One of the things I love most about Fever Dreams & Strange Realities is that so many of these books beg to be talked about while you're reading them - they just hit different when you have someone else navigating the fever dream with you!

That said, these books aren't for everyone in the same way at the same time, and I don't want to organize community-wide readalongs that only a handful of people are interested in at that moment. So instead, I'm setting up a lightweight monthly matching system to help smaller groups find each other and self-organize around specific books.

Here's how it works (for now... I'll update the info here if I find ways to improve/streamline the system)

The Google Form Once a month, I'll share a Google Form. Besides your Pagebound username, I don't collect any personal information from you with this form!

The form includes the following questions: Your PB Username, Which book you're interested in being matched for, When you'd want to do it (this month, next month, or flexible), and Whether you'd be willing to help organize the readalong.

One Important Rule: One Submission Per Book If you're interested in more than one book, just submit the form again for each one. This keeps the data clean and makes sure each sign up reflects genuine interest rather than a casual maybe.

Signing up is a soft commitment - it means you'd like to join if the group comes together, but you're not locked in! Life happens, holds don't come through on time, schedules shift. That's okay! This system is designed with that flexibility in mind.

What Happens With Your Responses At the end of each month I'll go through the submissions and look for books that have at least a few people interested in a buddy read. At the beginning of the month, I'll make a post in the quest forum with the books that have hit the interest threshold and thread individual comments with each book so if you want to join that buddy read (whether or not you filled out the form) you can join!

From there, the group takes it over! You all can sort out pacing, check-in points, etc. If a book has strong interest, but no one has said they would volunteer to help organize it, I'll still post the book and flag that it needs a lead!

What Does It Mean To Help Organize A Buddy Read Until the tagging feature launches, I think the easiest way to check in with users right before the buddy read begins is to comment on one of their library updates with a reminder about the buddy read. Think of it as being the buddy read coordinator, not a book club host. If someone doesn't join in the buddy read, you don't to double ping them! This is intentionally a low-lift position with the goal of just making sure someone is holding the thread so it doesn't fizzle out before it begins.

My Book Didn't Get a Buddy Read Match If a book doesn't hit the threshold one month, those responses carry forward!! Sometimes it jut takes a few cycles for the right group to come together at the right time!

This is a Living System I expect this process will evolve once it's actually up and running. If something isn't working or you have ideas on how to improve it, please share them! I'll incorporate feedback and update this post if the process changes so it stays a reliable reference. Nothing here is set in stone.

If you have questions before filling out the form, drop them in the comments below!

LINK TO THE FIRST BUDDY READ MATCHING FORM BELOW Submit your interest by May 31st! I'll post the monthly matching post during the first week of June with a target start date of ~ Beginning of July (groups can finalize there own timelines once they are formed, I just wanted to give people time to put in library holds and such!)

LINK TO THE FORM HERE!