A passion project with a mission: ink & aether and the magic of reading
When I started ink & aether, it wasn’t just about creating yet another online book club. I wanted to build a space where stories matter, where bookish conversations feel alive, and where there’s a little bit of magic in the mix.
ink & aether is a passion project with a mission: to encourage more people to experience the magic of reading.
ink & aether is open to all readers—teens, adults, lifelong bookworms, and those just finding their way back to reading. And yes, that includes younger readers (13 and up*). Too often they’re excluded from bookish spaces—but here, they have a seat at the table alongside everyone else.
I’ve been part of plenty of bookish Discord servers where younger readers didn’t have much space. Some because of the community’s heavy focus on ‘spicy’ books, others because the communities weren’t built with young readers in mind. ink & aether works differently. It’s for everyone. The only restricted area is the romance genre forum, and even then, I acknowledge that not all romance novels are spicy—those ones fit neatly into other, unrestricted categories.
My openness to including younger readers comes from a personal place, as a mom. My own teenager spends plenty of time on Discord like most of his peers. Gaming, chatting, studying—yes. But reading together? Discussing books (even manga or graphic novels)? Not so much. That’s part of what drives me to keep ink & aether accessible: to show teens and adults alike that books can be a part of our digital lives, too.
Why reading feels at risk
Screens, notifications, algorithm-driven feeds—today’s distractions are louder and more constant than ever. And yes, the decline in reading for pleasure is sharpest among teens and young adults, but it’s not just them. Adults are struggling too. We’re all being pulled in a hundred different directions, and reading often slips to the bottom of the list.
But this isn’t about blaming or shaming anyone for not reading. The challenge is simply this: showing what books can do that nothing else can replicate.
I see it firsthand with my own kids. Just recently, I told my preteen son to get off screens and do literally anything else. His first instinct was to ask me to entertain him. I spend a lot of time engaging with my kids, but I don’t want them to depend on me for entertainment in every moment. So I told him: my job isn’t just to entertain you. Just because I said no screens doesn’t mean you have to rely on someone else to entertain you, now. Learn to entertain yourself.
Later, he was curled up with his Kindle reading The Lost World. That moment reminded me why books matter: they give us the chance to build an inner life that doesn’t depend on someone—or something—else to keep us busy.
What books give us that nothing else can
Books build emotional resilience. They stretch our empathy. They give us a sense of belonging.
Personally, I think fiction does this best—by letting us view the world from someone else’s perspective, or by showing us that even in imagined worlds, our struggles aren’t entirely our own.
For me, books have been anchors at every turning point:
In childhood, fiction was a way to escape into fantastical worlds or to ground myself when I needed perspective.
When I first moved abroad, reading and joining small book clubs made me feel less isolated.
In personal relationships, books have given me language for emotions I didn’t know how to identify or process. They’ve given me courage when I needed it, and reminded me I wasn’t broken or weird for feeling a certain way.
As a parent, stories are one of the ways I can connect with my kids beyond screens—even if it’s just talking about the book behind a movie we end up watching together.
As a… a me, reading about creative, chaotic lives has helped me feel less alone in the uncertainty and chaos.
These are the kinds of moments that shape ink & aether’s mission: to create a book culture that feels magical, modern, and inviting.
Helping young readers find their way
One of the best ways to help anyone connect with books is to match them with the right stories. That’s true whether you’re 15, 35, or 65—but for younger readers especially, the right book at the right time can be transformative. That’s why I love bibliotherapy as a concept. It’s intentional reading.
It’s a resource that complements what I’m trying to do with ink & aether, but beginning at an even younger age: not just to encourage more reading, but to help people discover the books that matter most to them.
Bijal Shah, founder of Book Therapy, offers online bibliotherapy courses specifically for young readers. Her courses are designed to help parents, teachers, and kids themselves choose books that match the challenges they’re facing—whether that’s identity, change, confidence, or simply finding joy in reading.
Reading as a way of living
ink & aether started as a passion project, but it’s grown into something with real purpose.
Reading isn’t only about literacy—it’s about shaping who we are, how we see others, and how we move through the world.
That’s what I want to nurture: a space where books don’t just fill time, they add meaning.
If you want to be part of that, join us in the community.
And if you’re looking for a more guided way to bring meaningful reading into your life—or your kids’ lives—check out Bijal’s bibliotherapy courses or personalized book prescriptions (I got one of these and am still working my way through it). They’re a brilliant way to rediscover the power of books.
* Discord Terms of Service: the minimum age requirement is 13