Wild Geese Bookshop in Franklin will host a series of activities and events Wednesday through Saturday as part of its Summer Camp for Grown-Ups program.
DAILY JOURNAL FILE PHOTO
For kids, summer camp comes in all kinds of themes, shapes and sizes.
Sports camps, art camps, STEM camps, nature camps — an abundance of opportunities exist for young people to spend a week or two exploring new worlds and having new experiences.
Now, big kids can get the same kind of opportunity, only in book form.
Wild Geese Bookshop has put together a Summer Camp for Grown-Ups, organizing four days packed with author visits, writing workshops and special events.
“I loved the idea of adults being able to set aside a few days in the summer to do something fun and restorative,” said Tiffany Phillips, owner of Wild Geese.
The a la carte offerings include visits by bestselling authors such as David Bell, Katherine Center, Meg and Andrew Shaffer, and Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray. People can try out their own writing skills during A Page You’re Proud Of, or go roller skating while swapping books.
With a variety of activities planned, the hope is that people find something that fits them and gives them a chance to meet other book lovers in the area.
“We’ve tried to spread it out. There’s a little bit of something for everyone’s interests. And we’ll have some gathering time to reach other readers,” Phillips said. “I think it’s hard for people to meet friends as adults, so that will be good.”
The idea for Summer Camp for Grown-Ups was born out of a need to fill one of the bleakest times of year for retailers. In Phillips’ experience, mid-July tended to be a dead period for shops such as hers.
Author Katherine Center will speak about her new book “Hello Stranger” and interact with readers during an event Wednesday at the Historic Artcraft Theatre. Her appearance is part of Summer Camp for Grown-Ups, a literary-centric series of activities planned this week by Wild Geese Bookshop.
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Author Katherine Center will speak about her new book “Hello Stranger” and interact with readers during an event Wednesday at the Historic Artcraft Theatre. Her appearance is part of Summer Camp for Grown-Ups, a literary-centric series of activities planned this week by Wild Geese Bookshop.
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Wild Geese Bookshop in Franklin will host a series of activities and events Wednesday through Saturday as part of its Summer Camp for Grown-Ups program.
DAILY JOURNAL FILE PHOTO
Author David Bell will speak about his new book “Try Not to Breathe” and interact with readers during a luncheon Thursday at the Garment Factory. His appearance is part of Summer Camp for Grown-Ups, a literary-centric series of activities planned this week by Wild Geese Bookshop.
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Author David Bell will speak about his new book “Try Not to Breathe” and interact with readers during a luncheon Thursday at the Garment Factory. His appearance is part of Summer Camp for Grown-Ups, a literary-centric series of activities planned this week by Wild Geese Bookshop.
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“The Wishing Game” by Meg Shaffer. Shaffer will speak about her novel during a special event on Saturday at First Presbyterian Church in Franklin. Her appearance is part of Summer Camp for Grown-Ups, a literary-centric series of activities planned this week by Wild Geese Bookshop.
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“Look Mom I’m a Poet (And So Is My Cat)” by Andrew Shaffer. Shaffer will speak about his book of poetry during a special event on Saturday at First Presbyterian Church in Franklin. His appearance is part of Summer Camp for Grown-Ups, a literary-centric series of activities planned this week by Wild Geese Bookshop.
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Authors Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray will speak about their new book “The First Ladies” a special event Saturday at the Johnson County Museum of History. Their appearance is part of Summer Camp for Grown-Ups, a literary-centric series of activities planned this week by Wild Geese Bookshop.
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Authors Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray will speak about their new book “The First Ladies” a special event Saturday at the Johnson County Museum of History. Their appearance is part of Summer Camp for Grown-Ups, a literary-centric series of activities planned this week by Wild Geese Bookshop.
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Going up against the county fair didn’t help, she said.
“The fair week is typically very slow for retail. And I understand; the fair takes priority for a lot of reasons. But we were trying to think about ways to bring literary tourism to Franklin, and ways to create business as well during a very slow season,” she said.
So Phillips decided to create her own event to get people excited. She had done something similar in February with a three-day readers’ retreat. By lumping activities together, participants could pick what appeals best to them, without having to commit to everything being offered.
Summer Camp for Grown-Ups extends the idea even further. Phillips has invited a diverse group of writers to visit the county, speak about their books and meet their fans.
The visits kick off with Center, whose joyful stories showcase the struggles we all go through, and the resilience in overcoming them. She has been called the “reigning queen of comfort reads,” and her most recent release, “Hello Stranger,” carries on that legacy.
“Her romance novels are feel-good, and they’ve been such a balm for our readers,” Phillips said.
For readers who can’t get enough thrills, Bell will take part in a three-course luncheon to talk about crafting shocking tales. His psychological thrillers include bestsellers such as “Kill All Your Darlings,” “The Girl in the Woods” and his most recent release, “Try Not to Breathe.”
“His books do really well, and if people just like thrillers, he’s a good one,” Phillips said.
Saturday is the most jam-packed day of authors, with a quadruple-header planned in two separate sessions. The first features novelist Meg Shaffer and humorist Andrew Shaffer. Meg Shaffer will discuss her debut novel, “The Wishing Game,” while Andrew Shaffer will talk about his book of poetry, “Look Mom I’m a Poet (And So Is My Cat).”
Later that evening, people are invited to the Johnson County Museum of History for a session with Benedict and Murray. The two teamed up to co-write a new historical novel, “The First Ladies,” which tells the story of First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt and civil rights activist Mary McLeod Bethune. Through their unlikely friendship, they changed the world.
Participants can learn about the process of writing the novel, take part in a Q&A session and a book signing.
“All of the events are within the downtown area, so they’re walkable,” Phillips said.
While author visits make up the bulk of Summer Camp for Grown-Ups, Phillips has lined up other fun activities for book-and-writing lovers.
The Roll & Read Skating and Book Swap lets people come for plenty of skating, book swapping and exploring new titles.
“The idea was to something air conditioned, but that would be fun for adults,” Phillips said.
A Page You’re Proud Of is a quiet writing session at Coffeehouse Five aimed at cultivating creativity and giving people space to make headway on their own writing. Wild Geese Bookshop bookseller and writer Lyndsie Manusos will be available to guide people and answer questions they may have.
“People can set aside some time in the day where they can sit, have a cup of coffee, and write something,” Phillips said.
IF YOU GO
Summer Camp for Grown-Ups
What: A multi-day event organized by Wild Geese Bookshop featuring author visits, reading events and other special activities. People can take part in as many or as few of the activities as they want.
When: Wednesday through Saturday
Schedule
An Evening with Katherine Center — 7 p.m. Wednesday, the Historic Artcraft Theatre, 57 N. Main St., Franklin, $35
A Luncheon with David Bell — noon Thursday, Garment Factory Events, 101 E. Wayne St., Franklin, $35
Roll & Read Skating and Book Swap — 6-8:30 p.m. Thursday, Franklin Skate Club, 2680 N. Morton St., $15
A Page You’re Proud Of — 2-4 p.m. Friday, Coffeehouse Five, 41 W. Monroe St., Franklin, free, though people are encouraged to purchase an item from the coffee shop while you write
Author Event with Meg Shaffer and Andrew Shaffer — noon Saturday, First Presbyterian Church, 100 E. Madison St., Franklin, from $5
Author Event with Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray — 6:30 p.m. Saturday, Johnson County Museum of History, 135 N. Main St., Franklin, $35
Information and tickets: wildgeesebookshop.com/calendar
