Can y'all believe that it's been two years since the FYA Book Club made the move from online to real booze life?! Seems like only yesterday that those very first meetings were held! And twenty-four book selections later, the FYA Book Club is now 81 cities strong -- HOLLA!
To commemorate this momentous occasion, I got all the book club leaders drunk to fill out a survey. And now y'all get to check out the results!
Book Club Membership
As previously mentioned, there are 81 (and counting!) FYA Book Clubs YAngelizing worldwide! Let's take a look at where they all are:
That's right -- THREE CONTINENTS, Y'ALL! Granted, it's only four countries. But FACTS IS FACTS.
And now for a closer look that makes the United States look like it's covered in chicken pox instead of bacterial spores:
Dizang, DC! They've got the largest book club (led by our very own Megan No H!), but San Francisco is close behind! Of course, we could never count out FYA HQ in Austin, aka home of Posh and Mandy C.! And yes, I'm totally trying to start some inter-club (and inter-FYAer) rivalries.
You also might be wondering, "What's up with all those zero member locations? Are you just trying to will those book clubs into existence?" Those are all active book clubs, but their answers hadn't been received in time for this post. And I'm a completist, so they stay.
Or maybe you've noticed, "Hey! There aren't 81 clubs!" Gee, hypothetical reader -- you sure are observant! (And a little snippy... ) These results don't include the brand new book clubs or the ones on hiatus. Here are all the locations currently waiting for more YAngelists!
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Albuquerque, NM |
Louisville, KY |
And continuing with my quest to foster a little friendly competition*, here are the membership numbers by state!
*Yeah, I know. Fear for my future children.
The full force of Texas (Forever!) is no match for California -- obvi the Texans need to call in reinforcements from Dillon. But what you can't see is that DC is holding its own in third place! As if we didn't already know from their author stalking exploits, but DC FYABC is seriously impressive.
Monthly Meetings
Now how about those meetings themselves? FYA Book Clubbers convene everywhere -- restaurants being the most common (because y'all know we love some tasty business), but also at bars, pubs, bookstores, and homes. Sometimes they even meet at bakeries and zoos! Though Pittsburgh FYABC has an aversion for coffee shops ("we need our alcohol") -- ILY PITTSBURGH.
So 43% of the book clubs are getting newcomers at their meetings. Which still accounts for a lot of clubs! But there are even more that aren't getting newbies on a regular basis. And I guess market saturation could be causing attendance numbers to plateau, but I'd like to think that there are YAngelists everywhere, and that there are more and more each day! It's just a matter of finding one other IRL, and the FYA Book Clubs are a great way to do that.
Field Trips
About 68% of book clubs meet for other events. That's so cussin' cool, y'all! Some of these, you may recognize from right here on FYA: movies, book signings, parties, charity races, and, of course, the DC-specialty author stalks.
But that ain't even the half of it, you guys. The Twin Cities have tried their hand at Barbie and SVH board games. Colorado Springs has been on a wine tasting, because of course. Toronto has had sleepovers in a beach town. NYC Weekend Edition has went on a pilgrimage that combines FYA's two greatest loves, a literary pub crawl (!!!). As for San Francisco: "Magic Mike booze-fueled bonanza". 'NUFF SAID.
Here's Another Survey!
Now that you know all about the FYA Book Club, it's time for a pop quiz! JK but not really JK -- we do have a survey for you, but it's super easy and it'll only take 1-5 minutes to complete. The length varies depending on your interest and awareness of the book clubs. (Boolean programming, y'all!) And for those of you in a city without a book club, there will be an option to sign up for one!
Book Club Content
Want the latest on what's happening In Da Club? The book club posts now have a permanent home on the front page! But no, they won't all feature photos of Milo Ventimiglia, so just look for them right above the FYA Store button.
And you can always find book club meeting deets (updated daily-ish!) and contact info under the hover menu up top:
See y'all at the next meeting!