If you haven’t already found yourself tumbling down the rabbit hole that is YouTube, I urge you to begin your journey. Am I suggesting that you lie in bed at night, eyes bloodshot and watery, as you yawn away hours of video-binging? Of course not! Am I guilty of this very thing? Yes. (Shh! Don’t tell my children that it’s Mommy’s fault that she is a Mombie in the morning.)
I started watching YouTube because I was searching for workout videos. Those led to healthy recipe videos, which, somehow, led to da, da, da, daaaaa… BOOKTUBE! As an avid reader and writer, it doesn’t take a stretch of the imagination to see why this world would have drawn me in. However, over the three years that I have been watching BookTube videos, I am amazed of all I have learned. If you are a writer, I would like to share a few things I’ve learned from watching BookTube.
1. What readers like and dislike in your genre. When you follow BookTubers who review your particular genre or any genre for that matter, you get to hear their most intimate thoughts about books and writing. They will openly give their opinion on hated and loved tropes, what they liked about how the author presented the story, the writing, quirks, etc. This has been a very valuable tool for me, especially when it comes to books that are similar to my genre or current work-in-progress. It helps me know what to avoid and what I might include. If the general consensus among several BookTubers is that love triangles are overdone, you might take that into consideration. Obviously, do not dictate what you write based solely on their thoughts, but, depending on their following, other people definitely take what they say into account, and THAT is something to think about.
2. Marketing strategies. Something we writers need to learn (the earlier the better) is marketing. If you’re thinking to yourself, “Nah, not me. I’m going to get published through a traditional publisher and they will do all my marketing for me,” I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but nowadays, the author is in charge of most, if not all, of their marketing. Sure, the publisher will probably create some swag and send a few ARCs to a well-known book-blogger/BookTuber, but you are in charge of creating your online presence and putting yourself out there.
While there are tips and tricks you pick up by simply watching the reviewers, like what they like/don’t like when approached by an author, submission guidelines for review, what they like and dislike when receiving a book for review, and other tips that you may not even realize will help you until you put it into practice; but a wealth of information comes from writers on YouTube. There are numerous BookTubers who provide videos about marketing. If you binge their videos from the beginning, you can also learn about what worked for them.
3. Writing advice out the wazoo. There is a sea of information out there from writers who are down in the trenches, neck-deep in the published-author-ocean. I promise you, you can search almost anything on which you are seeking advice and a video has already been made: world-building mistakes, how to outline your novel, do you need a pen name, how to build your author platform, quarterly goals (you can learn how these are a valuable tool to add to your arsenal), how to character build, etc.
4. Other tools and outlets to help with your authorial needs. Often times, authors will be happy to share new tidbits that they have picked up and this includes other places you can seek help. While watching BookTube, I have learned that there are many podcasts out there that offer writing/marketing/publishing advice. In addition, authors have also shared services that have helped them, like sites that offer stock photos, sites with educational videos, services that will help you manage your social media, etc. Be warned that a lot of these services will likely have a fee of some kind (membership or cost per use), but you can also see how a service works and how well it works from someone who has actually used it. There are many services out there offered to authors and many of which you should be wary, but you can save yourself the worry if you hear about someone else’s experience first.
The point is, the best thing you can do, as a writer, is immerse yourself in the book and writing world. Watch BookTubers, follow authors on social media, listen to podcasts… This will greatly improve your knowledge of this wonderful world to which we all hope to contribute, one day.
If you’re looking for a place to start, here are a few of my favorite BookTubers: PeruseProject, Jenna Moreci, Kim Chance, Hailey In Bookland, Kassidy Voinche, Jessethereader, abookutopia, Katytastic, Between Chapters, and Vivian Reis.
コメント