Things You'll Need:
- Party invites
- A group of friends
- A selected short story sent copied with invite
- Tea, wine and other beverages
- Additional poems and books for the party
- Decorative linens, teacups and saucers
- Finger sandwiches
- Fruit tray
- Desert Tray
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Step 1
Choose a date and time that will work well for a 2- to 3-hour party. Late afternoon or early evening is a nice time for a literary tea. Create a guest list of friends who might come, then write and send out party invitations. Make sure you describe the party as a literary tea where a short story will be read and discussed.
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Step 2
Choose a really good short story to be read by all the guests before the party. You can look for suggestions online, talk with your librarian or ask friends for author suggestions. Make enough copies of the short story and include one in each party invitation. On the party invite, suggest to your guests that they read the story before the party. At times, a book club can be overwhelming for some people. They don't feel they have the time to read an entire novel. Sending a copy of a short story is easy and quick to do. It's always fun to talk about a story you know your friends have read.
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Step 3
Prepare a table for food and beverages. Offer wine so guests can feel relaxed. Have tea and hot water available, too. Decorate the table with classic books and other good reads. Have copies of short poems scattered throughout the party area. Do as much pre-planning as possible, so that you will be available as the host to begin discussions of the story.
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Step 4
When your guests have had a chance to eat and get a drink, invite them to discuss aspects of the story. What did they like about it? What did they dislike about it? Were there any aspects of the story they could relate to? Could they identify with any of the characters? Did they like the way the story was resolved?
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Step 5
The most important part of the discussion is to keep it simple, relaxed and fun. The best book clubs or literary teas are ones where you feel you can contribute if you want to -- or not. You want your guests to appreciate the time together, not feel as though they didn't have the right answer to the questions. Offer desserts when the conversations are coming to an end. Encourage a guest to host the next literary tea party and choose a story of her own.
