Inspirational passion or paid-for promotion: can BookTok be taken on face value?

TikTok’s book reviewing community is here to stay, having even received publishing awards for innovation, but issues of authenticity and safety aboundBookTok, the nickname for TikTok videos in which books are discussed, analysed, cried about and turned into “aesthetic” moodboards, began as a small group of the app’s users who wanted a place to talk about books. It has since grown into a hugely influential community that has the power to pluck authors out of relative obscurity and propel them into the bestsellers charts.Earlier this month it was named FutureBook Person of the Year, an accolade which recognises digital innovation and excellence across the book trade. According to James Stafford, Head of Partnerships and Community at TikTok, BookTok is a community of “creative people around the world with a shared passion for literature”. Publishers, creators and writers have generally agreed that this corner of the platform has had an overwhelmingly positive effect, having led to huge increases in book sales and the discovery of new writers. The Bookseller even recently called it “the last safe place on the internet”. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2022-11-15 17:10:25 UTC ]

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Coronavirus Live Updates: Book trade staffers tell of anxiety over coronavirus outbreak

Anxiety about health and finances, stress at juggling childcare and uncertainty for the future are frequent reactions among book trade staffers to working through the current coronavirus crisis, according to the nearly 150 respondents to The Bookseller's survey, launched yesterday Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-03-25 20:14:36 UTC ]
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EIBF appeals to governments to support booksellers during crisis

The European & International Booksellers Federation (EIBF) has highlighted the enforced closure of brick and mortar bookshops amid the coronavirus crisis is putting the book trade in a precarious position. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-03-24 12:56:22 UTC ]
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The Bookseller survey: staff experiences of working through the coronavirus challenge

At the coronavirus outbreak reshapes our industry, The Bookseller is inviting staff members from across the book trade to share their experiences of working during the coronavirus outbreak. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-03-24 12:47:26 UTC ]
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Hi, I’m a Bookseller! Can I Take Your Puzzle Order Today? (shelftalker)

A bookseller at BookPeople reflects on a week of online and curbside fulfillment. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-03-20 12:00:32 UTC ]
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Bookshop.org to share 30 percent of each purchase with bookstores impacted by coronavirus shutdowns.

Bookshop.org, an alternative to Amazon that shares proceeds from book sales with independent bookstores, will give more money to those stores in response to the coronavirus pandemic and its impact on small businesses. Bookshop announced today that it would increase bookstore partners’ affiliate... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2020-03-18 15:09:12 UTC ]
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Regionals Tweaking Spring Forum Formats, Scheduling

While some regional indie bookseller organizations have canceled spring forum meetings, others are creatively tweaking schedules to put on unique events, ranging from virtual gatherings to mini-forums. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-03-17 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Coronavirus live updates: S&S tells all staff to work from home, more events cancelled

The impact of the coronavirus outbreak continues to be felt across the trade, with further cancellations of literary events and larger numbers in the book trade now working from home to fight the spread. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-03-15 14:06:36 UTC ]
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Publishers donate unused LBF stock to Book Trade Charity

Publishers including Penguin Random House, Pearson, Bonnier Books UK and Macmillan Education have donated books they planned to use at the cancelled London Book Fair to the Book Trade Charity. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-03-11 20:10:12 UTC ]
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Coronavirus-hit Italy sees 25% drop in book sales

According to the Italian Publishers Association (AIE), Italy's book market fell 25% last week, with those areas worst-hit by the coronavirus—such as Lombardy, Veneto and Emilia—seeing drops of 50% and above. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-03-05 21:19:43 UTC ]
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Disappointment but also some relief as 'inevitable' LBF cancellation is confirmed

The book trade has expressed disappointment at the cancellation of the London Book Fair but accepted that it was the right call, as the UK works on containment of the coronavirus outbreak. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-03-04 04:39:23 UTC ]
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Cell Phones and Story Times (shelftalker)

A bookseller fights the urge to require parents to check their cell phones at the door during story time. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-03-02 13:00:00 UTC ]
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Daisy Johnson joins Vintage Indie Bookseller of the Year judging panel

​Booker shortlisted author and former Blackwell's bookseller Daisy Johnson has joined the judging panel for the Vintage Independent Bookseller of the Year Award 2020.  Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-02-27 22:21:00 UTC ]
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Hong Kong bookseller sentenced to 10 years in prison in China

A court in eastern China has sentenced a Swedish seller of books that took a skeptical look at the ruling Communist Party to 10 years in prison for "illegally providing intelligence overseas," in a further sign of Beijing's hard line toward its... Continue reading at CBC

[ CBC | 2020-02-25 13:14:25 UTC ]
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China Sentences Hong Kong Bookseller Gui Minhai to 10 Years in Prison

Mr. Gui, a Chinese-born Swedish citizen, ran a publishing house that appeared to anger the Communist Party Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2020-02-25 10:07:44 UTC ]
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China Sentences Hong Kong Bookseller to 10 Years in Prison

Gui Minhai, a Chinese-born Swedish citizen, ran a publishing house that appeared to anger the Communist Party Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2020-02-25 06:02:16 UTC ]
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CBLDF Launches Rory Root Comics Retailer Grants

The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund plans to create the Rory D. Root Comics Ambassador Grant, a program designed to support community building by retailers, named in honor of the late Rory Root, an influential Berkeley comics retailer noted for his pioneering embrace of book trade practices and... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-02-25 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Gui Minhai given 10-year sentence by Chinese court

Hong Kong bookseller Gui Minhai has been jailed for 10 years by a Chinese court for “illegally providing intelligence overseas”. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-02-24 22:55:21 UTC ]
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Mackay to leave Edinburgh International Book Festival

​Simon Mackay is to leave his role as head of book sales and retail at the Edinburgh International Book Festival in spring 2020 to take on a new project.  Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-02-24 21:36:55 UTC ]
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More city, less village

How can the book trade, and especially agents, be more welcoming of different personality types—many of whom could shake up their business? Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-02-21 04:49:38 UTC ]
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Open letter calls for China to release bookseller Gui Minhai

Publisher Eva Bonnier and author David Lagercrantz are among the signatories of an open letter calling for the release of Gui Minhai, a bookseller imprisoned in China. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-02-20 16:34:50 UTC ]
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