Booktok and reading culture: Algorithms rewriting our bookshelves

BookTok, a subgenre of the social media platform TikTok, “started building on TikTok during the Covid-19 lockdowns of 2020 and 2021.” Although beginning as a social media version of a physical book club, evidence suggests that the literary sphere is beginning to take BookTok more seriously and view it as more reputable, with the company Waterstones creating a section on their website entitled “BookTok Reads”. This page describes the composition of this literary social media subculture as containing “armies of passionate content creators whose judgements can make or break a book, author, or even entire genre.”

For example, the classical text White Nights by Dostoyevsky has seen a resurgence on BookTok, with potential reasoning behind this perhaps revealed in a TikTok video uploaded by BookTokker Jack Edwards, providing commentary on White Nights

Consequently, critics and readers alike have begun to re-evaluate and recognise the BookTok community and its creators as a highly influential component of the ever-evolving literary sphere. One of the more positive aspects of the BookTok community is its ability to make literature traditionally perceived as highly academic and elitist accessible to the masses. For example, the classical text White Nights by Dostoyevsky has seen a resurgence on BookTok, with potential reasoning behind this perhaps revealed in a TikTok video uploaded by BookTokker Jack Edwards, providing commentary on White Nights. After watching this video, I began to comprehend that BookTok likely acted as a vehicle of accessibility to consumers of BookTok. Many of the general population would likely be unaware of classical novels such as the aforementioned without their popularisation on BookTok.

Subsequently, BookTok has become a necessary tool to dismantle elitist and exclusionary attitudes towards the classics, especially the outdated view that only a certain reader can enjoy and relate to them, particularly given that the BookTok literary space is populated by young people. What BookTok creators are beginning to reveal is that themes of classic literature, like those of Dostoyevsky, appear to be universal and transcend time, as well as social and cultural barriers. This can also be viewed in the resurgence of readers of Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar, with many TikTok videos popularising her ‘Fig Tree’ analogy, allowing readers a ‘way in’ to the book, again reinforcing the reality that BookTok is directly influencing and responsible for a resurgence in readership and interest in classic literature.

The nature of BookTok is vast and confusing, with different users experiencing unique aspects, given that TikTok functions based on personalised algorithms, introducing users to content that it has assessed will be of particular interest. As such, everyone from critics to readers to the BookTok creators and influencers themselves must learn to navigate the modern and fast-changing literary landscape in which it is represented. BookTok readers must learn to grapple with trends of overconsumption, with new texts becoming popular on BookTok constantly, frequently leading to a sense of hostility, with certain corners of the BookTok community engaging in discourse with competitive undertones, pushing to have read more books than another influencer, creator, or even casual viewer. This reality also leads to the idea that creators of this subgenre need to strive for authenticity, highlighting books they have gained enjoyment from reading, rather than potentially promoting shallow engagement with texts to readers.

Romantasy as a subgenre has come under much scrutiny by the general public due to the misconception that the erotic and sexual undertones of a specific part of the romantasy genre represent BookTok in its entirety

Critics, too, need to comprehend the validity of the BookTok ‘movement,’ just as authors are also coming to realise, and embrace and work with it, rather than belittle or reject it. Users involved with BookTok can also foster a sense of community within the literary sphere. The space can become an outlet for freedom of literary expression, as well as for the meeting of like-minded people, who are able to recommend books to others, with such a community also bridging the gap between elitism and academia. BookTok can also aid the development of new authors, helping them to increase their publicity and readership, with authors such as Rebecca Yarros and Colleen Hoover achieving swathes of devoted fans through the platform. The Guardian reported that “the [romantasy] subgenre helped increase the market share by 41.3% last year, aided by bestseller Fourth Wing from Rebecca Yarros.”

Yet, romantasy as a subgenre has come under much scrutiny by the general public due to the misconception that the erotic and sexual undertones of a specific part of the romantasy genre represent BookTok in its entirety. This misconception has been used to paint some members of the BookTok community in a light that entirely misrepresents the literature they enjoy and engage with. This is in addition to demonising (often female-presenting) members of the BookTok community who do engage with erotic literature, or literature that contains sexual imagery or components. The popularity of both romantic and erotic fiction can be supported by an article on BookTok and romantasy by The Guardian, which reported that “other genres that have benefited from traction online include romance and erotic fiction, which saw sales value increases of 9.8% and 18.1% respectively last year.”

It is important to consider BookTok’s vast potential for social positivity, encouraging a younger audience to engage in reading, in addition to highlighting texts to those who would otherwise be unable to access more traditional literature

Furthermore, even Waterstones’ “BookTok Reads” section on their website contains a subsection entitled “Our Bestselling Romantasy Books,” including texts such as the popularised A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas, in addition to the aforementioned Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros. This further reinforces the validity of the subgenre of “romantasy” coined by BookTok, in addition to the reputability of the opinion and categorisation of those who engage in BookTok more generally.

Despite BookTok being a confusing and, at times, negative digital space and movement, readers, critics, authors, and influencers themselves appear to be recognising it as a platform for increased accessibility and publicity. It is important to consider BookTok’s vast potential for social positivity, encouraging a younger audience to engage in reading, in addition to highlighting texts to those who would otherwise be unable to access more traditional literature. Whether the literary community appreciates it or not, BookTok is fast becoming a vital and powerful vessel for literary change within the more general sphere, one that evidence suggests society is coming to accept, if not yet fully embrace.