By: Grace Liu
Earlier this year, the parent company of TikTok, ByteDance, started to publish books. TikTok has helped many authors sell their books, and make their books known.
More than 150 million TikTok users in the U.S. alone are interested in books. #BookTok videos have been viewed over 91 billion times, and authors on TikTok have benefited as well. For example, author Colleen Hoover made the best-seller list because she promoted her books on TikTok. Videos tagged #ColleenHoover have been viewed over 4.2 billion times, and Colleen has sold over 24 million copies of her books.
In 2022, sales driven by over 100 authors with large BookTok followers reached 760 million dollars. “To say it’s hugely important is an understatement at this point,” said Bess Braswell, a publishing director at Harlequin.
However, ByteDance could also put traditional publishers, or self publishers at a disadvantage. Publishers find it hard to create viral book videos, as TikTok users tend to not watch anything that seems like an ad.
ByteDance has declined to give any details on which genres they are going to publish, but the company seems interested in fantasy, romance, and mystery, which are popular genres on TikTok.
A best-selling romance author, Tricia O’Malley, who self-published about 40 novels, received an offer from ByteDance in April. The deal included a social media marketing campaign, royalties, and an advance of $3,500 for each book. She turned down the offer, but she said she was tempted. “The reality is that BookTok is selling books,” said Tricia.
Ella Fox, a romance author and advertising consultant, said that ByteDance could make sure the algorithm prioritized their own books. “People would give their eye teeth to get in front of that audience and to be pushed in that way,” she said.
Although ByteDance is popular, it might still face the struggles that traditional publishers face. Viral book videos will not automatically cause readers to buy books if they are not appealing to the reader.
“They can get more eyeballs, but is that going to translate into sales?” asked Cindy Hwang, the vice president and editorial director of Berkley. “It’s not just about getting the hits, it’s about getting readers to buy the book.”
Link to article: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/01/books/tiktok-book-publishing-bytedance.html