What motivates you to buy a book?

[catherineldf]

A not entirely idle question these days. I find that I buy based on some combination of factors: if the author or editor is known to me (personally, online, reviews, cons, etc.); book topic - social histories, biographies, fantasy, soft sf, historical mysteries, historical romance (see aforementioned note re: authors) - these tend to be the bulk, though not all, of my purchases; queer-themed, based on author and topic; presentation (I like me a pretty covet too, from time to time); and a desire to support the book selling venue, store, publisher, website. I try to make most of my purchases from indie stores or sites, most are print and the bulk are split between small press and big press books. How about you?