Thinking Beyond BookTok

If we no longer have access to BookTok, what could we do to help continue promoting literary content online?

Recently, a bill approving the possible banning of TikTok in the US was passed by Congress and signed by President Joe Biden. Several lawmakers have been attempting to do this since around 2020 due to how the app is owned by China, which raises concerns over whether the Chinese government is using data from TikTok to spy on American users and put out content which spreads misinformation. Basically, this recent bill states that if Bytedance (the Chinese company that ownsTikTok) doesn’t divest in TikTok and sell it to an American buyer within nine months, the app will be banned throughout the United States. So far, Bytedance has refused to do this, meaning that a permanent ban on the app might occur in the future.

As many people probably know, TikTok has had a major impact on many industries in recent years, and one of them happens to be the publishing industry. This corner of TikTok is referred to as BookTok, which often consists of videos featuring content creators who have made names for themselves by recommending novels they enjoy reading, and such content has helped many new releases become bestsellers, including It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover, Happy Place by Emily Henry, and The Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros while occasionally reviving interest in books that were published about a decade ago, including most notably The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller and The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt. This appears to have helped the publishing industry obtain its highest success in years, with both authors and content creators benefiting greatly from this. Looking at numbers from recent years, the top 90 BookTok authors had their cumulative sales increase to 20 million in 2021 after being at just 9 million in 2020, while in 2022, adult fiction sales outperformed every other literary category.

There are a couple disadvantages to this. One of them is that it’s usually romance and fantasy novels that get the most spotlight on Booktok, with books from other genres still getting attention but not often inspiring the same levels of popularity and engagement as is usually the case for these two genres. This can make it seem as if it’s usually the same types of books that are always being discussed, and some critics of BookTok complain that it’s always the same 20 books that are always being promoted on the website. And some content creators focus almost exclusively on new releases, which is understandable but can still result in those of us watching these videos feeling pressured to read mostly what’s new and trending while ignoring older books which we might enjoy just as much.

And of course, there’s my own mixed feelings about TikTok itself. I like using it sometimes to watch things pertaining to my interests, including some BookTok content, but I don’t like using it nearly as much as others do. My parents use the app way more than I do, and they’ll sometimes watch videos where people spout all sorts of bad news meant to give viewers a sense of doom about the world. And with the powerful algorithm that’s often based on a user’s personal information and the misinformation that spreads very easily in the app, I can’t say I’m one of the app’s biggest fans.

But overall, despite how I feel about TikTok, I’m still happy as a reader and writer to see that there’s an online space which exists for readers and has done a lot to keep them engaged while also helping increase the sales for books in recent years, leading to more success for authors and their publishers. This is something that I think more writers should be enthusiastic about, even if it sometimes involves books they might not be inclined to read themselves, because regardless of what people read, seeing an increase in reading should be something worth celebrating.

So if TikTok ends up being banned, this means that a major tool the publishing industry has gained to help sell books through word-of-mouth will be lost. Readers could lose access to a community that helps nurture their interest in books, and we might no longer see as many bestsellers gaining the levels of success which many recently published books obtained thanks in large part to BookTok.

There is a lot here which should have those that care about reading and the future of the publishing industry concerned, but is there a chance that we already have the tools necessary to move on from BookTok if need be, and that it’s all just a matter of being aware of what’s already available for us to make such a transition if need be?

Our first and possibly easiest alternative would be to continue using existing social media cites like YouTube and Instagram to promote literary content.

Both YouTube and Instagram have been used to promote books for a long time. It may have not had the same levels of success as BookTok has, but readers still use these websites to look up literary content and share their own content as well. It remains relevant even now, especially since many BookTok influencers also have their own accounts on these websites. Also, about 60% of TikTok users in a recent survey have said they’d move on to Instagram or Facebook if TikTok were to no longer be accessible, meaning that they already have some sort of backup plan in place.

And the rest of us would just use both websites more regularly, putting up our own videos or pictures either regularly or when we feel like it. I tend to prefer Instagram because I have a much easier time posting pictures of the books I read rather than making videos for them, and because you can follow authors, publishing companies, and local bookstores to  get a better idea of books you might want to read, new releases, where to get books, and any literary-related events going on close to home, not to mention all the hashtags you can follow to get additional content.

We also have the option of using websites dedicated to tracking the books we read, such as Goodreads or Storygraph, to share more literary content. However, because these websites are more dedicated to tracking what we read and writing reviews rather than traditional social media posts, there is probably only so much we can do to promote content through such websites.

We could also attempt to create a website similar to TikTok, but with an exclusive focus on books. This would probably a more challenging option because creating a social media website exclusively for one type of content might not be a guaranteed success right away, but since those involved with BookTok already have a strong online presence, maybe the most successful content creators could find a way to make this work. I won’t comment too much on how this could be done, but I think putting an emphasis on book reviews through video, which is a large part of what BookTok does, would be the best way to promote the website and encourage former BookTok users and creators to consider checking it out. Other options for content could include exclusive interviews with authors, book trailers for upcoming releases, and videos of popular or local bookstores which readers should consider visiting.

Another option would be to come up with a website that combines both traditional social media related to books along with writing. This is an idea which I really hope gets taken into consideration.  We already have websites like Substack to put out our writing and share content using methods similar to traditional social media. However, this would be a website for writers (which could include established authors as well as writers willing to start sharing their work for the first time) that is dedicated exclusively to creative writing and books, rather than having the many subcategories which Substack has, such as politics, cooking, or music. This is something I think could be very useful because it could help writers maintain a connection with readers which few other websites have been doing so far. The work shared by writers could include traditional writing blogs, book reviews, a chapter a week of a novel they’re working on (which some writers are already doing here on Substack), or poetry or short story collections. Other things included in this website might be communities dedicated to writer’s workshops or book clubs, video chats with writers, and a space for general social media posts like Substack Notes. The possibilities are endless, and I think it’d be great if someone out there would be willing to test this out.

Overall, I do think we can come up with a good alternative to BookTok if it becomes necessary. And even if TikTok doesn’t end up being banned in the US, I still think we should all be willing to do our part to help maintain an interest in reading and support the work of writers, booksellers and librarians, whether that is by sharing our own work here on Substack, sharing information about new releases we enjoy reading through social media, checking out books from our local libraries, or shopping at independent bookstores. Websites with communities dedicated to literary content can do much to help with this, but so can anyone who may not have a lot of influence but is still willing to help in any way they can.