If your social life is poorly lacking during this quarantine season, this post is for you! Through virtual book clubs, it’s possible to stay in touch with your book-loving friends while still social distancing.

Whether you want to reunite the members of your IRL book club or you’re organizing a book club for the very first time, this list will prepare you for the world of virtual book clubs so you can enjoy good books, good company, and good conversation this season.

Step #1: Gather your bookworm besties.

If you are transitioning your in-person book club to virtual meetings, be sure to shoot everyone a message to gauge interest and see what your friends want from this virtual meeting time.

If you’re organizing a book club for the first time, consider what size you want the group to be. We recommend aiming for a group of six to ten readers to make sure the conversation is lively without being too difficult to manage in an online space.

Since you’re meeting online, this is the perfect opportunity to reunite long-distance bookworm besties that you wouldn’t be able to meet in person! One huge benefit of virtual clubs is that geography isn’t a huge consideration. (Although you will still need to consider time zone if meeting with people from different part of the world.)

Designate a host for each meeting to take charge of leading the conversation and organizing any logistics leading up to the meeting. Some clubs have one specific host, while others rotate host duties month-to-month.

Step #2: Find a “place” and time to meet.

There are tons of digital “places” to host book club meetings. To reduce the amount of technology hiccups, choose a video conferencing platform that everyone in your group feels comfortable learning to use—and stick with that same platform for each meeting. Some popular options include Zoom, Google Hangouts, Slack, Skype, and Facebook Messenger. Each platform offers its own advantages and disadvantages, so you’ll want to do your research. For example, Zoom is user-friendly and uses a gallery view that allows you to see all members at the same time. The downside is that the free version is limited to 40-minute meetings. (Helpful tip: Many schools provide their students with a paid Zoom Pro account, so if anyone in your club is a college student or has children in school, you might already have access to the paid account.)

After you find a place, you’ll just need to pick a time to meet! While old-fashioned email or texting can work, you might consider using doodle poll or google forms to cut down on the back and forth. Once everyone agrees on a time, you can send out a calendar invitation to help remind your members of the meeting. (Helpful tip: Google Calendar allows you to set a 15-minute reminder notification just before your club meets—the perfect amount of time to grab your book, pour a glass of wine, and get comfy in your seat!)

Step #3: Pick a book.

Of course, it wouldn’t be book club without a book selection! You’ll want to chat with your book club members to establish some ground rules about book club picks. For example, will your book club members rotate who chooses books to read? Or will everyone vote on upcoming books?

You’ll also want to decide as a group what sort of books are “book club worthy.” Is any book acceptable or will you narrow your choices? Are people open to series titles, or do your book club members want standalone books? You may also want to establish a maximum length for book club picks.

If your club wants more direction in book choices, you can establish a specific genre to read each season, such as memoirs in fall, classics in winter, romance in spring, and contemporary fiction in the summer. Some book clubs like to choose ideas from yearly book challenge lists such as a diverse spines challenge or a Victorian era challenge. Another option is to match book choices to a theme. Maybe everyone wants to explore American history or class struggles or inspiring female protagonists through a variety of genres one year.

Accessibility is another factor to consider. Decide if you want to choose only books that are available in paperback, audiobook, or eBook, depending on your members’ needs and preferences.

Step #4: Plan a flexible agenda.

For those who want a little structure to this social time, consider outlining an adaptable agenda. You’ll probably want to plan time for a greeting and check in, sharing impressions of the book, exploring discussion questions, and chatting over snacks or drinks. It’s a good idea to keep this agenda flexible so there’s room for natural conversation and socializing.

If you have a particularly loquacious group of book lovers, you might not need a ton of preparation for the book discussion. All the same, it’s still a good idea to pick out a couple favorite quotes from the current book and a few open-ended questions in case there is a lull in the conversation. If you preplan discussion questions, consider the atmosphere of your club. Will your group appreciate dense questions about theme and structure? (If so, go for it!) If not, consider more lighthearted questions like “which actors/actresses would you cast in a film adaption?” or “what character did you relate to most?”

Step #5: Create or continue book club traditions.

If you’re in the process of transitioning your in-person book club to an online space, don’t forget about your old traditions! Get creative and see if there’s a way to continue your old book club routines. For example, if you used to make literary-themed cocktails together, encourage people to continue this happy hour tradition from their individual kitchens as you meet over Skype. Or, if your group had book-themed trivia nights, use the Zoom poll feature to challenge members in this new virtual space.

If you’re gathering a book club together for the first time, think about establishing routines and traditions, even in this virtual space. Maybe you want to chat during tea time with a mug in hand, use virtual Zoom backgrounds based on the current read, host an annual book party where members dress up as a favorite character, or have a book-to-movie Netflix Party night. The important thing it to have fun with these traditions!

Step #6: Enjoy the book club meeting!

Now that you’ve planned and prepared for your book club meeting, it’s finally time to enjoy meeting with your fellow bookworms!

While you’re chatting with others, it’s best practice to mute yourself when not talking (especially if your kid is playing Legos or watching TV in the background!). Wearing headphones or earbuds can help cut down outside noise if your household is a particularly noisy one. (Helpful tip: If you are video calling from a phone or laptop, you’ll want to keep a charger nearby. Video conferencing can drain your battery fairly quickly.)

During the meeting, be sure to let the conversation wander some; people join book clubs all the time for the social atmosphere alone. Most of all, enjoy the good company of friends discussing good books!