five tips for starting a book club

so excited to talk about one of my favorite things in my life today:
book clubs!
…
if you follow this blog or my instagram feed, you know i love my book clubs.
at this point, i have been a part of one book club for five years {in july} and another one in our new neighborhood for two months. it’s been so nice to develop friendships and a community with my longer one and meeting awesome women in our new hood has been just as awesome.

part of the “success” (the longevity and awesomeness) of our
book club is due to the fact that it is simply filled with some truly
remarkable women- many have become dear friends to me. they are interesting, fun, and welcoming to others. another one of the contributing factors has been that not only do we talk about the book- but we share parts of our life with one another in the process.

some of you have asked about my book club over the years and so i thought i would share my five tips for keeping and maintaining an amazing book club!
enjoy and please let me know if you have any questions!

1. find a great group of people: 
the people in the group can make or break it – so make sure you find people who are interesting, trustworthy, respectful, and honest. let’s be honest, reading books can make personal things can up and can make you can feel vulnerable sharing- so make sure you are surrounded by people that you feel completely comfortable around. i feel like you can be complete strangers or close friends {i have experienced both so far and love them for different reasons} and have a successful club. having people with different perspectives and beliefs can make conversations and the night much more livelier- so i recommend this. books tend to focus on politics, morals, arts, social aspects, religion, etc. so having a group of people with different opinions and thoughts can make it more interesting. 

2. choose a way to effectively communicate: 
we
usually e-mail in advance {usually the next hostess and about a month
out/right after the last meeting} but have also found that google docs
can be a great resource. we have one set-up with everyone’s address,
books we have read/upcoming book options, recipes that people loved…
it’s a great way to share info without always sending emails {which
personally never bothers me- but i know it can be a lot sometimes and this is an
ideal solution}

3. answers some critical questions up front: 
some things i would consider discussing before {maybe at a brewery or a fun bakery!}
– will the group be open or closed to new members?
– what happens if someone doesn’t read? 
– what book will you read?
– food/drink schedule?
– where will you meet?
– how will you spend your time?
– how often will we meet?

4. choose interesting books/a variety of genres:
*because it’s all about the books. right?! ♥
one of my book clubs allows the hostess to choose the book and that person supplies the food and drinks while in the other one we all choose the book together and everyone brings a dish/bottle of wine. both work well – it’s just something to think about at the beginning {not that you can’t change it down the road!} mixing up the genres can help meet the preferences of all members – i love non-fiction and tend to pick a memoir – while others prefer fantasy {not usually my cup of tea- but it forces me to venture out!}

5. and get started… read, read, have some wine… make some traditions!
some of the traditions we have created:
 – every christmas we exchange ornaments and usually pick a more light-hearted book for december/meet earlier in the month. in 2013 we read a cookbook and everyone created one dish from the book to share {again the google doc worked great for this- to avoid duplicate recipes}

– for our anniversary every july we try to mix things up. last year we went to breweries and then ended the night at amelie’s french bakery for some treats. nothing says love like a book, a flight of brews, a pastry, and friends. 

– if a book is made into a movie, we often go see it together and then meet somewhere after {usually dean & deluca} to discuss.

– food traditions: i almost always have peanut butter m & m’s when i host {see photo above!} and another girl used to love to make some good ole’ bagel bites. always a good idea.

another idea i love:
– a yearly book club campout – how fun would it be to dicuss over a fire and s’mores