Leisure Reading 101

Lesson 5: Loving Literature And Sharing It With Others

Starting a Book Club

Begin a list of your most trusted family members and friends because they will tell you if you are going in over your head, and what is working or not. Make your list no more than 10 people. Small is the key here. It will provide you with the strength and knowledge to know how to effectively steer your group.

Next, proceed in listing the kind of books you like to read, either fiction or non-fiction or even poetry for that matter. The reasoning in this point is finding the joy of sharing the type of reading that you prefer with others.

Thirdly, look at your life schedule. Do you have a commitment to take the kids to soccer practice every Friday evening? Is it your responsibility to cook dinner every night or most nights of the week? Be honest. Look at a particular month and jot down your known activities. If at a glance you see you are bound to not be the leader then wait to start a book club until your schedule is more flexible, or encourage one of your trusted family members or friends to be the leader.

Next, decide on a preliminary date and time for the book club meeting. Also, decide where the book club will meet, at least for the first three meetings. In addition, by now you will have decided what types of books the club will be reading, either fiction or non-fiction. Have at least four titles and book blurbs written down in a notepad specifically for the club. And don’t forget to come up with an initial name for the club to bring to the others for debate and feedback.

Lastly, call a meeting with your selected group members. Go over your ideas and proposed meeting schedule of the book club. Listen to everyone. I do mean everyone. Make sure each opinion or comment is heard and addressed. This is crucial in the upcoming lessons that will be explained further. Once everyone has agreed to the date, time, types of books, and name of the club you can start reading!

Let's proceed to the next exercise:

“Learn an effective way to acquire members”

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