I guess I just feel that yesterday's discussions indicated some interest in reviving this thread and giving it another go. I was hoping that we could take a little time to throw out and discuss ideas, rather than yield the thread to a particular subset (HBP readers) for an unspecified period of time. OTOH, if the thread was actually being used, it could do more for us as far as generating interest and users.
Maybe we could set a start date for HBP discussion for Monday? That gives us time to discuss other ideas in this thread until then, and it gives people who've been putting off reading HBP, a couple days (and a weekend) to get it and finish it.
What do other folks think?
I really like the idea of Gutenberg being our source. Completely virtual book reading and discussion--unless someone prints out the book, of course. Part of me likes the idea of tackling some of the big philosophical tomes on there, but more of me likes the idea of grabbing some Dickens or Bronte and just having fun.
I think more than one person is being terribly overwrought, and the accusatory tone on all sides can stop now. Sound good?
What Nutty said.
As for the fate of this thread ... I don't like the idea of closing threads just because they don't get as many posts as we would like, but I also don't have any strong desire to do the bookclub thing on any text. So. The Harry Potter idea has some appeal, if only because it would mean I could go into Literary again.
I'm in favor of inviting the HP folks over to do their thing.
And if nothing else, the high post count will get people to poke their heads in here to see what's going on.
Yep. Worked with me.
fwiw, I found the off-the-cuff method of setting up an LJ specifically to discuss a given book (which amenuensis did for HBP with HBP_Chapters), in which there was an entry made for each chapter and then you could post your comments to the chapter as you were reading, to be a very accessible and enjoyable way of sharing the reading experience. I haven't really done Book Clubs outwith that. I guess that may have been the kind of thing msbelle meant by a threaded discussion? Possibly.
but it still seemed a little point-y. Not thorny. Just pointy.
I completed misread this, now that I see your post today.
That does seem point-y to me, "point-y" in the sense that it's a point that ought to be taken into consideration when considering whether or not we ought to close the thread.
Thank you for clarifying.
I really like the idea of Gutenberg being our source. Completely virtual book reading and discussion--unless someone prints out the book, of course. Part of me likes the idea of tackling some of the big philosophical tomes on there, but more of me likes the idea of grabbing some Dickens or Bronte and just having fun.
I would love this. Having the texts available for free (and possibly being philosophy or lit classics), would definitely be a plus for me.
It seems like opening this thread for a specified period of time for non-white font HP discussion would be a nice gesture, but I have no strong feelings about it. I have read it, and would be happy to join the discussion, at least as a lurker.
What kind of details do you think we need to work out, Wolfram? (I'm not arguing about it; this is a serious question.) I come up with book, formatting book, discussion guide (buffista created or cribbed from elsewhere). Perhaps we also should discuss whether or not the book chooser and discussion guide provider should act as some sort of moderator, bringing up points or throwing out questions when it appears that the discussion is lagging. Any thoughts?
What kind of details do you think we need to work out, Wolfram?
Exactly what you're talking about. Making the Gutenberg idea, which sounds great in theory, work in practice. Is there someone with the technical know-how to format and link the book for download? (Assuming people see the plain text format as a barrier.) Creating a discussion guide, and having a guide provider, whether the book chooser or otherwise, lead and stimulate discussion. Talking about the length of discussion periods, and what was turning people off (and on) in the first round of book club.
For example, there were some postings upthread which might be helpful, like Hec's pointing out that we like discussing character motives and actions:
DavidS "The Buffista Book Club: Isn't the Point of Computers to Replace Books?" Dec 16, 2004 2:38:54 pm PST
Or Lcat's suggestions about changing up genres and a designated guide:
lcat "The Buffista Book Club: Isn't the Point of Computers to Replace Books?" Mar 17, 2005 7:46:18 am PST
And there were similar suggestions made by folks like Connie, Amyliz, Cindy, Brenda M, Stephanie, Heather and others.
And I'd love to do a graphic novel and recruit those fine experienced minds from Jossverse to help us analyze. (But that's selfishly because I've recently read some amazing works in that style and I think some could sustain extended discussion.)
Anyway, if we're going to give it a final go, I think it might be worth taking a little time to tweak the things that weren't working and focus on the things that were.
