LotR Reading Club

[The Saucepan Man]

While flexibility is key, I think that we should devote at least a week to each chapter, whatever the length of the chapter. Although the chapters themselves will not take long to read, the process of reviewing the comments made by others, posting your own and then responding to subsequent posts where necessary will take up quite a bit of time, especially with real life to contend with too. Also, if we all post our thoughts within a day or so of reading and then move on to the next chapter, it will be difficult to get a discussion going on any one chapter (in the sense of responding to and developing issues raised by others). And personally I would prefer to concentrate on one chapter at a time rather than be flitting between multiple chapter discussions (again given time constraints imposed in the real world).

Mister U, I take your point about the length of time that this will take. You are quite right that the book was not meant to be read at such a slow pace. But I don't see that this necessarily needs to be a problem. We have all read the book at least once before (and most have read it many times before), so we have a good idea of where each chapter falls in the general scheme of things. In addition, there is nothing to stop people reading ahead if they want to and then going back to re-read the specific chapter coming up for discussion.

Maybe its just because I am someone who takes a long time to formulate posts of any length and substance, but I do think that we will get a better discussion going if we concentrate on each chapter individually and allow everyone time to collect their thoughts and react to what others are posting. That does not preclude flexibility, but an underlying structure of one week per chapter (and longer for the longer chapters) seems good to me. There will of course be some overlap in any event as the discussion on previous chapters continues, but this shouldn't be allowed to constrain the development of the discussion on the current chapter.

As for the idea of "blocks", I would again prefer to stick to individual chapters, although I am sure that ideas will carry across from one thread to the next as recurring themes and ideas developed from one chapter to the next come under discussion.

Finally, I was quite enthusiastic about sticky threads when the idea was first raised, but I can see the problems. Still, it would be quite nice to have the option of putting the threads into chapter order. Is there any way that this can be done while still having the option to have the chapter currently under discussion at the top?

[mark12_30]

Saucie, Yes. You can sort on the header called "Thread"--It's yellow; it's a link-- at the top in a forum (any forum or subforum.) You can sort in Ascending or Descending order.

All those headings are links; so you can (for instance) find the thread with the most replies, or the most views; or the least... etc. Usually the lists are linmited by the posts for thelast week unless you go to the bottom and edit your options.

[The Saucepan Man]

But that won't necessarily put them into chapter order because the latest post won't necessarily be on the latest chapter discussed. Is there any way to create a new column for the chapter numbers which could then be clicked on to order them (ascending or descending)?

[Nurumaiel]

Here I come running in, hoping I'm not too late! Why didn't I notice this before? Besides the enjoyment and the opportunity to read LotR again, I'll also be able to do at the same time the character notes I promised Helen at the beginning of Friends of Nimrodel. Do you remember?

I will be immensely grateful and relieved if I am assured I am not too late to become a part of the 'club.' *little bow*

[mark12_30]

Nuru-- Yes, I do. Good thought! And I'm sure you are not too late.

[Lhundulinwen]

Sounds like a lot of fun, and a great way for all Downers to come together! Personally, I think it would be best to keep most things fairly flexible. I do agree that there should be a little order to the chaos though. Also, here is my idea (humble though it is)- Whoever starts the VERY first chapter, should include like a mssion statement type thing. (I hope I am making sense here) Ex.-

1. This is NOT a 'club'. It is open to everyone on the Downs.
2. We will shoot for ____ chapters a week, but feel free to go at own pace.
Etc, etc. Hope I didn't just sound like an executive or a dork.

Oh, and will someone tell me when the start date might be? I will be gone the next 6 weeks, and am not sure how often I'll be able to get on the Downs, and I would like to start with everyone else. Thank you!

[Fordim Hedgethistle]

Just to bring everyone up to date on what's been happening in PMs between Esty (who mods the book forum) and myself. . .

I have given Esty a first and very rough draft of a sticky that will go at the top of the threads list for the forum, in which the purpose of the forum is explained and any and all who wish to are invited to join in the conversation.

I will also be writing up and sending along to her a first post/intro thingee for the Prologue, with which we shall begin the first thread for discussion. I hope to have this available by Monday night, which means we might very well be able to get the ball rolling by, well, early next week (so everyone get out there and read the Prologue!) I will do my best to 'do' what people have been suggesting in that intro post, but if there are comments on the format of it, then pass those along so that future first-posters will be able to craft more useful intros.

I'm hoping that the mods are paying attention to the ideas/concerns about naming the threads for ease of sorting! These are the kinds of really important details that I never seem able to think of.

As to getting the word out -- when the forum officially opens for business, I will start a thread in each of the open forums (Books, Movies, Novices, Quiz
Room etc) to announce its arrival. If anyone can think of other ways to advertise the club, please go ahead and do so (anyone want to volunteer to PM every user????? ) As has been said so many times in this thread already, the key to success with this is going to be getting as many people as possible to participate.

One thing I'm not at all sure about right now is how we are going to bo about signing people up for those first posts to each thread. I hope that I am not earning her wrath by saying this in open forum without first doing so by PM, but I rather suspect that people interested in signing on for the intro post to a specific chapter should contact Esty -- and I getting this right, oh great and mighty Mod of the Books???

(Please, nobody contact her yet -- not until she's confirmed that I have gotten this right.)

[mark12_30]

(so everyone get out there and read the Prologue!)

GLEE!! GLEEE!!! Just in time for my bus ride home!!!!! Wahooooo!

[Maédhros]

Originally Posted by Fordim Hedgethistle

I have given Esty a first and very rough draft of a sticky that will go at the top of the threads list for the forum, in which the purpose of the forum is explained and any and all who wish to are invited to join in the conversation.

I will also be writing up and sending along to her a first post/intro thingee for the Prologue, with which we shall begin the first thread for discussion. I hope to have this available by Monday night, which means we might very well be able to get the ball rolling by, well, early next week (so everyone get out there and read the Prologue!) I will do my best to 'do' what people have been suggesting in that intro post, but if there are comments on the format of it, then pass those along so that future first-posters will be able to craft more useful intros.

I'm hoping that the mods are paying attention to the ideas/concerns about naming the threads for ease of sorting! These are the kinds of really important details that I never seem able to think of.

One thing I'm not at all sure about right now is how we are going to go about signing people up for those first posts to each thread. I hope that I am not earning her wrath by saying this in open forum without first doing so by PM, but I rather suspect that people interested in signing on for the intro post to a specific chapter should contact Esty -- and I getting this right, oh great and mighty Mod of the Books???

(Please, nobody contact her yet -- not until she's confirmed that I have gotten this right.)

Unless I'm terribly mistaken, this sounds an awful lot like the way the other Tolkien discussion I had mentioned when people get assigned to do intros into each chapter Mr. UnderHill. Where will I know for sure what the format is going to be.

[mark12_30]

It's already there, Saucie. Go to the Forum-- for instance, "Books". Check out all these links -- these headings all along the top, in yellow font. You can sort on any of them. They are stretched across the top of the frame, like a menu.


Thread / Thread Starter
Rating
Last Post
Replies
Views



The threads have different headings; these are by Forum and Sub-Forum.

[Fordim Hedgethistle]

Nuru's post puts me in mind of something that Esty and I have been PM-ing about -- this 'club' is NOT meant to, nor will it ever be exclusive or closed. 'New' people can come and go as they like: 'keeping up' with the new threads as they come on for new chapter(s), or going 'back' and reviewing and adding to the discussion of earlier chapters.

In everything we do with our brand-spanking-new Sub-Forum (I am SO excited we have our own -- all hail the great and benevolent Barrow Wight!) we need to make sure that its openness is crystal clear to all and sundry.

[Kransha]

Speaking of crystal clear openness, perhaps we should just clear-itize a few simple things. For the sake of others, newcomers, willing leaners, and myself, who has already lagged behind the last half a page of this vivacious discussion, here is a questionnaire directed Fordim and any others who think they know the answers, just for the sake of pure, untainted clarity.

1) What is the level of organization for these 'chunky' discussions? Will we have already planned what level of time is to be put into each tier of chapter discussion. I know too much planning will water down the enjoyment, but how will the levels be kept track of? Begin and end? I realize that no discussion may ever entirely end, but how will we go about the process?

2) What sort of things will be discussed? Just very general stuff, themes, language, and the like? Will any discussions be a bit more thematic than others? More specific, or focused, perhaps?

3) What members have we currently? As this is not 'exclusive' I suppose there really is no 'club' merely members who wish to try their hand. Does this mean that anyone can openly discuss something, make a new point, or is there an appointed amount of folks who will reign over each of the chapter levels?

That's all I can concoct for now. Must...compose...thoughts...adequately...

[Fordim Hedgethistle]

1) What is the level of organization for these 'chunky' discussions? Will we have already planned what level of time is to be put into each tier of chapter discussion. I know too much planning will water down the enjoyment, but how will the levels be kept track of? Begin and end? I realize that no discussion may ever entirely end, but how will we go about the process?

It's looking more and more like there will be a new thread added by a mod for each chapter on a more or less weekly basis -- the ambiguity here comes from the proposal to speed up the pace or slow it down depending on how the discussion is going. Those who wish to post to the new thread can go ahead, those who wish to continue with the older threads may do so, those who wish to do both -- more power to them!

So, yes, this means that this forum will be running for more than a year before we've got through the whole book, but I don't think anyone is proposing that you have to read the book that slowly -- I myself will read it chapter by chapter as we go, but others may wish simply to review from time to time.

2) What sort of things will be discussed? Just very general stuff, themes, language, and the like? Will any discussions be a bit more thematic than others? More specific, or focused, perhaps?

Again, it would appear as though we are moving toward a very open forum for discussion. I am certainly not going to pose formal questions each week (egads -- can you imagine the workload?) and none of the mods have yet undertaken to do so either. I rather suspect that it will work out that somebody will post something, and somebody else will respond, etc etc. As we get further into it, there will be ideas floating around already that we can bring to bear on the new chapter.

3) What members have we currently? As this is not 'exclusive' I suppose there really is no 'club' merely members who wish to try their hand. Does this mean that anyone can openly discuss something, make a new point, or is there an appointed amount of folks who will reign over each of the chapter levels?

Anyone and everyone at the Downs is automatically a member of the club. They can post once or every day for the duration of the discussion (yes, I am looking at you Saucepan).

Hope this clarifies where I think things currently stand.

[Joy]

I am all for this. There used to be one of these at another board that I am on. I really enjoyed it and would love to do it again here.

[mark12_30]

The Forward AND the Prolog? I read the foreword today and it's got lots of canon vs reader type stuff.







Edit: how does one spell fore-word, anyway? ...

[Gorwingel]

Gosh this sounds cool!
I am amazed that this has all popped up over just a few days!
I will most definitely be taking part just because when you have discussions about written works with others, they usually notice things that sometimes you don't.

It may be a little hard for me to keep up because of all that is going on this summer, and the fact that I will be going to college in the fall (because this does look like it will take awhile).

But I will most definitely give it a shot

This seems like a great way to introduce many of the new "downers" to the book forum just because like others have said we all have the books in common, we have all read the books, and LOTR is also the most understandable of all the works of Tolkien (well that's in my personal opinion).

I look forward to learning many new things about one of my favorite works of literature

[Kath]

Wow this thread is confusing! I had to read the whole thing to find out ifyhis was the "club" or just discussion about it.
But it does look very cool so I'm just here to congratulate whoever had the idea and to beg to be allowed to join in.

[Feanor of the Peredhil]

Hey, I'm in too. This sounds fun.

What about... doing individual threads for each chapter, starting with the foreward and prologue. Week One, we read the foreward and prologue and BEGIN the discussion in its own thread. Week Two, as the foreward and prologue discussion progresses, we read The Long Expected Party and discuss it in its own new thread. Week Three, we continue on with our reading, and discussions still go on. That way there is a basic schedule to follow, so you don't get thrown off track (a chapter a week), but discussions aren't limited by time constraints. You can tell which chapter we are currently on, because it is the latest chapter that currently has its own thread. Any newcomers can start at the beginning and work their way up to the most current chapter, while still being involved in active discussions about each chapter they read, as they read it. If you miss a chapter (alas, real life can throw off a lot of things), you can catch yourself up and then progress to the current conversation.

Fea

Edit: seems I hit "post reply" before I noticed pages 2 and 3. That, of course, means that I just rephrased a few of the prior posts. Sorry about that...

[Bombadil]

That seems like a good idea, but do you mean to say start with the Prologue?

[Mister Underhill]

That's pretty much the plan, Feanor, though we're actually going to start with the foreword. In fact, the first discussion thread is likely to go up within a day or two, so all interested in joining the read-along can get cracking on the foreword now! When the Chapter-by-Chapter forum officially opens for business, we'll post an announcement in all other fora.

[mark12_30]

.....Er...... ...The Foreword AND the Prologue? (I hope)

Or just the Foreword?
if so, too late...