One of the things that has convinced me to stay with this board, since I found it, is that I think pretty much everyone here has interesting and funny things to say. SO many boards become dull, but there's always something interesting going on here. One reason I'd like the book club thread is because I'm genuinely interested in what buffistas think about the books they are reading. I'd like to discuss that in a organized way. (Having said that, the word tautological scares me so I hope I won't have to post with dictionary in hand.)

On an unrelated note, could someone briefly explain the anti-proliferation fears? I gather it has something to do with server limitations and money, but since I've been here, I haven't really understood the impact of adding threads. What is the impact on the board as we add new threads?

Mostly because it started with people turning up their noses at Moby-Dick as boring, as I recall.

Actually, the spark that flamed the discussion initially had nothing to do with that. The whole ball got rolling when people were getting defensive about romance/genre fiction in the context of an article to which someone had linked.

But the fact that my gut-check flies in the face of actual number bespeaks an effectiveness beyond mere hard numbers.

Or it could mean you were just wrong.

why we are still here?

Because we're trying to work out the best way to go off. And I think we committed to a year, but my memory ill serves me there.

I think it's fruitless to try and tote up who resists new threads on principle and who doesn't, and who wins and who doesn't. It's irrelevant and divisive.

I agree with this too. At the same time, I feel like it's often an argument that's always sort of theoretical. Not that us running out of money or needing more is theoretical, but it always seems to be the next thread that will be the straw. I flip-flop between taking it seriously and blowing it off.

Not that us running out of money or needing more is theoretical, but it always seems to be the next thread that will be the straw.

I don't see it that way. I have a two-pronged dislike of additional threads, the first of which is the resource drain issue (where, like anything else, a thread here and a thread there would add up), and the second of which is the one Amych mentioned about fragmented discussion and further divisions in the community. Which is a lot hard to quantify.

And, since the kerfuffle came up, I think the opposite applies...if you want to have a discussion about a book and somebody pops in with "Read that, hated it"...so? Ignore them. You don't have to respond. Edit them out of your personal universe and continue your discussion with whoever you were originally talking to. Had people done that, the kerfuffle wouldn't have happened.

Coming in late, but, no. If every time you try to have a discussion about a certain type of book, multiple people pop in with "Hated it, overrated, gross, monkeypants," then you start to think that maybe this is not a place to have a discussion about a certain type of book.

This isn't the time or place to discuss this issue, but let me just say: no. If there are >1 people who want to discuss the nuances of something as obscure as 12th-century Sanskrit love poetry, then they should by god discuss it.

I don't remember anyone in the Literary thread saying "Hated it, gross, overrated, THEREFORE STOP DISCUSSING IT RIGHT NOW." Ever. If people have a negative opinion, they express it. Unless we need a Literary thread where people must refrain from posting negative opinions.

Maybe it's a case of people having thin skins about a beloved book being dissed.

This is not a board on which people shout others down. It's just not. Despite Hec's strenuous protests and snark, people *will* natter about cats for 300+ posts. His statements of "Cats are gross, overrated, monkeypants," don't stop the discussion about how Flufferkins chases the dust motes.

And there's no need for that to happen in Literary, either. If it's happening, it's because you're* letting it happen.

*(By "you," I mean anyone who thinks that in-depth discussion is continually shut down, not one specific person.)

To be honest, I think the actual DISCUSSION of whatever book we choose could fit into Lit without disrupting the thread too much, However, the endless, "What about this book?" "What week do we start?" I would rather start with something newer." "What abput female authors for the list?""I think those two novels are too close in tone, let's do a non-fiction book in-between" "Should we list previous works or something?" "Does someone want to provide some background information before we start?" will drive people bonkers.

I'm a card carrying member of the anti-proliferation group/camp/lobby/whatever. Yes, I voted for the Minearverse thread and, I'm not gonna lie, it was for sentimental reasons. If Allyson sells her Bonnie and Clyde show tomorrow, I'm voting for an Allyson thread. I wasn't crazy about the WF Spoilers thread but I honestly can't remember how, or if, I voted on that one.

For me, my AP stance is based on two things. The first being the technical issues, which given our current home is less of an issue but could be an issue once more in the future though I don't know how much of an additional load a Book Club thread would be. It's not like anyone's going to be linking to it on the front page of Whedonesque. I hope.

The second is the community sprawl. We had a discussion fairly recently about threads have turned into subcommunities and what it means for the future of the Buffista Community as a whole. I'm not saying subcommunities are a bad thing but it's a thing.

For me, if this proposal had come to table because there was an attempt to have a Book Club discussion in thread and it failed, I'd be more inclined to say go for it. But, at this point, it's very much an unknown quantity and I feel a little like this is putting the cart before the horse.

Or it could mean you were just wrong.

Okay, wow.

And to think my primary participation in this discussion was to comment about differences in perception, and now I'm getting the big smackdown for it?

Whatev.

and the second of which is the one Amych mentioned about fragmented discussion and further divisions in the community. Which is a lot hard to quantify.

And this one I get really. It was how I felt about the Music thread. I was assured that it wouldn't mean music would only be discussed in that thread, just that people wanted a place to really get down to discussing music. I want a place to really get into discussing a particular book, any book, really. I'll read Spider Robinson if you guys tell me to. Literary hasn't been that place. I suppose it could be, but can we agree that it would change what the thread has been?