This week, I joined Tablet Weavers’ International Studies & Techniques (TWIST). Joining TWIST got me thinking about offline-first niche interest groups. I’m not quite how to name the phenomena that interests me here; let’s call them geek groups.
I’m a member of several such organizations:
Geek groups are united by a strong common theme. Everyone who is involved has some complicated and important thing in common. If you are in a geek group about, say Quakerism, you can always start a conversation: “How did you get involved in Quakerism? What’s your local Quaker scene like?” In a geek group, the unifying theme makes introductions easy. You have a natural place to start with anyone else in the group.
Secondly, geek groups have institutions that I think other organizations would do well to emulate: lending libraries, membership lists, newsletters, and archives.
Published: Oct 9, 2026 @ 10:59.
Last Modified: Oct 9, 2026 @ 22:23.
Thanks for reading! If you have any comments or questions about the content, please let me know. Anyone can contact me by email.