Read & Run Tours™️

We want audiences to be MOVED by your work. ✨ At Read & Run Tours, owner Allison Yates approaches events for authors and creatives based on her years of experience in education, community building, and experiential event design. We’re home of the 👟book-themed guided run👟, and our services both include and expand beyond this one-of-kind format. Events that emphasize the attendee experience—and include interactive, creative elements—have the potential to build long-lasting community and superfans. 👇 We offer: 📚 Event coaching for authors and creatives 📚 Experiential and creative event design that focus on community building 📚 Full-scale event planning & management 📚 Audience engagement strategy Ready to move your audiences? DM here or visit readandruntours.com.

Read & Run on the Road, explained ✨👟 Hi, I’m Allison! 👋 I’m the founder of Read & Run Tours, home of the book-themed guided run where stories take place. Did you know that Read & Run Tours has a program called Read & Run on the Road? Read & Run on the Road is a program of independently-organized events under a license from Read & Run Tours. This means that the coolest humans ever (runners who love books?! Yes!) from around the country get to host events with book-themed guided runs where the story takes place, followed by author Q&As, lectures, or book discussions. ➡️ Swipe to learn more and DM or visit our website to apply. ✨ I can’t wait to see a new cohort of organizers in 2026!

📝 Writers Who Run: Wendy N. Wagner Portland-based author and trail runner @wendy.n.wagner is a person you’d describe as “chipper” and “instantly disarming,” writes journalist @malissaonthemove in this month’s Writer Who Run. Her most recent novel? Definitely not the same adjectives. Girl in the Creek is set in the fictional Pacific Northwest town of Faraday—and it’s a “mindbending mystery.” Creepy. Dark. Delightful. Read this month’s Writers Who Run (no spoilers!) to learn more about Wendy, including her penchant for long distance, how she infuses fear into her writing, and what she’s reading. Tap the ‘Writers Who Run column’ link in bio or visit readandruntours.com/blog. #readandruntours #writerswhorun

A new Writers Who Run interview releases this week… Can you guess who it will be!? Hints: ✅ Portland based ✅ Writes horror and mystery ✅ Trail runner 👇 Write your guess in the comments!

No @dare2tri_ volunteer was hurt in the process of making this reel. 😛 This week is your last chance to RSVP for the Dare2tri and Read & Run Tours Storytelling 5k on ✨Sunday, May 17✨! As you run or walk, you’ll stop along the route to hear powerful, funny, and honest stories from Dare2tri athletes and volunteers, shared in the very places they happened. From race-day highs to unexpected challenges, these are the moments that shape what it means to be an athlete. What to Expect 👟 A guided 3.5-mile run or 1.2-mile walk/run option 🎤 Live storytelling stops throughout the course ☀️ A welcoming, community-focused pace (~12:00/mile) 👩🏽‍🦽‍➡️ A fully accessible route (flat, mostly paved, with some crushed gravel) 👟 An intro to guiding a runner who is blind or visually impaired However you move—running, walking, or rolling—you’re invited. Tap the ‘Events’ link in bio to save your spot. 💡 Thanks so much for the inspiration, @glenellynpl !

Alright—The soft launch is over. Read & Run Tours’s event services are now in motion! Last summer, I decided I wanted to transform everything I’d learned hosting community events for Read & Run Chicago into experiential events for authors, nonprofits, and brands looking to connect with new audiences in meaningful, intentional, and experiential or movement-based ways. After months of planning, I hosted my first experiential book event. Over 20 readers gathered at @fabriksocialspaces to bring @megykarydes ’s book to life—actually trying out a few of the science-backed ways to bring more calm to our lives. Thanks to our workshop facilitators @reginigloria , @chicagogentswhostroll , and @tawsebonnie , and enormous thanks Megy for trusting me and cheering me on throughout the process. Shoutouts to: 📚 @madstreetbooks being my bookstore partner 💐 @bliss.florals for supplying the flowers 🫂 @cindykuzma for introducing me to Megy 📸 @kylenow for photography 📍 @fabriksocialspaces for providing space and being the best community My business Read & Run Tours was always here—the name was just quietly behind the scenes. Now, we’ll be a lot more visible. ✨ ❤️ Interested in working with me? Tap the link in bio to learn more and get in touch!

📣 Hey, Chicago runners! Have you ever wanted to learn how to guide a blind or visually impaired runner? Join us and @dare2tri_ on Sunday, May 17 for an intro to guiding workshop after our Storytelling 5k on the lakefront. Learn more about: ✨ How to guide ✨ How to give cues ✨ How to use a tether It’s free and all are welcome! 🎟️ Link in bio to save your spot.

Meet our flower vendor, Kim Prado of @bliss.florals 💐 Tuesday, May 5, we’re producing an experiential event with author @megykarydes out of @fabriksocialspaces . The evening includes hands-on workshops of three of the scientifically-proven ways to reduce stress, including floral therapy. Each guest will leave with their own mini-bouquet sourced from Kim Prado of @bliss.florals . Kim Prado (she/her) is a lifelong Chicagoan and the owner of Bloom & Bliss, a Latina-owned floral business built on creativity, intention, and community. She has spent the past four years in the floral industry, from a 17-year-old starting in grocery stores and later launching her business at 20. 💐 Her designs are affordable, long-lasting, and thoughtfully arranged to leave a lasting impression. 💐 Kim offers custom bouquets, arrangements, and event florals for weddings, celebrations, and more, along with an interactive Bloom Bar experience. Can’t make on Tuesday? 👉 To learn more and order, message Kim @Bliss.florals or email [email protected] 👉 Visit her at @avillefarmersmarket on May 20 and the @windycitymarket at @artifacteventschicago on May 24!

Miranda Priestly isn’t impressed… But you will be! 🤓 Join Dare2tri and Read & Run Tours on ✨Sunday, May 17✨ for a one-of-a-kind 5K experience that brings movement and storytelling together along Chicago’s lakefront. As you run or walk, you’ll stop along the route to hear powerful, funny, and honest stories from Dare2tri athletes and volunteers, shared in the very places they happened. From race-day highs to unexpected challenges, these are the moments that shape what it means to be an athlete. What to Expect 👟 A guided 3.5-mile run or 1.2-mile walk/run option 🎤 Live storytelling stops throughout the course ☀️ A welcoming, community-focused pace (~12:00/mile) 👩🏽‍🦽‍➡️ A fully accessible route (flat, mostly paved, with some crushed gravel) 👟 An intro to guiding a runner who is blind or visually impaired However you move—running, walking, or rolling—you’re invited. Tap the ‘Events’ link in bio to save your spot.

Welcome to May, readers & runners nationwide! Here are this month’s signature events we created—the book-themed guided routes where stories take place—hosted by Read & Run Chicago and independent organizers with the Read & Run on the Road program, plus Read & Run Tours’s experiential events for authors and creative 5ks. 👟 📅 May 5 📍Chicago More Calm, Less Stress: An Experiential Evening with @megykarydes Host: @readandruntours 📅 Wednesday, May 13 📍D.C. Read & Run on the Road: Book Club Run of Lost in the City Host: @chelseygrassfield 📅 Saturday, May 16 📍Chicago Running Tour of From the West Side, With Love with @bykenncook Host: @readandrunchicago Sunday, May 17 📍Chicago Storytelling 5k with @dare2tri_ Host: @readandrunchicago x @dare2tri_ 🎟️ Tap the ‘Events’ link in our bio for info and tickets! For free community events and gatherings in Chicago 👉 Follow @readandrunchicago and subscribe to their newsletter.

How do you explore nature? 🌳 That’s the question we asked author and nature educator @tawsebonnie . Want to learn more about Bonnie and how to use nature as a tool for more calm and less stress? Tap the link in bio for info + tickets for next Tuesday’s experiential evening with @megykarydes inspired by her book, 50 Ways to More Calm, Less Stress. You’ll experience three science-backed techniques, including a nature walk with Bonnie and Anthony of @chicagogentswhostroll . See you there, Chicago!

🛎️ giveaway alert 🔔 Giving away two tickets to a workshop event next Tuesday hosted by author @megykarydes and @readandruntours exploring science-backed ways to lower anxiety including: 🌸 Floral therapy with Vanessa Flowers of @flowergirlsmeet 📗 Bookbinding with Regin Igloria of @northbranchprojects 🌳 Walking + nature therapy with Anthony Scott of @chicagogentswhostroll and nature educator Bonnie Tawse @sourcebooks @fabriksocialspaces HOW IT WORKS: 🔹 To enter, all you have to do is LIKE THIS VIDEO and FOLLOW both MY ACCOUNT and MEGY KARYDES’ ACCOUNT @megykarydes 🔹 Tag a friend in the comment for extra entries! 🔹 Must be local to Chicago or willing to fly in ;) ‼️ Giveaway ends at 11:59pm CST on Sunday, May 3rd ‼️ Once the giveaway ends, I’ll pick the winners and reach out to handle ticket exchange! #mentalhealthawarenessmonth #giveawayalert