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 ]
News tagged with: #small group #relative obscurity #book trade #creative people #book sales #recently called #bookseller

Other news stories related to: "Inspirational passion or paid-for promotion: can BookTok be taken on face value?"


Netfix stocks vending machine with 'human' hearts to promote witch-based fantasy

The vending machine, created by Bogle Bartle Hegarty, was placed at Comic Con in London, as part of a seasonally appropriate activation for the new Netflix series The Bastard Son & The Devil Himself. Continue reading at Media Week

[ Media Week | 2022-10-28 12:44:39 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #comic con #netflix series #vending machine


In Annie Ernaux, a Nobel Laureate Who Plumbs Her Own Passions

The French writer, who was awarded the 2022 Nobel Prize in Literature, blurs the line between fiction and memoir with spare prose she has characterized as “brutally direct.” Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2022-10-06 16:13:27 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #memoir #spare prose #nobel laureate #annie ernaux


How Lynne Tillman's 'Mothercare' helped me face my aging parents' future

David Ulin talks with Lynne Tillman about "Mothercare," her memoir on managing her mother's decline — just as he begins a similar journey. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2022-09-29 13:00:09 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #memoir #lynne tillman


TikTok Beefs Up #BookTok With Penguin Random House

TikTok users can now link their favorite books from Penguin Random House within their videos following a partnership between the video creation platform and the publisher. Users in the U.K. and U.S. can click "Add Link" and select "Book" prior to posting their video, at which point any Penguin... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2022-09-20 19:30:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #penguin random house ##booktok #tiktok users


The Guardian view on BookTok: a welcome disruptor of the status quo | Editorial

The social media platform is revolutionising bookshops and galvanising publishers. Enjoy it while it lastsThe bestselling book in the UK last week, and of the year so far, is an American novel that was published in 2016. If that sentence sounds implausible, the odds are you have not yet caught... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2022-09-04 17:25:02 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #bestselling book #nielsen #colleen hoover #covid pandemic #guardian view


‘More zeros than I’ve seen in my life’: the author who got a six-figure deal via ‘BookTok’

After she was dropped by her agent, Alex Aster turned to a books-obsessed corner of TikTok to gauge interest in her YA novel … and now Lightlark is one of the most eagerly anticipated releases of the yearHaving finally published her first novel, Alex Aster was feeling disheartened. The book had... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2022-08-16 13:32:30 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #ya novel #film rights #million times #books world #six-figure deal #literary agent


Reader, I followed them: TikTok expands its content to tap into the BookTok phenomenon

New retailer partnerships, live events and book clubs are all planned to capitalise on the platform’s vibrant community of literature loversSocial media app TikTok is making increased efforts to tap into the power of its books content, with new retailer partnerships, live events and... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2022-08-15 16:03:52 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #bestseller charts #emily henry #beach read #casey mcquiston #briefly gorgeous #older titles #emotional novels #live events


I could not believe how bravely Salman Rushdie faced the threats to his life. That’s true courage | Hadley Freeman

In our conversations and emails, his determination to not let the fatwa define him has been evidentThat Salman Rushdie was nearly murdered at an event in New York while talking about whether the United States was a safe haven for exiled writers is an irony he’d have rejected as too far-fetched... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2022-08-14 12:39:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #memoir #issues raised #guardian columnist #hadley freeman #fantastical novels


The Sandman: ingenious TV that will inspire an entire generation of goths

The enduringly popular comic book series about gods and the afterlife gets the big-bucks, amazing-cast Netflix treatment. And it’s good. Very good, in factNothing lets me know I’m in for a week of tedious emails like being tasked to write about a big-budget fantasy series for this fun TV column.... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2022-08-06 06:00:07 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #comic book #road trip #heavy heart


‘Fantastical claims’ and Stephen King: Penguin Random House and DOJ face off for antitrust battle

In one of the biggest antitrust showdowns of President Biden’s tenure, the Justice Department is pulling out the big guns to stop a mega-publishing merger. The Justice Department’s ambitious bid to stop Penguin Random House from buying rival publisher Simon & Schuster has started taking on... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2022-07-25 16:10:21 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #penguin random house #legal thriller #big guns #justice department #president biden #stephen king


Amazon Books’ Fantastical Campaign Aims to Inspire Reading in the Scrolling Era

Many people may have forgotten that before it became a tech and ecommerce behemoth, Amazon started as an online bookseller in 1994. Nearly three decades later, Amazon is celebrating the roots of its business with a major campaign for its books division. The goal of the campaign, titled "That... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2022-07-25 13:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #bookseller #books division #online bookseller #amazon books


Diana Kennedy, cookbook author who promoted Mexican cuisine, dies at 99

In defense of authenticity, she influenced generations of chefs and deplored Americans’ fast-food experience of wan tacos and overseasoned enchiladas. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2022-07-24 17:44:03 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #cookbook #influenced generations #cookbook author


Listen to an 8-minute song inspired by the work of Marilynne Robinson.

This week, composer, violinist, and vocalist Caroline Shaw—who in 2013 became the youngest ever recipient of the Pulitzer Prize for Music—announced her second album with Attacca Quartet: Evergreen will be out from Nonesuch on September 23. Shaw and Attacca Quartet also shared the opening track... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2022-07-22 13:25:38 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #pulitzer prize #marilynne robinson


S&S Launches Banned Books Promotion for Bookstores

In response to growing book censorship, Simon & Schuster has launched a “Read banned books!” promotion that provides information on challenged titles, in-store displays, and social media materials. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-06-30 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #challenged titles #simon schuster


James Patterson apologizes for saying white male authors face ‘racism’

The 75-year-old writer has penned more than 300 titles, sold more than 500m copies and is worth an estimated $800mThe bestselling author James Patterson has apologized for saying white male authors face “another form of racism”.In an interview with the Sunday Times, Patterson said white male... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2022-06-15 18:35:13 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #bestselling author #sunday times


James Patterson Apologizes For Saying Older White Male Writers Face Racism

“I absolutely do not believe that racism is practiced against white writers," the bestselling author said. Continue reading at HuffPost

[ HuffPost | 2022-06-15 06:32:10 UTC ]
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James Patterson claims White male writers face ‘another form of racism’

“It’s even harder for older writers," Patterson, whose net worth is estimated to be $800 million, told the Sunday Times. "You don’t meet many 52-year-old white males.” Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2022-06-14 14:28:52 UTC ]
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James Patterson feels the heat after saying white men face 'another form of racism'

Bestselling author James Patterson is concerned for white male writers, whom he thinks are having difficulty finding work in the entertainment industry. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2022-06-13 23:49:20 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #bestselling author #entertainment industry


The Ever-Shifting Challenge of Promoting Literature in Translation

An industry roundtable, held at the Multipli Forti literary festival in New York on June 6, addressed how independent publishers can get works of translated literature to readers in an era marked by media saturation and increased dominance by major companies over the book business. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-06-09 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #literary festival #book business #translated literature #independent publishers


New Children’s Book by Channing Tatum Inspired by His Daughter

The new children's book by Channing Tatum is inspired by his daughter, their relationship, and the importance of being unique. Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2022-06-01 18:29:38 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #children’s book #children's book