September Invite: "Read Like a Writer" Book Club
Discussion Qs for ORBITAL, our next book club pick
Hello, Protagonists! In this post, you’ll find:
📚 Your invitation + discussion questions for Orbital
🗓️ Book Club schedule for the rest of 2025
💛 RSVP & Zoom link (below the paywall)
“Read Like a Writer” Book Club is for our community members who want to dive even deeper into how great books work. Come nerd out with us! 🤓
📚 You’re Invited: Orbital
Whether you’re a curious reader or a fellow writer, we’d love to have you join us. No need to be “an expert”—just bring your thoughts and your love of books.
✨ Introverts welcome: Cameras on or off. Your presence is enough.
Our next Book Club pick is:
Orbital by Samantha Harvey
Orbital, the 2024 Booker Prize winner, follows one day in the lives of six international astronauts on one of the final space station missions, capturing their routines, bonds, and glimpses of life back on Earth. This very short novel (novella?) is a contemplative elegy to our planet and the fragile beauty of the environment seen from orbit.
Meeting Date:
Sunday, September 21, 2025
8pm ET / 5pm PT
Zoom link below
💬 During the book discussion, we’ll chat about:
The novel takes place over a single day—why do you think the author chose such a compressed time frame? How does that shape the reading experience?
How does the rotation between astronauts’ POVs affect pacing and tension? Did you feel pulled closer to some characters than others?
The book is slim in page count but wide in scope. What techniques does the author use to make a short novel feel “epic”?
How does the lack of a traditional plot arc (conflict → climax → resolution) influence your reading experience? Would you still call it a story?
Did you feel the characters were individuals or more like archetypes representing humanity? Does that choice matter for the book’s goals?
💬 During the “behind the scenes of writing” portion, we will talk about:
Editor-author relationships
I recently interviewed my editor, and I know you had some follow-up questions. So have a listen (or watch) this episode:
Then come to our meeting with anything you want to ask me about editors at Big 5 publishers (I’ve been published by four of the five—Simon & Schuster, Penguin Random House, HarperCollins, and Macmillan), so I’ll do the best I can to offer insights based on my experience.
I think this is going to be a wonderful conversation!
📅 Book Club Picks for the Rest of 2025
In case you missed it, here’s what we’ll be reading next:
RSVP & Zoom Link
To protect the privacy of our discussion space and prevent Zoom-bombing, the RSVP and Zoom link are posted below the paywall.
If you’d like to join us in the Book Club, you can upgrade to a paid membership here:
Or refer friends to receive complimentary months:
1 referral = 1 month free
2 referrals = 3 months free
3 referrals = 1 year free
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