So many people have asked us what it’s like to run the Tucson Tome Gnome (TTG), with a lot of people thinking that the three of us just get together once a month and wrap up some books and hide them for folks to find. HAHA. If only it were so simple!

Honestly, running TTG takes a lot of time and effort. But it’s also the most fun we’ve ever had doing hard work. If you’ve read about us in This is Tucson or watched the piece about us featured on KGUN9, then you’ll know that we started TTG over dinner in July 2021. And since then we have been meeting nearly every week to work on getting TTG off the ground and keep it going – and growing!

Our weekly business meetings are always on Friday or Saturday nights, and we talk about all things TTG over take-out (burgers and pizza are ongoing favorites…) and treats (often homemade cookies courtesy of Mary Ellen!). The meetings *might* be an excuse for three friends to get together and gab once a week, but we also spend time updating the website, developing a plan for social media posts, and talking about (and selecting!) books to hide during upcoming months. We’ve also started spending time brainstorming new collaborations with local organizations and businesses – – – and we’re starting to think about what might be next to expand the work of TTG. We want to figure out how we can bring yet MORE surprise books to the Tucson community 🙂

On the weekends when we hide books, we also spend time stickering and adding bookmarks and ribbon to all the books – and taking fun photos of the process. And then, of course, there is the day of tome-hiding, when we drive all over town hiding books, taking photos, and posting location hints on Instagram. Tome hiding usually takes 5-7 hours (with snack and coffee breaks worked in, of course).

So, is running TTG easy? No – it’s a lot of work! But is it fun work? Absolutely, 100% yes!!! Thank you so much for continuing to support us, friends ❤