Play Book Tag discussion
2024 Activities and Challenges
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Books with Friends - Play and Scoring
I also keep track of which of my tbr books fit the tag by starting my own shelf with that tag. I’ll make sure only to do this with books that are well past the five book limit - I never would have thought of this if you hadn’t mentioned in Nancy!
Anita wrote: "Hannah wrote: "To get the incremental individual points each month, you have to complete a book towards the team goal. I assume that means you need to read a book for at least one of the letters to..."Thank you for clarifying this - it was the bit you put in bold that I wasn't sure on.
Theresa wrote: "Thanks, Anita. I know there will still be a learning curve the first month, but it looks like it will be smoother."People always ask great questions, and that does help a lot in terms of refining the rules so we can get off to a better start. It's hard to think of everything though, and I appreciate what members bring to the table.
Attention to the playersTechnically, this game will start on December 22nd. I will be deleting locking this thread and re-posting the rules along with tracking guidelines.
Please re-read the rules. I have adjusted and may continue to adjust some of the rules and point tallies based on input, and so it would be good if everyone revisits one final time before playing!
On this pointEach month that an individual participates by completing a book toward their team goal (reads a book that fits the challenge) will earn individual points - 2 points in month 1, 4 points in month 2, 6 points in month 3, 8 points in month 4, and continuing in that vein at 2 incremental points per month. Months must be sequential, or the scoring starts over with 2 points.
I wondered if there can be a discretionary waiver by the team, for extraordinary circumstances. My concern is that someone ends up in the hospital, has serious family or work issues, or even goes on a long trip without reliable internet access. If this happens in November and they can't participate that month, they lose all the points for the year. I'm not sure if it makes more sense for the team to have 1 or 2 waivers for the year or if it would be the Mods. I understand that the team goal wouldn't be impacted as long as other members can pick up the slack. I don't foresee this being an issue, but it's exactly the things we don't foresee that could cause hard feelings by the individual impacted and possibly the team.
Robin P wrote: "On this pointEach month that an individual participates by completing a book toward their team goal (reads a book that fits the challenge) will earn individual points - 2 points in month 1, 4 poi..."
So, I don't think I explained this perfectly and will fix my explanation. You will not lose all your points if you miss a month. Though I see why you read it that way, and I will fix it to be more clear.
Let's say you read for January, February, March, April and then had to skip May, but read again for June and July.
You would earn 2+4+6+8+0+2+4 = 26 pts
whereas someone who read all of those months in a row would earn:
2+4+6+8+10+12+14 = 56 pts
This is completely for individuals only and won't impact team scoring in any way.
Robin P wrote: "On this pointEach month that an individual participates by completing a book toward their team goal (reads a book that fits the challenge) will earn individual points - 2 points in month 1, 4 poi..."
I had the same concerns before, because we're all getting up there in age. We want to be flexible and supportive of our teammates. It's a big deduction for losing one month in the middle - or a big bonus for continuity. Do you think anyone would find it so discouraging or unfair that they'd decide not to come back afterward? We all know the rule in advance, so it won't be a surprise (or a personal affront).
It definitely sends the message... don't stop now!
Realistically, how many of us have gone a whole month without reading a book, even when we were sick or traveling? (If I couldn't read for a month, points would be the last thing I'd be thinking about.)
Sorry if this was already aske...Anita, I trust that A, An, and The are acceptable for the Letters A and T respectively. Correct?
NancyJ wrote: "Sorry if this was already aske...Anita, I trust that A, An, and The are acceptable for the Letters A and T respectively. Correct?"
Nancy - here from Paragraph 2 of the General Rules:
Each month the tag is announced. Each team must "spell" the tag (or the first word of the tag if the tag name is composed of two words) using either the first letter of the title (Excluding leading articles: A, An, The), or the first initial of the author's last name. The team decides among themselves who will read for which letters. Bonus points awarded for reading a book that also fits the tag. (Emphasis Added)
Oops - sounds a bit lawyerly - I've been writing emails with copied and emphasized provisions all morning! Anyway - that I think answers your question?
I didn't see this asked earlier. Some books have the series name in parentheses at the end of the title.I'm assuming those words wouldn't count, but wanted to check in.
Sue wrote: "I didn't see this asked earlier. Some books have the series name in parentheses at the end of the title.I'm assuming those words wouldn't count, but wanted to check in."
Since they are not the first word in a title, I assumed not - those are subtitles - like the long wordy ones in NF usually after a semi-colon.
Theresa wrote: "NancyJ wrote: "Sorry if this was already aske...Anita, I trust that A, An, and The are acceptable for the Letters A and T respectively. Correct?"
Nancy - here from Paragraph 2 of the General Rul..."
Just to confirm what Theresa is saying. Treat articles like they don't exist for the purposes of this game. A, An, The are not to be used to spell words that start with A or T.
Sue wrote: "I didn't see this asked earlier. Some books have the series name in parentheses at the end of the title.I'm assuming those words wouldn't count, but wanted to check in."
Thanks, Sue - - yes, your assumption is correct. Only the first word in the actual title of the book may be used (excluding articles in which case it's the second word).
Theresa wrote: "Oops - sounds a bit lawyerly - ..."LOL! Ok, that made me laugh a bit!
Maybe I am getting the 2 games mixed up. For BWF, does the tag match just because we say it does, or does there have to be a certain number of non-player tags, like 5?
I'm sorry to have so many questions - I'm sifting through books in gleeful anticipation today.If the first word in a book is a number, expressed in digits - "10" for example - would that count as a "T"?
Just to clarify - for any book read matching the monthly tag in this challenge to be counted toward game points or total number read, either team or individual, it has to have been tagged at least 5x?Of course in the regular PBT monthly tag reading, that rule does not apply.
Anita - just want to be sure of the convention for treatment of an hyphenated author last name: by first letter of name before the hyphen. Example, if name was Jennifer Jones-Harrington, the first letter of her last name would be "J".
I have a question, and apologize if it was in a question that I missed during the time I was processing my mother's end of life time.What happens if a book title starts with digits? Does that count as a word using the first letter of the first digit in the number or do we start with a different word?
eg 24 Hours in Italy --does that start with T or H? I'm not planning on reading this any time soon, but picked it up at an airport in the summer and then just put it aside so it's what I thought of.
Karin wrote: "I have a question, and apologize if it was in a question that I missed during the time I was processing my mother's end of life time.What happens if a book title starts with digits? Does that cou..."
Great question that I hadn't thought of, but I'd probably say that example starts with a T (for twenty four). We need a consistent rule. I could be persuaded either way, but we need to choose.
Theresa wrote: "Anita - just want to be sure of the convention for treatment of an hyphenated author last name: by first letter of name before the hyphen. Example, if name was Jennifer Jones-Harrington, the first ..."Yes, as in your example, it would be a J. Thank you for clarifying up front!
Sue wrote: "I'm sorry to have so many questions - I'm sifting through books in gleeful anticipation today.If the first word in a book is a number, expressed in digits - "10" for example - would that count as..."
Thank you, Sue - - yes, that would be a T. Thank you for always asking very great questions.
Robin P wrote: "Maybe I am getting the 2 games mixed up. For BWF, does the tag match just because we say it does, or does there have to be a certain number of non-player tags, like 5?"It must be 5 as well, Robin. Good question. As a general rule, for any games, we require that a book be tagged 5x with a given tag to consider it as truly tagged.
Another follow-up question, Anita, on reading the same book (or NOT reading the same book) ....I know team members have to each read a unique book to spell out the letters, so even if a book fits two letters, only one person can read it for that month's spelling.
E.g. The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith
Would fit for both 'N' and 'S' in DRAGONS but only one player can claim this book and for only one of the letters.
BUT ... after the team finishes spelling the word, players can read additional books for extra credit. Can we use a previously read book for the extra credit?
Using same sample above, Player A reads and uses it for the 'N'.
After the team has spelled Dragons ... player B reads the book as an "extra" S.
I hope I explained what I mean clearly.
Thank you for clarifying.
Book Concierge wrote: "Another follow-up question, Anita, on reading the same book (or NOT reading the same book) ....I know team members have to each read a unique book to spell out the letters, so even if a book fits..."
I do think I understand the question.
BUT ... after the team finishes spelling the word, players can read additional books for extra credit. Can we use a previously read book for the extra credit?
The answer is yes. I don't mind people reading the same book as an extra read for points. But each letter in the actual spelling submissions must be a unique book.
If a book has more than one author, I assume we can choose which last name to use for the letter?Example: I just finished Apollo 13 by Jim Lovell and Jeffrey Kluger, so my choices for a letter would be "A," "L," or "K"?
Joy D wrote: "If a book has more than one author, I assume we can choose which last name to use for the letter?Example: I just finished Apollo 13 by Jim Lovell and Jeffrey Kluger, so my choices for a letter wo..."
Yes, that's totally acceptable! Thank you for using an example.
Anita - a couple of questions/comments on Team Tracking:First Post - you want both Title and Author, correct? As Author last name can be what is used to spell.
Also - in reporting total tag matching read by the entire team and the EXTRA reading done, do we include the books used to spell that also tag matched? I.E. if DRAGONS, 3 of the books read to spell also tag matched - do they get added to the additional 20 books read by the entire team matching tags?
One more question: Would there be an advantage for you as moderator if we also included a line that states the date the LAST letter review was posted -- meaning the date the word was completely spelled by the team?
I'll be reporting monthly for Team Shadow & Flame and am setting up my team's tracking now while procrastinating drafting a store lease. There's a certain amount of procrastination involved when drafting retail leases....
Theresa wrote: "Anita - a couple of questions/comments on Team Tracking:First Post - you want both Title and Author, correct? As Author last name can be what is used to spell.
Also - in reporting total tag mat..."
Great questions as always. Please let me know if I'm not answering them with clarity.
First Post - you want both Title and Author, correct? As Author last name can be what is used to spell YES
Also - in reporting total tag matching read by the entire team and the EXTRA reading done, do we include the books used to spell that also tag matched? I.E. if DRAGONS, 3 of the books read to spell also tag matched - do they get added to the additional 20 books read by the entire team matching tags?
Please keep the spelling of the word totally separate from the extras. I did add a note to the directions that I do want you to denote if a book used to spell the word also fit the tag, but I don't want the books repeated in the extras list UNLESS multiple people read the same book. Am I answering the question clearly enough? Basically, there should not be overlap between the two tracking posts please.
Would there be an advantage for you as moderator if we also included a line that states the date the LAST letter review was posted -- meaning the date the word was completely spelled by the team
This would be super helpful to me, but I'm not going to mandate it just because I don't want to make things harder for people, but if you want to highlight it or bold it or something, I will be quite grateful!
LOL on the retail leases!!
I was anticipating that when we spelled the word successfully, all of those books would be listed together in one block on a message. Each book would be followed by a link to the shelf that shows the number of tags, and a link to the review. (Like we did in Subdue.)In addition to posting these on the tracking logs, I think a DM to Anita might be the safest way to mark the date/time of submission. (Starting in February.)
Other books could be listed in the team and individual logs that we will continue update. Perhaps we could pick a symbol to mark the primary books that were first used to spell the word.
Anita wrote: "Yes, that's totally acceptable! Thank you for using an example.."I was going to ask something similar. I'm reading a book of essays, so LOTS of different authors. I was wondering if we would use the editor of the book?
I'm currently reading Country Roads: Memoirs from Rural Canada... edited by Pam Chamberlain. I was assuming I would use Chamberlain for C in this case.
Is that ok?
ETA: Ok, well, C is the first letter of the title, too, but if that wasn't the case? LOL!
Anita wrote: "Theresa wrote: "Anita - a couple of questions/comments on Team Tracking:First Post - you want both Title and Author, correct? As Author last name can be what is used to spell.
Also - in reporti..."
Thanks, Anita and very clear.
Just letting you all in on what goes into a lawyers day when drafting retail leases -- or any commercial lease for that matter.
NancyJ wrote: "I was anticipating that when we spelled the word successfully, all of those books would be listed together in one block on a message. Each book would be followed by a link to the shelf that shows t..."Nancy - I just want to say that this feels like it adds a lot more work to the monthly reporting and also record keeping within the teams, and it starts leaching the fun out of the game. If you simply state the number of tags - i.e. 142x - anyone can with ease find the page with the tag to check it, even if it has moved up or down a number. Providing the link does not necessarily speed up the process because you still have to search the entire page and it is more arduous for the readers.
Theresa wrote: "NancyJ wrote: "I was anticipating that when we spelled the word successfully, all of those books would be listed together in one block on a message. Each book would be followed by a link to the she..."That's not my procedure Theresa, we've been required to add the tag link in games for several years. I also type the number of tags before the link. If we provide the link, the moderator can usually check it in just one click. It might take 5++ clicks for her to find it your way. If she doesn't immediately find the number, she can use F3 (on a PC) or "find on page" (on an ipad) to search for a word.
It became second nature for me to do this in Subdue because I had many tag matches. I often pasted the link in my notes when I picked a book, and checked it again when I added my review later. The page rarely changed even if a tag was added or deleted by someone else, because I often had 20 - 100+ tags. It was a lot harder in poll tag when there might be 30 pages all showing 1 tag.
Anita - Me again - I just tackled the Individual Tracking. Question is - do you need us to report the # of tags for each book in the individual tracking? Assuming the answer is yes, I've set up my personal tracking in that thread -- would you let me know if it works for you?
@Nancy,I was anticipating that when we spelled the word successfully, all of those books would be listed together in one block on a message. Each book would be followed by a link to the shelf that shows the number of tags, and a link to the review. (Like we did in Subdue.)
I am not requiring a link to the shelf with the number of tags. I can look that up myself if I am in doubt or concerned. So less work for everyone.
In addition to posting these on the tracking logs, I think a DM to Anita might be the safest way to mark the date/time of submission. (Starting in February.)
I am asking everyone to mark the date and time right on the tracking log, and I can check the review itself to see if the final one matches what appears if there's a concern. I don't want direct messages from five different people. I want the system to do the tracking. Every post has a date and time stamp.
Other books could be listed in the team and individual logs that we will continue update. Perhaps we could pick a symbol to mark the primary books that were first used to spell the word.
Each team is working on two posts. One post tracks the spelling of the word. The other post tracks the extra books. That's purposeful to make it easy for everyone to see what's going on and mostly for me to be able to do the scoring. After handling Subdue, I have a good sense of what I need to track well. I want to keep things very straightforward, as transparent as possible, and this method allows me to use assistants as needed for monitoring the game as everything is upfront and public.
LibraryCin wrote: "Anita wrote: "Yes, that's totally acceptable! Thank you for using an example.."I was going to ask something similar. I'm reading a book of essays, so LOTS of different authors. I was wondering if..."
I would encourage people to check with me on a book like this with many multiple authors, but I do think in the example you provided, the editor is the right answer! But if in doubt, please confer with me before reading the book.
Theresa wrote: "Anita - Me again - I just tackled the Individual Tracking. Question is - do you need us to report the # of tags for each book in the individual tracking? Assuming the answer is yes, I've set up m..."
I'm going to be honest and say I expect everyone is following the honor code. If I am suspicious that a book doesn't fit the tag, OR someone else is suspicious and looks it up and tells me it doesn't - - there will be repercussions that are beyond the game itself.
So, you don't need to post the number of tags. I just need to know that it fits the tag. If you think posting the number of tags is helpful for your own knowledge, that's totally fine, but it's not necessary. If I'm worried, I will check it.
Thanks, Anita - great clear answers as always! I'll update my draft personal tracking and also the Shadow & Flame Team reporting. Once this first month is 'in the books' as we say, it will be easy.
I have a question about the timing of the reading of extra books. I apologize if this has already been answered.I understand that if the team does not complete spelling the word, no extra books count. But can I read an extra book before my team is finished the word and have it count once the spelling task is done? Or should I not start reading extra books until the word is all spelled?
For example. I read my book that my team is using for the H in Holiday. A teammate is reading a book for Y, but it may take them a little longer to finish. Can I read another H book before they finish their Y if I understand it will not count if Y is not finished in time or do I wait and not start reading the book at all until they are done?
I think Anita's clarifications above are right on track (oops, pun not intended) to keep things simple - definitely no dm's, every message has a date & time stamp, If it is the same day, it says 9 minutes ago, or 2 hours, 42 minutes ago. For earlier days, it says Dec. 15, 2023, 10:16 am. And no need to link to the tag page as a regular thing, that can be a pain if you are on a phone or tablet. And the 2 posts per team are clear, no need for more tracking on this site. Groups and individuals can do that as they see fit.Everything we do is on the honor system. There is no quiz to make sure you read the whole book!
Cora wrote: ".But can I read an extra book before my team is finished the word and have it count once the spelling task is done? Or should I not start reading extra books until the word is all spelled?."No worries, Cora - - there have been a lot of Q&A here so it's hard to absorb it all.
The answer is you may begin your reading at the same time that the reading to spell the word is taking place. That's totally fine.
If the word doesn't get spelled for whatever reason, then your reading won't be counted toward any extra points - - but it's totally fine for you to be reading extra books while others read to spell the word.
Robin P wrote: "I think Anita's clarifications above are right on track (oops, pun not intended) to keep things simple - definitely no dm's, every message has a date & time stamp, If it is the same day, it says 9 ..."Thank you for that perfect recap!!! YES!
Anita wrote: "Cora wrote: ".But can I read an extra book before my team is finished the word and have it count once the spelling task is done? Or should I not start reading extra books until the word is all spel..."Thank you. That is what I thought, but I wanted to make sure I did not misunderstand the rules.
Anita - You've done such a wonderful job laying this game out!I have a question that just occurred to me. With the overlap at the end of every month, can one book count toward two tags?
For example, if January were DRAGONS and February were MAGICAL REALISM, there could be books that match letters and tags for both.
So on the 22nd-ish of the month after MAGICAL REALISM is announced, could I read a dragon book that matches "G" and count in both months?
Even as I'm typing this it feels like a picky question, but I can see it coming up.
Sue wrote: "Anita - You've done such a wonderful job laying this game out!I have a question that just occurred to me. With the overlap at the end of every month, can one book count toward two tags?
For exam..."
Anita will of course clarify this but in my head I resolved this as 'no' when I thought of it because of the review barrier: you can't post review of book for BWF until the 1st. 'Technically' your reviews for books for current month - i.e. for Holiday in December - should be posted before midnight of last day of month. Mods do give some generous leeway with honor system that you finished reading it in the month of the tag and not three days into the new month when you finally get around to posting a review.
I thought of it because I already have a book I will be reading for Holiday that could both help with spelling and tag matching in BWF! I figured that wasn't in the spirit of the challenge and decided it is needed more for Holiday than BWF.
Play Book Tag
Books mentioned in this topic
Country Roads: Memoirs from Rural Canada (other topics)The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency (other topics)
24 Hours in Italy (other topics)
X (other topics)
Authors mentioned in this topic
Alexander McCall Smith (other topics)Qiu Xiaolong (other topics)
For the book to match the tag, it has to be tagged that way by minimum 5 non game participants. How can we check this? I thought you can no longer see who the..."
I think you might still be able to find the information on an individual's profile. You can look at any of your friend's shelves for the tag. This group used to require only 1 tag and I presumed that we jumped to 5 to give a margin of safety, because it's a tool that many of us use.
Full disclosure... I want to remind everyone that I am a very heavy tagger. It's one of the ways I attempt to compensate for my memory issues, and I find it very helpful for other challenges too. Most months when we have a new tag, I will search the tag list for books I might want to read, and I'll tag them. I got in the habit this year of starting with books that already have 100, 50, or 25 or more tags so I'm not usually cutting it close. But some tags are a lot tougher.