Colleen Hoover, CoHo to her fans, is a prolific author of at least 20 gut-wrenching romances and thrillers.
But it wasn’t until her 2016 novel It Ends with Us, based on the relationship between her mother and father, captured the hearts of TikTok’s devoted and vibrant community of literature lovers, #BookTok, that her popularity exploded.
Proving the subcommunity’s huge realworld effect on book sales globally, It Ends with Us debuted in January at number one on the New York Times best seller list. At the time of writing, her books hold second, third and fourth place on the pre-eminent list.
In SA, It Ends with Us has been in the Exclusive Books top 10 since July last year. Hoover is one of several authors whose older books, some published more than five years ago, are gaining traction on TikTok.
The first book for discussion in TikTok’s newly launched TikTok Book Club — a virtual space for the TikTok community to discuss “new” titles — was Jane Austen’s Persuasion.
The choice of the 1817 romantic classic recognises the BookTok community’s love for the classics, with other titles such as #thegreatgatsby and #prideandprejudice also finding a fan base on TikTok.
Austen herself has a dedicated community of followers who share their love for her books under the hashtag #AustenTok which has 16.2-million views.
Unlike other book clubs, anyone can join TikTok’s. A new book is announced every month, and members can read along and share their experiences in-app.
There’s also a #BookClub hub, so users can find out about the month’s title, and start creating and sharing their own reviews, book covers and latest literary crush.
The TikTok Book Club will discuss a new book every month with discussions being led by five “BookTok Laureates ”— @Bmercer, @li.reading, @edenreidreads, @cocosarel and @jackbenedwards — who have more than 1-million followers altogether.
With nearly 65-billion views to date and some individual videos reaching upwards of 100,000 likes, BookTok blossomed over the past two years, bringing together book lovers around the world.
This community, made up primarily of young women, has real power in the industry. It is popular, trendy and evidently influential.
One of the platform’s most active communities, it has become the place to find #readingrecs and #readinginspo, share reviews and tap into fan culture, boosting book discovery.
Authors who catch the attention of BookTok can suddenly reach thousands of devoted readers who will add them to their #TBR (to be read) pile immediately.
It is revitalising the publishing and bookselling industries by allowing a new generation of readers to share recommendations without the backing of a publisher, media outlet or review column.
Now, anyone can make books fly off the shelves and brands are taking note.
Overseas, book retailers Waterstones and Barnes & Noble have teamed up with TikTok to host events in which content creators can meet in person and also with publishers to get proofs of forthcoming releases and enjoy other bookish delights.
Locally, Exclusive Books showcases the most popular reads on its #BookTok Made Me Read It shelves. Shakti Pillay, content collaborator at Exclusive Books, says the ecosystem is thriving because the young audience — 60% are aged 16-24 — prefers recommendations from peers rather than “experts.”
