It's time to set sail with the 'Yacht Girls,' L.A.'s coolest book club on a boat

It’s 11:30 a.m. connected a beauteous and unseasonably lukewarm time successful Marina del Rey, fractional an hr earlier the starting clip for the Yacht Girls Book Club meeting, but respective women are already lasting astatine the gross starring to a vintage yacht docked astatine the California Yacht Club.

Nicole Vaughn, a first-time attendee who has driven from Woodland Hills with her person Cani Gonzalez for the meeting, had been looking for writer events connected Eventbrite erstwhile she recovered the Yacht Girls Book Club’s “Brunch and Sound Bath,” which besides includes a signed transcript of the featured author’s book, a vessel thrust and swag container for $65. “I work ‘sound bath, poesy and manifesting,’ which sounded intriguing, truthful I said, ‘Why not?’” Vaughn says.

Once the gross opens, Vaughn, Gonzalez and the others watercourse in, unsocial oregon successful pairs. The mostly pistillate attendees scope from 30 years aged to implicit 70 and are attired successful outfits including cutoffs, vessel tops, straw fedoras and glamorous full-length dresses. There are astir 60 first-timers and returning members.

Brittany Goodwin, different first-timer and Mid-City nonmigratory who does societal selling and media for HBO Max, besides heard astir the gathering connected Eventbrite. “I saw the connection manifestation [in the ad] and I was there!” she enthuses, taking successful the colorful array of arriving women. “And contiguous is the afloat moon, truthful it’s precise appropriate.”

That’s due to the fact that the talker is section writer and writer Melody Godfred, whose latest book, “Moon Garden,” attracted the attraction of Aloni Ford, Yacht Girls laminitis and organizer of the meeting.

“I thought Melody would beryllium cleanable for the authoritative relaunch of the Yacht Girls,” Ford said successful an earlier telephone conversation. “Her connection of self-love and surviving much authentically is the crushed I started the publication nine successful the archetypal place.”

That was successful 2018, erstwhile Ford, an Altadena-born manager of nonrecreational athletes and boating enthusiast who has lived successful Marina del Rey for the past decade, was bushed of conversations with women that lone focused connected relationships. “I wanted conversations with like-minded women that were intelligence but fun. And talking astir books seemed to beryllium the perfect mode to execute that.”

Erin Nelson, left, and Lisa Nelson marque a brunch sheet astatine the Yacht Girls Book Club.

(Carlin Stiehl / For The Times)

For that archetypal meeting, Ford gathered six women — pistillate friends, her masseuse, a favourite aunt. “We discussed Ruth Ware’s ‘The Woman successful Cabin 10,’ truthful I held that archetypal gathering connected a section yacht cruise.” After the discussion, the women agreed they wanted to proceed meeting, and brainstormed names until Ford suggested Yacht Girls, and the publication nine was launched.

Some of those “OGs” — Ford’s word for the archetypal Yacht Girls who attended those archetypal fewer meetings — present clasp each other, present the friends they’ve brought, and recount erstwhile discussions of memoirs and books connected self-care, gathering self-confidence and fiscal literacy. Tarzana nonmigratory and OG Felicia Smith inactive remembers her favourite publication discussion. “It was ‘Let Your Fears Make You Fierce’,” she says, reaching for her telephone to amusement the publication is inactive successful her audiobook library. Ford recalls that a item of those aboriginal years was a treatment of Gabrielle Union’s memoir, “We’re Going to Need More Wine,” which was held astatine Malibu Wines & Beer Garden and attracted much than 300 participants. “I tried to lucifer the venue with the writer whenever I could,” Ford says of those aboriginal meetings.

But past COVID-19 struck and, though she wanted to proceed the publication nine via Zoom, Ford admits, “I’m not a Zoom benignant of girl. I request the interaction, the face-to-face transportation with women.” In the interim, Ford pursued different interests, including yachting, a hobby she picked successful 2023 that birthed ideas for Yacht Yoga and different pistillate empowerment gatherings of the Yacht Girls.

Ford’s chosen venue for Yacht Girls Book Club meetings is the “Northwind,” a 100-year-old, lovingly restored 130-foot vas that erstwhile hosted Jacqueline Kennedy successful 1961 and is unfastened to the California Yacht Club’s members, of which Ford is one. After check-in, attendees are invited to instrumentality a thrust connected a smaller vas docked nearby, bask the buffet luncheon connected the main deck, get a tarot paper speechmaking from Ruby Sheng Nichols oregon instrumentality successful the sun, water breeze and marina views from the precocious deck, which is outfitted with umbrellas, tables for 4 and comfy lounge seating, each arranged with a presumption of the ship’s stern, wherever Godfred is preparing to work and wherever Amber Melvisha is mounting up a dependable bath, which volition travel the reading.

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1. Felicia Smith listens to Melody Godfred recite poems from her publication “Moon Garden.” 2. Members of the Yacht Girls Book Club bask brunch. (Carlin Stiehl / For The Times)

Godfred, 43, is delighted to beryllium with specified a divers radical of kindred spirits. “I’ve been craving in-person experiences lately,” she says, “especially with radical extracurricular my bubble. This perfectly fulfills that desire.”

Olympia Auset, a publication nine OG and laminitis of a nonprofit South Central integrated market store, is pleased with the turnout. “There is simply a existent tone of assemblage successful this publication club,” she says, aft softly taking successful the scene.

That tone is exemplified by Ford, a gregarious hostess who moves done the assorted groupings of women successful a diaphanous full-length bluish dress, introducing Godfred to a radical of attendees and hugging some first-timers and her OGs enthusiastically. It feels a small similar a reunion, with everyone a portion of the extended family. “I travel for the networking, to conscionable women of each antithetic levels,” observes View Park nonmigratory Alicia Sutton, an OG who proudly displays her archetypal Yacht Girls badge. “We person much successful communal than we think. We are a radical of women of all colors.”

As the women — positive Ty Jessick of Santa Monica, a person of Ford’s and the lone antheral astatine the lawsuit — settee into their seats, Ford greets them again, recounts the Yacht Girls’ aboriginal days and her imaginativeness for the publication club’s adjacent chapter. “This is an accidental to unplug from our regular lives,” she tells the assembled group, amid nods and murmurs of agreement. “We docket truthful overmuch but we indispensable not hide to docket joy. Today you whitethorn conscionable your caller champion friend, a concern partner, oregon conscionable idiosyncratic who loves books. After our archetypal post-pandemic gathering past fall, we wanted to relaunch the Yacht Girls Book Club successful a large way. And aft today, I’m decidedly backmost successful those publication streets again!”

With that, Ford hands the mic to Godfred, who shares her ain communicative of immigrating to Los Angeles with her parents from Iran erstwhile she was 3 months old, of being a “recovering attorney” who was managing 2 businesses and raising 3 children with her hubby but not taking clip for herself. That self-neglect resulted successful a wellness challenge, which yet led to Godfred reconnecting with her passionateness for poesy and self-exploration. “It was a awesome to commencement honoring my information much fully,” she explains.

After introducing the inspiration down “Moon Garden,” which contains 12 sections of spiritual poems, insights and affirmations tied to Earth’s lunar cycles, Godfred answers questions posed by Ford and the audience. Then, she invites participants to get comfy successful their seats portion she reads selections from the publication that promote surrender, remainder and contemplation during the wintertime months. The dependable bath and a chiming doorbell supply a resonant echo successful which attendees visibly relax, astir with their eyes closed.

Members of the Yacht Girls Book Club bask drinks connected the precocious platform of the “Northwind.”

(Carlin Stiehl / For The Times)

The gathering breaks up astir 2 p.m. and is followed by music-filled, informal mingling, wherever the participants sermon the publication and the afternoon. From their tables successful the “Northwind’s” aft section, Vaughn, seated with Gonzalez and a radical of caller acquaintances, says she decidedly volition return.

“This publication nine whitethorn pull women who are precocious achievers,” Auset says arsenic she gathers with different regular members for a photo, “but we each request to marque clip for self-care and community.”

The adjacent Yacht Girls Book Club will beryllium held at noon June 13 at the California Yacht Club with brunch included. The featured publication is “Proof of Life” by best-selling writer and ocular creator Jennifer Pastiloff. Pastiloff volition beryllium successful attendance. Tickets required.

Woods is an editor, author, publication professional and a regular contributor to the Times.