This proposal is an outgrowth of a couple conversations from the sessions of the first day of THATCamp. As with other forms and modes of reading and writing, there are multiple modes of social reading. Categorizing the different types and components of social reading could help match the goals of projects with the different platforms that it could be staged on.

A few years ago, Bob Stein, of the Institute for the Future of the Book, attempted to create a taxonomy of social reading based around four major interaction categories:

1. Discussing a book in person with friends and acquaintances.
   (offline, informal, synchronous, ephemeral)
2. Discussing a book online
   (online, informal, synchronous or asynchronous, persistent)
3. Discussing a book in a classroom or living–room book group
   (offline, formal, synchronous, ephemeral)
4. Engaging in a discussion IN the margins
   (online, formal, synchronous or asynchronous, persistent)

Using these as a starting point, this session will explore how we might categorize social reading (and writing).