Two years ago, Jeneane O’Riley self-published her fantasy novel, “How Does It Feel?” ”, an enemies-to-lovers story about a woman who meets a handsome, unhinged fairy prince. Without a publisher to help her market her novel or get it into bookstores, she decided to promote it herself on TikTok.
Soon, TikTok users began posting their own viral reactions to the book, and sales skyrocketed. A message from a reader shocked by the twists and turns of the novel has been viewed more than six million times. The book reached number one on Amazon.
“This type of free marketing for a small indie author is unheard of,” said O’Riley, who later signed a deal with Bloom Books, a romance publishing house at Sourcebooks.
Now, with a law banning TikTok in the United States taking effect on Sunday, O’Riley and other authors are scrambling to keep their fan networks intact. O’Riley, who has more than 52,000 followers on TikTok, urged people to find her on Instagram, Threads and Facebook. But she fears her close-knit audience on TikTok will disperse.
“I worry about the effect this will have on my readers and friends because their sense of community will be destroyed,” she said.
Over the past few years, publishers, authors and booksellers have become increasingly dependent on TikTok to generate sales. Many of the best-selling fiction writers in the United States – including Colleen Hoover, Sarah J. Maas, Freida McFadden, Ana Huang and Rebecca Yarros – owe their success in part to their visibility on TikTok.
“If TikTok disappears, there will be a real hole in the market,” said Dominique Raccah, publisher and chief executive of Sourcebooks, which publishes BookTok authors like Scarlett St. Clair, McFadden and Huang.
TikTok’s future has been uncertain since President Biden signed a law last year forcing the app’s Chinese owner, ByteDance, to sell the platform or face a ban in the United States. Supporters of the law argue that the app poses national security risks because the Chinese government could use the platform to spread propaganda or to surveil Americans.
The Supreme Court voted unanimously on Friday that the law can take effect, rejecting TikTok’s argument that a ban would violate the First Amendment. Questions remain about how a ban will be enforced. Some lawmakers have pressed Biden to extend the sales deadline in order to save the app, while President-elect Donald J. Trump is reportedly considering issuing an executive order to allow TikTok’s continued operations. But it seems increasingly likely that the platform, used by 170 million Americans, will soon become unavailable in the United States.
As a ban approaches, some in the publishing industry are preparing to pivot and hope other apps will fill the void, noting they have seen social platforms wax and wane. Others worried that nothing would replicate the alchemy of TikTok, where a single viral video can propel an author onto the bestseller list and where readers evangelize to other readers, a form of marketing far more effective than traditional advertising.
“Will it be replaced by something that will have the same value and impact? No, it won’t,” said book industry analyst Thad McIlroy. “Something unique happened with BookTok.”
Over the past few years, TikTok has radically reshaped almost every aspect of the book industry. Barnes & Noble, Target and Walmart have created online stores and storefronts of trendy books on TikTok. Booksellers follow what’s happening on the application and stock up on titles that have gone viral.
And publishers have found new writers on the platform. Authors like Lucy Score, Hannah Grace, and Jasmine Mas, who all started self-publishing and saw their books take off on TikTok, have signed major deals with publishers.
“It’s pulled a lot of publishers into the 21st century,” said Shannon DeVito, director of books at Barnes & Noble. “It pushed them to be more flexible and pay attention to what readers are looking for.”
TikTok has become a major driver of print sales as influencers want physical items displayed in videos and on their shelves. It turned younger, reluctant readers into heavy book buyers and obsessive fans. And in a way, it has democratized book marketing, giving readers as much or more influence than traditional gatekeepers.
“Anyone can go viral in an instant, and this has given users the power to express what they want to read,” said Anna Hall, director of digital marketing at Zando, an independent publishing house. Zando has helped its authors gain more subscribers on other platforms, including Patreon and YouTube, Hall said.
“We are monitoring closely and are prepared to adapt,” she said.
BookTok’s rebound has not been evenly distributed across the industry. The most popular genres on the platform are romance, thrillers and fantasy. But there has also been a viral frenzy around older works and more literary titles, like Madeline Miller’s “The Song of Achilles” and Hanya Yanagihara’s “A Little Life.”
Many publishers and authors are now frantically scrambling to boost their networks on other social media sites like Instagram, Threads, and Facebook.
“If everyone uses Substack, we will work with our authors on Substack, if everyone uses Reels, we will become even better at Reels,” said Molly Waxman, vice president and executive director of marketing at Sourcebooks.
BookTok creators – some of whom have made lucrative careers as influencers – are bracing for a ban and are distressed by the potential loss of revenue and networks.
Cait Jacobs, 26, started recommending books on TikTok in late 2019 and gained a following at the start of the pandemic. Jacobs now has some 314,000 followers on the platform and has created sponsored content for major publishers like Penguin Random House, Macmillan and Simon & Schuster.
“I’ve always wanted to talk about my favorite books and shout out my favorite authors every day,” said Jacobs, who typically earns a few thousand dollars a month as an influencer. “I owe everything to TikTok.”
Now, Jacobs aims to maintain a network of followers on other platforms like Instagram, but worries it won’t be the same.
“There’s a lot of grieving and a lot of stress,” Jacobs said of the mood among BookTok creators. “We are losing a community that we built and which has become part of our daily lives, where we have made friends for life. »
