So I’m on TikTok.
I post reviews of books about writing, craft, storytelling, and other related topics. Plus, I also post short videos on tips to help you write tighter, tell stories better, and how to improve. I don’t claim to know everything–these videos aren’t prescriptive–rather, they’re meant for viewers to take what is useful to them. I might not be the best writer in the world, but I’m further along than most. And I’m only getting better.
I’d always heard about how TikTok is great for sales if you’re a book publisher (cough). But when I first encountered it, I didn’t know what I would do. In early January, I had toyed around with unboxing videos from stationery shops. Yet they felt silly, and I worried that I would have to keep buying stuff to make the videos. The basics of social media content are to post things that are entertaining, educational, or inspiring, preferably all three. At the time, I didn’t think I had anything like that. I contented myself with watching chefs scrape their expensive knives on perfectly crusty bread and tattooed girls shave rugs.
But then I remembered my book notes.
In the summer of 2021, I bought a book called, How to Take Smart Notes. The book claimed to teach a note-taking system which went beyond productivity and freed the mind to do what’s important: think, understand, and write. Moreover, the book had evidence-based practices for learning how to learn, how to manage your discipline, how to read, and more.
The book immediately caught my interest because it claimed to solve a problem I’d been struggling with. Namely, that I have systems for productivity, but productivity does not equal insightful, quality writing. I knew How to Take Smart Notes would be helpful for the more research-heavy stories, but I wasn’t sure how to finagle it into something for fiction. I thought that if I forced myself to take notes as I read, then I would theoretically be a better reader, better able to articulate my responses to something when reading.
I threw out all the free bookmarks littering my apartment and replaced them with blank 5×3 index cards. I used those index cards as bookmarks and write on them as I read, frilling my books with page flags. When I finished reading, I summarized the book, my thoughts, impressions, etc. I kept the finished cards in an empty tea box from Trader Joe’s, hoping I would hit critical mass and come up with an amazing idea of staggering value and entertainment. In reality, I used them sometimes for blog posts and rarely looked them over.
June 2022: My roommate went out of town for two weeks. I was bored and alone. That was, of course, the prime environment for shenanigans. I thought, my second book is due to my editor in late July. If I don’t step up my social media and marketing game, I’m not going to sell anything. I challenged myself to post—anything—at least one video a day. I realized that one index card of notes, front and back, was about 60 seconds of voiceover. And then I was like—holy crap, I have a year’s worth of content in that beat-up little Trader Joe’s box.
I knew just doing book reviews wouldn’t help me stand out. There are so many book reviewers, you need to have your own niche within BookTok. But even then I had an edge. I have tons of books on craft, writing, poetry, writing exercises, storytelling, editing, publishing, you name it. I got to work.
So here’s how it usually goes. I have a book on writing or storytelling, and I make a 60 second review. Then, I do 15 second videos on a writing exercise, tip, quote, or something in the actual book—anywhere from 1 to 3 of these. My channel also has shorter videos on writing tips, challenges, and advice.
I created the channel because I was bored. I kept it up because it helped me. I’m keeping it going because I want to share all the writing and storytelling knowledge that I wish I had.
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