easy. Modest and repulsive is easy too. But modest and attractive is an art form.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-wilson/immodest-and-attractive-is-easy-modest-and-repulsive-is-easy-too-but/) [Douglas Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-wilson/) > [“We were in desperate straits. Christ came to “ransom captive Israel” and to “disperse the gloomy clouds of night.” In our insolence, we were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-wilson/we-were-in-desperate-straits-christ-came-to-ransom-captive-israel-and/) [Douglas Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-wilson/) > [“This is why stories like this, with great evils in them, are necessary for children to read. Kids just got here—they are still figuring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-wilson/this-is-why-stories-like-this-with-great-evils-in-them-are-necessary/) [Douglas Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-wilson/) > [As you read, allow your reading to cluster around your interests.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-wilson/as-you-read-allow-your-reading-to-cluster-around-your-interests/) [Douglas Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-wilson/) > [“Every culture has blasphemy laws. They are not always called that, but no society allows citizens to rail against the reigning deity. In our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-wilson/every-culture-has-blasphemy-laws-they-are-not-always-called-that-but/) [Douglas Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-wilson/) > [“We sometimes do not appreciate the magnitude of the problem here. How could the eternal Word of the eternal Father take on limits? How…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-wilson/we-sometimes-do-not-appreciate-the-magnitude-of-the-problem-here-how/) [Douglas Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-wilson/) > [God picks us up where we are, not where we should have been](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-wilson/god-picks-us-up-where-we-are-not-where-we-should-have-been/) [Douglas Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-wilson/) > [“The fulfillment of the cultural mandate involves hard work, and men need to be hard in order to do the work.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-wilson/the-fulfillment-of-the-cultural-mandate-involves-hard-work-and-men/) [Douglas Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-wilson/) > [“There is no virtue or vice in a transitive verb, everything depends on the direct object. 'I LOVE' could be virtuous or not -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-wilson/there-is-no-virtue-or-vice-in-a-transitive-verb-everything-depends-on/) [Douglas Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-wilson/) > [“We are like fruitflies, measuring everything in terms of our own lifespan. But since our lifespans are so short, our perspective is entirely wrong.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-wilson/we-are-like-fruitflies-measuring-everything-in-terms-of-our-own/) [Douglas Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-wilson/) [Explore all 154 Douglas Wilson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-wilson/) ## More Book quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [I don't think I have made as much of my life as I should have. I should have written more books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/i-don-t-think-i-have-made-as-much-of-my-life-as-i-should-have-i/) [Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/) > [Some books are not read in the right way because they have skipped a stage of opinion, assume a crystallization of information in society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/some-books-are-not-read-in-the-right-way-because-they-have-skipped-a/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“People talk about books that write themselves, and it's a lie. Books don't write themselves. It takes thought and research and a backache and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/people-talk-about-books-that-write-themselves-and-it-s-a-lie-books/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [There are great books in this world and great worlds in books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-bronte/there-are-great-books-in-this-world-and-great-worlds-in-books/) [Anne Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-bronte/) > [The purpose of this book is to supply, in the form suitable for laymen, guidance in the adoption and execution of an investment policy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/the-purpose-of-this-book-is-to-supply-in-the-form-suitable-for-laymen/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [But I think that of all the literature that I studied, the book that did more than any other to fire my enthusiasm was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwame-nkrumah/but-i-think-that-of-all-the-literature-that-i-studied-the-book-that/) [Kwame Nkrumah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwame-nkrumah/) > [It's amazing to see things that are suggested in the book fully developed and so brilliantly realized through the artistry of the designers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/it-s-amazing-to-see-things-that-are-suggested-in-the-book-fully/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [“But I’ve developed a great reputation for wisdom by ordering more books than I ever had time to read, and reading more books, by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilynne-robinson/but-i-ve-developed-a-great-reputation-for-wisdom-by-ordering-more/) [Marilynne Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilynne-robinson/) [Browse all 29,378 Book quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Know something about the world, and by this I mean the world outside of books. This might require joining the Marines, or working on an oil rig or as a hash slinger at a truck stop in Kentucky. Know what it smells like out there. If everything you write smells like a library, then your prospective audience will be limited to those who like the smell of libraries.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Douglas Wilson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-wilson/know-something-about-the-world-and-by-this-i-mean-the-world-outside/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Book" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-wilson/know-something-about-the-world-and-by-this-i-mean-the-world-outside/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/942/douglas-wilson-2686_book_know-something-about-the-world-and-by-th_2377218.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/942/douglas-wilson-2686_book_know-something-about-the-world-and-by-th_2377218.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/942/douglas-wilson-2686_book_know-something-about-the-world-and-by-th_2377218.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Know something about the world, and by this I mean the world outside of books. This might require joining…” — Douglas Wilson", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Douglas Wilson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-wilson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Know something about the world, and...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-wilson/know-something-about-the-world-and-by-this-i-mean-the-world-outside/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-wilson/know-something-about-the-world-and-by-this-i-mean-the-world-outside/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```