About — The Great Fact Big Book Step Study

Where This Comes From

In the early 1980s on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, a man named Dale M. started something different. He went back to the original text of Alcoholics Anonymous — the Big Book — and asked a simple question: what if we just did what it says?

Not what treatment centers said it said. Not what had been passed down through decades of well-meaning telephone game. The actual book, read word for word, followed step by step.

What he found surprised him: the instructions were right there all along. Pages 58 through 103 lay out a clear, specific program of action. Many people in AA had heard about the steps, talked about the steps — but hadn't sat down and followed the precise directions printed in black and white on those pages.

This discovery became the Hyannis format, named after the Cape Cod area where it started. It spread because it worked. Today, Hyannis format Big Book Step Study meetings exist across the country and around the world.

The Great Fact Big Book Step Study carries this tradition forward as a free, coed, online meeting — open to anyone, anywhere, every Wednesday evening on Zoom.

What Makes This Format Different

This isn't a typical AA meeting. Here are six things that set Big Book Step Study apart.

01

By the Numbers

We follow the Big Book systematically, page by page. The text is not vague — it gives numbered instructions, specific prayers, and clear directions. This meeting takes those at face value.

02

15-Week Cycle

A continuous rotation through the first 164 pages of the Big Book. When the cycle ends, it starts again — so you can join any week.

03

Read Aloud

Every meeting starts with reading the assigned pages aloud. Members take turns reading from the Big Book, one paragraph at a time. The text speaks first.

04

Qualify from the Text

Sharing connects personal experience directly to what was just read. This keeps the focus on the solution described in the Big Book, not on outside opinions.

05

Speaker Qualifications

Weeks 14 and 15 of each cycle feature a speaker sharing their full story — what it was like, what happened, and what it's like now.

06

Open to All

Coed, online, no sign-up required. Just show up on Zoom any Wednesday at 7:30 PM EST. Everyone is welcome.

The 15-Week Cycle

We follow a continuous 15-week rotation through the first 164 pages of the Big Book. When the cycle ends, it starts again — so you can join any week.

Week	Step	Chapter / Reading	Pages
1	Step 1	Doctor's Opinion & Bill's Story	pp. xi–16
2	Step 1	There Is a Solution & More About Alcoholism	pp. 17–43
3	Step 2	We Agnostics	pp. 44–57
4	Step 3	How It Works (first 3 paragraphs)	pp. 58–60
5	Step 4	How It Works (balance)	pp. 60–71
6	Step 5	Into Action (first 2 paragraphs)	pp. 72–75
7	Steps 6 & 7	Into Action	pp. 76–78
8	Steps 8 & 9	Into Action (balance)	pp. 78–84
9	Step 10	Into Action & A Vision for You	pp. 84–88
10	Steps 11 & 12	Working With Others	pp. 89–103
11	Review	More About Alcoholism & To Wives	pp. 104–121
12	Review	The Family Afterward & To Employers	pp. 122–150
13	Review	A Vision for You	pp. 151–164
14	Speaker	Speaker Qualification	—
15	Speaker	Speaker Qualification	—

Sharing Qualifications

At this meeting, sharing is reserved for people who have:

1 Completed all twelve steps as laid out in the first 164 pages of the Big Book
2 Done so with a Big Book Step Study sponsor

This isn't about seniority or time sober. It's about having walked through the steps yourself, so that what gets shared comes from direct experience rather than theory.

If you haven't completed the steps yet, you're still welcome at every meeting. Listening is how most people start. When you're ready, we can help you find a sponsor and begin the work.

Join Us This Wednesday

Whether you're new to recovery or have been sober for decades, there's always more to discover in the Big Book.

Join on Zoom

Wednesdays at 7:30 PM EST · No sign-up required

Questions? greatfactbbss@gmail.com

About The Great Fact