Reviving Meaningful Book Discussions

As a solopreneur it can be a challenge to know what to try, invest in, or give up when you’re juggling every role from CEO to social media manager. Looking for how to plan a strategy that would allow me to grow Le Salon Literary Discussions while also maintaining my values, I spent the summer in a three-month mentoring program for small businesses. This provided the tools for me to revisit what I do here and where I want to go next.

I realized a number of things (teaser: more to come!), but the biggest thing I took away from my reflections is that the cornerstone of my business is about creating conversation with literature at the centre.

It became really clear that this goal is at odds with how I am spending the largest chunk of my time and energy: feeding Instagram.

My primary offering since Le Salon began in 2020 has been to facilitate intelligent, friendly discussions about great literature. But to sell tickets to those events I have to reach people and a social media presence is essential.

Now, just over four years in, Instagram has left me feeling like I never measure up, unable to reach people who are interested in more than a quick double tap, or have meaningful conversations. Sure, direct messages have their place, but the effort to film/photograph content, research pertinent and trending hashtags and audio, write pithy captions is a lot of time without a return—for my values or my bottom line. Spoiler alert (literary pun intended): the majority of those attending my monthly virtual book discissions are not from Instagram leads.

So, I’m shifting my efforts.

I know I am not saying anything you probably haven’t experienced yourself, whether from your skewed FYP or the frustration with the AI search. I’d be interested if, in the comments on this post, you shared your own experience/relationship with social media.

And if you’ve been part of bookstagram—the bookish corner of Instagram—you might also have noticed that book posts have lost the substance that made the community so helpful and supportive to begin with. Gone are thoughtful reviews and recommendations in favour of reels where a book is revealed in a three second clip or a flatlay that is pretty but doesn’t tell you anything about the plot. I enjoy an atheistically pleasing book photo as much as another bookworm, but I want to talk about the content found on the pages!

I am taking a gamble that you, too, are looking for a counter culture to the short reels and character limit captions.

Spending the Summer considering where I’ve been, what is(n’t) working, and where I dream of going, I am clearer on how I want to facilitate discussions on literature. You can still expect monthly virtual book discussions—they are absolutely cup-filling and fit into my values for Le Salon (check out what we’re reading this season!).

And you’re reading my newest venture: here, on my Further Reading blog, I am going to be writing thoughtful opinion pieces, longer form book reviews and recommendations, and informational posts that will deepen your reading experience. 

If you’re looking for a thoughtful community, I hope you’ll stick around and engage with my new content, add to the comments of others below posts, and perhaps learn something new.

Welcome to my next chapter!

Facilitating intelligent discussion in a soundbite world.