#WritersRead: Twitter Book Club – TONIGHT!!!

Do you love talking about books?

Have you read Will Grayson Will Grayson by John Green (@realjohngreen) and David Levithan? Then you must show up TONIGHT for #WritersRead – A Twitter Book Club!

Time:
TONIGHT, Thursday, May 20 at 6:30 PST

Where:
Twitter. Use hashtag #writersread to join the conversation.

#WritersRead: A Twitter Book Club

Our inaugeral #WritersRead Twitter Book Club was a success! We had a great time discussing Maggie Stievater’s Shiver. Our next book will be…Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan!

Here’s how it works:

• Buy or borrow Will Grayson, Will Grayson.
• Read Will Grayson, Will Grayson.
• Show up on Twitter on Thursday, May 20 at 6:30 PM PST.
• Use the hashtag #writersread to join the conversation.

Some tips for reading:
Look for the techniques the author is using, and if they were put to good use or not. Think about what you admire or what you would do differently.

• Plot
• Characterization
• Dialogue
• Novel Structure
• Tone
• Setting

Writers Read: A Twitter Book Club – TONIGHT!!!

Do you love talking about books?

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

Have you read Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater? Then you must show up TONIGHT for Writers Read – A Twitter Book Club!

Time:
TONIGHT, Thursday, April 22 at 6:30 PST

Where:
Twitter. Use hashtag #writersread to join the conversation.

Writers Read: A Twitter Book Club

You voted to pick the first book we’ll read for the inaugural Writers Read Twitter Book Club meeting. And the winner is…Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater!

Here’s how it works:

• Buy or borrow Shiver.
• Read Shiver.
• Show up on Twitter on Thursday, April 22 at 6:30 PM PST.
• Use the hashtag #writersread to join the conversation.

Some tips for reading:

Look for the techniques the author is using, and if they were put to good use or not. Think about what you admire or what you would do differently.

• Plot
• Characterization
• Dialogue
• Novel Structure
• Tone
• Setting

Writers Read: A Twitter Book Club

When I started my MFA program at Spalding in 2008, I complained bitterly about having to write MORE papers. Having just completed my Master’s in English, I did not want to write another paper about a book from a feminist perspective or discuss the homosocial bonds in Chaucer as compared to Shakespeare. I wanted to WRITE my own novel. Still, Spalding asks us to read 8-10 books per semester, and write papers on what we discover about those works as writers.

Therein lies the difference. When you read as a writer, you are using a different skill set. You look for the techniques the author incorporated, and you notice if they were put to good use or not. You may also discover what is lacking, or rather what you would do differently. I’ve found those papers to be invaluable to my growth as a writer, as I discovered what matters to me as an author.*

To that end, I am going to offer up a book club that meets once per month via a Twitter discussion, plus ongoing discussion on my blog. The only thing I ask of participants? Try reading the book as a writer (even if you’ve read it before).

Want to help me decide on the first book? Take the poll below.

*Note: the intent is to find value in the books we read to take something away into our own works, not bash works you don’t like.