Yes — you can build a complete reading group guide in about 30 minutes using a fillable template, and you don’t need a publisher or an editor to do it. This reading group guide template gives you the full structure book clubs expect: a short welcome note, themes to explore, 10-12 discussion questions, an author Q&A, and further-reading suggestions.

In this guide, you’ll get:

  • A copy-paste reading group guide template you can drop straight into your book’s back matter
  • A filled-in example so you can see what good looks like
  • A section-by-section breakdown of what to write and why each part matters
  • Tips for clubs that just need a guide for a book that doesn’t have one

Copy the template below, fill in the brackets, and you’ll have a club-ready guide today.

What Is a Reading Group Guide?

A reading group guide is a short document — usually one to three pages — that helps a book club discuss a specific book. It typically includes a welcome note, a list of themes, 10-12 discussion questions, and an author Q&A, and it lives in the book’s back matter or on the author’s website.

Publishers have included these for decades because they work: a guide gives clubs a reason to pick your book and a structure for the meeting. For self-published authors, a guide is one of the cheapest, highest-leverage pieces of back matter you can add.

Think of it as a printed conversation starter that travels with your book — quietly doing your marketing every time a group meets.

The Reading Group Guide Template (Copy + Paste)

Here is the full template. Copy everything between the lines, then replace the bracketed prompts with your own content. The whole thing should run one to three pages — clubs skim, so keep it tight.

Reading Group Guide for [Book Title]

A note from the author

[Two to four sentences. Thank the reader, share one honest line about why you wrote the book or what you hope it sparks, and invite the group to disagree with each other. Warm, not salesy.]

About this book

[One to two sentences summarizing the book without spoilers — the same hook you’d give a stranger who asked what it’s about.]

Themes to explore

  • [Theme 1 — e.g., forgiveness, ambition, belonging]
  • [Theme 2]
  • [Theme 3]
  • [Theme 4]

Discussion questions

  1. [Opening reaction question — easy, opinion-based, no wrong answers]
  2. [Character or argument question specific to your book]
  3. [Question about a pivotal scene or passage — name it directly]
  4. [Theme question that doesn’t name the theme outright]
  5. [Question about a choice a character made, or a claim you made]
  6. [Question about the setting, structure, or format]
  7. [Question about the ending — open-ended, never yes/no]
  8. [Question connecting the book to the reader’s own life]
  9. [Question inviting disagreement — “Some readers feel X; do you?”]
  10. [Closing reflection — what will the reader carry forward?]

A few questions for the author

  • [Question readers ask you most often, with a 2-4 sentence answer]
  • [Question about your research, inspiration, or process]
  • [Question about what surprised you while writing]

If your group enjoyed this book, you might also like

  • [Comparable title 1]
  • [Comparable title 2]
  • [Comparable title 3]

Connect with the author

[Website, newsletter signup, and social handles — one line. This is where a guide turns club members into your email list.]

That’s the complete template. The next sections show you a filled-in version and explain how to write each part well.

A Filled-In Reading Group Guide Example

Here’s the same template completed for an imaginary literary novel called The Salt Path Home, so you can see how the brackets turn into real copy.

A note from the author

Thank you for choosing The Salt Path Home for your group. I wrote it during a year I spent caring for my mother, and the questions it asks about duty and freedom are ones I still haven’t fully answered. I hope you argue about them — kindly.

About this book

When Mara returns to the coastal town she swore she’d left for good, a single inheritance forces her to choose between the life she built and the family she abandoned.

Themes to explore

  • The cost of leaving home
  • Duty versus self-determination
  • How grief reshapes memory
  • What we owe the people who raised us

Discussion questions

  1. What was your gut reaction when Mara opened the letter in the first chapter?
  2. Mara calls herself “the one who got out.” Did you read that as pride, guilt, or both?
  3. The scene at the harbor (Chapter 14) divides readers. What did you feel watching Mara stay?
  4. Several characters keep secrets they believe are kind. Were any of those secrets justified?
  5. Was Mara’s final choice an act of love or surrender — and does the difference matter?

(…and so on, to 10-12 questions.)

Notice how every question is specific to this book. Generic prompts feel like filler. Naming Chapter 14 and the harbor scene signals to a club that the guide was written with care — and that signal is exactly what makes clubs trust and recommend your book.

How to Write Each Section of Your Guide

Each part of the template does a specific job. Here’s how to fill in the high-stakes sections well.

The Author’s Note

Your author’s note should be two to four warm sentences that thank the reader and reveal one honest thing about why the book exists. Avoid summarizing the plot — readers just finished it. Invite disagreement; clubs love permission to argue.

The best notes feel like a letter from a friend, not a press release. One vulnerable line (“I wrote this during the hardest year of my life”) earns more goodwill than a paragraph of praise for your own book.

The Discussion Questions

Aim for 10 to 12 open-ended discussion questions that move from easy reaction, to character and theme, to a personal connection at the end. Never write yes/no questions — “Did you like the ending?” dies in one word, while “What would you have changed about the ending?” sparks a real conversation.

Make at least half your questions book-specific. Reference your actual characters, scenes, and arguments by name. If you want a ready-made starting point, our book club discussion questions template gives you 30 universal questions you can adapt and swap in.

The Author Q&A

The author Q&A is your secret weapon — it’s the section readers screenshot and share. Answer the three questions you get asked most, plus one about your process or research. Keep each answer to two to four sentences.

This section also feeds AI search and social media. When a reader asks a chatbot “what inspired [your book],” a published Q&A is exactly the kind of source it pulls from.

Reading Group Guide vs. Discussion Questions: What’s the Difference?

A reading group guide is the complete document — author’s note, themes, questions, Q&A, and further reading — while discussion questions are just one section inside it. A guide gives a club everything it needs to run a meeting; a question list gives them only the conversation prompts.

If you’re an author, build the full guide. If you’re a club host whose book didn’t come with one, you can get by with a good question list — see the section below for that shortcut.

Where Do Reading Group Guides Go in a Book?

A reading group guide goes in the back matter of your book — after the last chapter and acknowledgments, near the about-the-author page. Many authors also post the guide as a free, downloadable PDF on their website so clubs can find it before they buy.

Putting it in both places matters. The in-book version reaches readers who already finished; the website version helps clubs discover your book while they’re choosing their next read. Pair the online guide with a clear about the author page and a reader magnet so visiting club members join your email list.

How Do Book Clubs Use a Reading Group Guide if the Book Doesn’t Have One?

If a book has no official guide, a club can build one in minutes by combining a universal question list with two or three book-specific questions about its main character, central idea, and ending. You don’t need the author’s involvement to have a great discussion.

Start with the universal template, then add questions naming the actual plot points your group cares about. You can also check LitLovers and Reading Group Choices, which host free guides for thousands of titles. For nonfiction picks worth discussing, see our roundup of the best nonfiction books for book clubs.

Why a Reading Group Guide Is Worth the Effort (For Authors)

A reading group guide is one of the most cost-effective marketing tools an author has. Book clubs buy multiple copies, generate word of mouth, and often invite authors to join meetings — and a guide is what gets your book chosen in the first place.

Writing one is far easier once your manuscript is finished and you can see your own themes clearly. That’s where the right tools save you hours.

Our Pick — Chapter

Chapter’s AI writing assistant can draft your entire reading group guide from your finished manuscript. Feed it your book, and it surfaces the themes, pivotal scenes, and open questions worth discussing — then helps you write the author’s note and Q&A in your own voice.

Best for: Self-published and indie authors who want professional back matter without hiring an editor. Pricing: $97 one time, 2 books included (fiction or nonfiction), 30-day money-back guarantee Why we built it: 2,147+ authors have used Chapter to write and polish their books — and the ones who add a reading group guide give clubs a reason to choose them. Chapter finds the discussion-worthy moments hiding in your own pages.

If you’re still drafting, our guides on how to write a memoir and how to write a novel walk you through the manuscript first — the guide comes after.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

  • Writing generic questions. “What did you think of the main character?” works for any book and feels like filler. Name your character and a specific choice they made.
  • Summarizing the plot. Clubs read the book. Skip the recap and go straight to themes and questions.
  • Asking yes/no questions. They get one-word answers. Every question should be open-ended enough to spark debate.
  • Making it too long. A three-page guide is plenty. Twelve sharp questions beat twenty padded ones.
  • Forgetting the call to connect. End with your website and newsletter link, or you’ll lose the readers most likely to follow you.

How Long Should a Reading Group Guide Be?

A reading group guide should be one to three pages, with 10 to 12 discussion questions at its core. That’s enough to fill a 60-to-90-minute meeting without overwhelming the host, who will typically pick only the 8-10 questions that fit the conversation.

Resist the urge to pad. Clubs skim guides and choose a handful of questions, so density beats length. A tight one-page guide with sharp, book-specific questions outperforms a four-page guide of generic prompts every time.

How Long Does It Take to Create a Reading Group Guide?

Creating a reading group guide from this template takes about 30 to 60 minutes once your manuscript is finished. Most of that time goes into writing 10-12 book-specific questions; the author’s note, themes, and Q&A come quickly because you already know your own book.

If you use an AI writing tool to surface your themes and draft a first pass, you can cut that to 15 minutes and spend the rest refining the questions in your own voice.

FAQ

What is included in a reading group guide?

A reading group guide includes a welcome note from the author, a short book summary, a list of themes, 10-12 discussion questions, an author Q&A, and further-reading suggestions. The discussion questions are the core; the other sections give clubs context and a reason to choose and recommend your book.

How do I write a reading group guide for my own book?

To write a reading group guide for your own book, fill in a template with an author’s note, your book’s themes, 10-12 open-ended questions, and a short Q&A. Make at least half the questions specific to your actual characters, scenes, and arguments, and end with a link to your website or newsletter.

Where does a reading group guide go in a book?

A reading group guide goes in the back matter of a book, after the final chapter and acknowledgments and near the about-the-author page. Many authors also publish it as a free PDF on their website so book clubs can find it before they buy the book.

Is a reading group guide the same as discussion questions?

No — a reading group guide is the complete document, while discussion questions are one section within it. A full guide adds an author’s note, themes, an author Q&A, and reading suggestions around the questions, giving a book club everything it needs to run a meeting.

How many discussion questions should a reading group guide have?

A reading group guide should have 10 to 12 discussion questions. That gives a club host enough to choose from for a 60-to-90-minute meeting while keeping the guide to one to three pages. Hosts typically discuss only 8-10 of the questions, so a few extras provide useful backup.