NEW YORK – ByteDance, the Chinese technology giant that owns TikTok, made an initial move into publishing digital books last year. Now the company’s publishing imprint, 8th Note Press, is planning to significantly expand its retail footprint by publishing print editions and selling them in physical bookstores.
To do that, 8th Note Press is teaming up with Zando, an independent publishing company, the companies announced on Oct 16. The new joint imprint plans to release 10 to 15 books a year, with the first titles arriving in early 2025. It will focus on genres that have proved popular with millennial and Generation Z readers – mostly romance, romantasy and young adult fiction.
Expanding into print was always part of 8th Note’s plan, said Mr Jacob Bronstein, head of editorial and marketing at the company.
“Physical books are still overwhelmingly the most popular format, and certainly in specific genres, some of which we’re playing in, they’re still super important,” he said.
At the same time, 8th Note is closely tracking what is trending online, including on BookTok, and is “building backwards” by acquiring books that feed into those trends and conversations, he said.
“We’re thinking first, what do people like reading, who is reading these books, how are people talking about these books, how are these conversations happening online, and where?” he said. “Genre comes second.”
Since its launch last August, 8th Note Press has acquired more than 30 books. Still, the lack of a print operation put the imprint at a disadvantage in a retail landscape where the majority of readers still prefer paper books.
The company’s move into print could make it more of a serious competitor to legacy publishers, particularly if 8th Note is able to engineer viral hits by boosting its authors on TikTok.
Over the past few years, TikTok has become an indispensable way for publishers and authors to market books to younger readers. Book reviews and reaction videos have proved incredibly popular with the platform’s users. There are more than 38 million posts tagged as #BookTok, and BookTok videos have grown by nearly 15 per cent in the first nine months of this year compared to 2023, according to a TikTok representative. NYTIMES
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