TikTok, as an app, and the hobby of reading books have a somewhat complicated affair. They are opposites in many ways, an age-old tradition of stories being told through the written word versus short, easily-consumable and readily available pieces of media with little deeper meaning. TikTok has had an adverse effect on the younger generations’ attention spans and literacy skills, and yet it is responsible for making hundreds of people read more.
Enter BookTok, a side of TikTok dedicated solely to reading, with influencers recommending novels that thus skyrocket in popularity, sections of bookshops being dedicated to ‘As seen on TikTok’ novels, and independent authors having to jump through far fewer hoops to get their books published and read. From the outside, it seems like a wonderful thing, more people are getting into reading and less authors are struggling to get their work recognised, however, the abundance of independently published books, that need nothing but a large internet following to become bestsellers, are more often than not filled with mediocre writing and mistakes that were not properly edited out. Books are being advertised by influencers as ‘6 star reads’ that are riddled with grammatical errors and juvenile penmanship, likely because these Booktok creators have been given no authority to recommend books, other than having hundreds of followers. Easily digestible love stories and formulaic plots are topping the charts merely because the male protagonist is protective and is described as having a six pack. The actual plot of the novel seems to matter less than the fact that it is an ‘enemies to lovers, slow burn, grumpy x sunshine, billionaire alpha romance’.
Truthfully, people can read whatever they like, books are subjective and if a book is a bestseller, it is because many people have read and enjoyed it. The subpar writing might be aiding people to get into reading books, reaching for the more complex plots and writing after having a few books under their belt. The difference is that most readers left behind the juvenile writing and themes when they were, well, juveniles, reading has not just skyrocketed in popularity since TikTok, social media has been advocating for it for years. Wattpad and ArchiveofOurOwn (commonly known as AO3) were, and remain, the location of millions of original works of writing. Known for being where many fan fictions were published, both websites introduced, more often than not, girls, into the world of literature, their works of writing being reached by millions of people with similar interests to them. Many books from these websites have become their own intellectual property, with fan fictions about Harry Styles, Draco Malfoy and original works being developed to novels and even television shows and films.
But the difference between these works posted on Wattpad and other similar sites and books published as a result of TikTok, is that those on fanfiction websites are not pretending to be fully cohesive and publish-worthy stories or novels; they are creative expressions with no intention of making any profit. Books are released after having garnered a following on apps like TikTok and Instagram, drumming up readers in a very similar way to Wattpad, but they must be paid for by the readers. Authors and their stories gaining popularity prior to the book even being published means that they often forgo adequate editing for the sake of a speedy release and keeping up with the demand.
In the grander scheme of things, more people reading is not a bad thing, whether they’re interested in literature classics, or a story about the alpha of a wolf pack falling in love with the protagonist. If only there were more opportunities for independently published novels to receive the adequate polishing before being issued on a grand scale. Truly, the plot of a book matters little if people enjoy it, but should “influencers” be recommending books to large audiences with little knowledge on how well or correctly they are formulated and written.
