So, I’m turning 50 next week. I can’t say I’m excited about it, but it does have me waxing nostalgic.

Which brings me to book fairs. Remember those? The one day out of the school year when the library you knew was transformed into a different kind of wonderland. That familiar and quiet place became a bustling maze of aisles and endcaps. And the anticipation! The was no longer day in the school year than book fair day…

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Time is precious, but the rows of haphazardly organized titles are endless. Soon Miss Manning will issue the ten minute warning. Panic flows mercurial. You bulldoze your final selections to the cashier line. Prayers and bargains hang from your lips: please let me make it in time, and I promise I’ll pay attention in math. The line inches forward, and your gaze crosses exotic treasures: the bins of erasers that are singly unique in the universe; baskets of pointers you could use to point at stuff in your room at home (no need to get Miss Manning’s permission to use the one back in the classroom); an array of writing instruments and flashy notebooks that surely hold the exact combination of atoms that will unlock your own writing. For a moment you flirt with the idea of just piling it on, letting the cashier ring it all up. Somehow you’ll have the money to cover the bill – the Universe wouldn’t let you suffer such an indignity in front of your classmates – but your frenetic mind can’t run the numbers right now.

You blink. Somehow, your purchase is complete. Now you stand by the library doors, showing your books to the others as your mind projects to being at home, in your room, on your bed, surrounded by new tomes of science fiction, fantasy, historical fiction, espionage thrillers, all the wonderful and tropey things you love to read. Impatience scratches at the underside of your skin, and you look back to the library. Some of the class are still in line to pay. A few are still searching, doomed to spend eternity wandering the miasma of choice. The fools!

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I miss this anticipation. This comradery over books and reading. I would love to froth over something like I pined for these book fairs. Feed that rabid longing to bring home new worlds and fantastic escapes that made the day full of have-to-dos bearable.

I’m turning 50 next week, and you know what? I want a damned book fair! With drinks and snacks this time!

And I have a plan to get it. If you’re like me – if you miss your school book fairs – you can play a part in regaining that fervor and excitement!

Next Wednesday (March 1) is my birthday. My plan is to hit my favorite bookstore that day. I will start with a fixed budget, set a timer on my phone, and commit to get through browsing and checkout before the timer expires. When I’m done, I’ll sidle up with other book fair lovers to compare titles and covers.

Which is where you come in, dear reader. If you are willing to participate, here’s what you can do…

The week of March 1, hit your favorite bookseller. Could be a mom & pop shop, a brick & mortar retail chain, or an online store. Set a budget, set a timer, and go! After you check out, share a photo of your beautiful face and your purchase! Share it on twitter, Facebook, or Instagram, or leave a comment on this blog post. Include a short blurb about why you picked the books you did so everyone can be jealous! Oh, and please include the #JimWritesBookFair hashtag so I can find the social posts easily.

Oh, and while no one is keeping score, BONUS POINTS for purchasing a title by a indie author.

So what do you say? Are you up for a distributed, week-long, social book fair? Know someone else who might be, too? Share this post and get them involved!