How to Start a Book Club 

Seven color books lined up together

It’s easier than you think — and we’re here to help! 

By Stephanie Brown

Bookworms of the world, rejoice! The popularity of book clubs has soared in recent years, with Gen Z and Millennials redefining what a book club can be. There are now silent book clubs, online book clubs, celebrity book clubs, book clubs dedicated to just about every literary genre you can imagine, and book clubs hosted by your local bookshop, library, bar, or café. Even late-night-TV hosts have gotten in on the book club renaissance — and they pick some truly fantastic reads!

Despite this explosion of bookish fun, you may feel like you’re on the outside looking in. Luckily, you don’t have to sit around waiting for a book club to find you. You can create your own! But how do you start a book club? We put together a handy guide to help you out.


First Things First: What Do You Want from Your New Book Club?

Before you start sending the invites, ask yourself what you want from your new book club. What are your hopes for the group? Are you interested in meeting people and fostering a community? Is your goal to dive deep into a particular topic or style of literature? Imagine your first get-together: Is it fun and lighthearted? Serious and thought-provoking? Are snacks involved (yes, always)? 

Daydream, free write, create a vision board — do whatever it takes to dial in the spirit of your soon-to-be book club. Understanding what you want from it will unlock everything else, from the folks who will join you to where you’ll meet and what books you’ll read. 

Find Your Community

Now that you know what you want, it’s time to start assembling your group. The ideal book club is about eight to 15 members — big enough to generate conversation even if a few members are absent but not so big that the discussion becomes unwieldy. 

How do you gather these folks? Start by inviting a few close friends to test the waters. You could also reach out to co-workers, family members, or neighbors to gauge interest. Think too about the social groups already in your life that could evolve to include a book club. Running club? Study buddies? So-bad-it’s-good movie night with friends? Why not add a book club to the mix!

To further expand your circle, ask friends who have joined to invite a friend of their own. You can post an invite in your local neighborhood groups on Reddit, Facebook, or Instagram, or connect with different literary communities on social media. You might also create a group on Meetup.com or newer meet-up apps like Geneva. If you’re partnering with an organization, library, or school, you can post on their social accounts or hang flyers. 

Decide Where You’ll Meet — and How Often

Picking your venue is important, and it can be tricky depending on the size of your club and how easy it is to gather together. Traditionally, book clubs were neighborhood friends and family who would take turns hosting. While this is certainly still the case, it’s far from your only option, especially in today’s book club boom. Book clubs now meet at restaurants, coffee shops, and bars. Online book clubs let you meet with anyone anywhere in the world, and if you’re a bookstore owner or a librarian starting a book club, you already have a perfect space. Get creative and think outside the box! Perhaps your location changes based on your book’s setting or you host a strolling book/talk combo at your local park.

After locking in your where, you’ll want to consider when and how often you’ll meet. Once a week is probably too frequent; once a year is surely not enough. The standard frequency is about once a month, but you see what works best for your group. Maybe you only meet once per season as a special event. Maybe your book club started at school, so you only meet during the academic year. Or perhaps you’re a group of teacher friends who are happiest meeting in the summertime. You can always adjust your schedule as your group’s needs change. 

Choose Your Book

Now the real fun begins: choosing a book for your book club! What are your club’s reading goals? Are you interested in a specific topic or overarching theme? If so, the internet is very much your friend. You can find themed book lists for book clubs, from book-to-movie adaptations to cookbook clubs where members read a cookbook and choose their favorite recipe to make and share. Or work through recommendation lists like The New York Times’s 100 Best Books of the 21st Century or the BBC’s 100 Books to Read Before You Die, or align your picks with a specific TV show or celebrity book club, such as Good Morning America’s Book Club or Reese Witherspoon’s or Oprah Winfrey’s book clubs.

If your selection process is less tied to theme, set guidelines for the kinds of books you’ll choose. Do you want to focus on a specific genre, like thrillers, historical fiction, or mystery and suspense? Perhaps you’re in the mood for true crime, memoir, or history? Do you want to read books by authors with certain identities or experiences? You might consider adopting a particular reading challenge, such as only reading books written by women, which was a popular book challenge choice recently.

Related: Join Celadon’s 2025 Reading Challenge! 

Regardless of your approach, recording your selections in a shared document or spreadsheet is a great way to keep everyone in the loop and, ahem, on the same page about what to read next. You’ll also want to lay down guidelines on how to challenge a book selection: Book clubs are friendly groups, but not every choice will be met with open arms. A peaceful book club is a happy book club.  

When the Reading Concludes, the Discussion Begins…

So you’ve assembled your group, laid down the rules to your selection process, and finished reading your very first book club book. Fantastic! What’s next? Gathering to discuss, of course!

This is where the intention you envisioned at the beginning comes into play. What does your ideal book club discussion sound like? Is it a deep dive into the inner workings of the book? Are you there to share your reflections and learn from one another’s perspectives? Or are you in it to see your friends and hang out? 

No matter where you land, you’ll want to make sure expectations are clear. Is someone in charge of leading the discussion and asking questions? How will you move through those questions? How will you wrangle the discussion? What other activities might you want to do at your book club gathering?

And remember again to think outside the box! Experiential book clubs are growing in popularity. Cookbook clubs are all about preparing new dishes and sharing food together. Maybe you want to start an art book club to jump-start your group’s creativity. You could launch a club where you read a book and watch the movie adaptation at the meeting (with snacks and popcorn, of course). In silent book clubs, the goal isn’t to discuss the book at all but simply to delight in the shared joy of reading silently with other book lovers in the same space. 

Last, but certainly not least, you’ll want to think about refreshments. If you’re meeting at a book club member’s house, will everyone bring food to share or will the host cook for everyone? Are you doing dinner, snacks, desserts, or coffee? Maybe you want to do book clubs at a different brunch spot every month or the same brewery. It’s best to check with your members to figure out what arrangement work best for everyone. 

Communication Is Key

Whether your group is big or small, it’s essential that you establish clear communication with your fellow book clubbers. For clubs that are small and casual, maybe just set up a simple group chat where you can choose books, make plans, and, of course, share book-related memes. You might also create an e-mail list or a private group on Facebook, WhatsApp, or Discord to organize your communication.

If you want to go all out, good news! Numerous apps and websites can facilitate the creation and organization of your book club. BookClubs helps you find a book club near you or facilitate your own through group message boards, digital bookshelves, and member management — perfect for virtual book clubs or larger groups. It even has book lists and discussion questions to help inspire your group! 

A Few Parting Thoughts

If You Build It…

Odds are, if you’re thinking about launching a book club, someone else in your orbit is already excited to join. Create the change you wish to see in the world!

And Remember to Enjoy the Read

No matter how big or small your new book club is, remember that things will always change. Book clubs come and go, and they are only as fun as you make them — so relax and enjoy the read. 


We hope our guide has inspired and empowered you to launch your own book club. There’s no better time than the present, so start today and turn the book club of your dreams into a reality! 

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