In addition to the ways I can help any cultural institution, I have specific services I can offer libraries:
Tabletop collection+training packages
As the success of International Games Day @ your library has shown, and as market data keeps proving, the massive growth in the popularity of games is about non-electronic games just as much as videogames – and they’re popular with all ages, not just kids and teens, as the centuries-long history of chess clubs, bridge clubs, go clubs and more attest.
Then there’s the argument that I’ve made before, that games (an inherently shared form of culture) belong in libraries (the place where culture and information are shared).
And finally, there’s the fact that, whether it be ebook technologies, print-on-demand, crowdfunding, or other innovations still emerging, non-electronic games have driven numerous new publishing technologies that have already impacted libraries or will do so soon.
Play and games are only becoming more important – the French Inspectorate-General of libraries is only the latest to acknowledge this – and the possibilities for incorporating them into libraries’ work are amazing. All you need is to get a handle on the full range of these extraordinarily diverse, creative and innovative media, and how to make the most of them for your particular library.
I can help. I’ve put together a package of key tabletop games that illustrate some of the many dimensions of innovation in play – a package I can sell you below regular retail prices. This is by no means a comprehensive games collection, but it’s a representative sample that will give you and your patrons a starting point for exploring the full range of what’s out there.
What’s more, each package comes with a discount on a special training program that will give you a general introduction to the world of games and play, and of modern tabletop and social games, including ideas for running programs, discussion of games and literacy, and other ways to incorporate this ancient-but-new medium into the library mission.
These training discounts are stackable, even between different library services. So if you and neighbouring libraries all buy packages, you can all pool your discounts to reduce the cost of the training, and then split even that reduced cost between you!
And if you’ve already made a start on games and play and just want to buy some games, I can help – I can source a great many tabletop games (both family games and hobby games) for cheaper-than-retail prices.
For details of what’s in the game package, how the discounts work, and costs of the training, read on here.
Library-specific programs
I can run versions of all my programs and presentations tailored to a library audience.
In particular, I can run games events, kick off a book-club-style games club, present talks about games in general and their place in the wider cultural picture, talk to parents & guardians about issues surrounding games and young people’s relationships to them, run orientation sessions to help interested adults get the hang of the basics of modern games, and more.
I can also work with you to devise a wider-ranging game that links numerous library activities (possibly including, but by no means limited to, actual play-based activities) into an engaging and holistic experience. I can source game designers for “author” talks. And I can consult on connecting with local communities of game creators and players, whether as potential library users or as presenters of an experience for the wider library community.
Contact me to find out more, discuss options, or arrange a booking.
Play, Happiness, Imagination, Learning 