BookTubes

Hi everyone! Hola a todos. For those who don’t know and/or haven’t been following the travel side of my blog, MollyinSpain, I’ve been studying in Spain and traveling in Europe but I’m back with a post on BookTubes!

What are BookTubes? Why watch them?

Simply put, BookTubes are youtube channels by authors, for authors, and/or about books.

I first started watching them to learn more about writing and publishing. Ultimately, most of what I needed to know to self-publish I learned from various channels including KIM CHANCE for writing and publishing and TEXAN IN TOKYO for using Amazon Createspace. TEDx also has some great videos about writing and motivation.

It’s a great way to keep motivated, especially after subscribing and getting notifications of new videos, as well as learning about ways to work around areas your struggling with (writers block or characterization or whatever it is). It also makes the more solitary act of writing into something that feels more communal by hearing the struggles of other writers (speaking of, check out my post on finding beta readers.)

Why start one yourself?

Again, its a great way to build community., like blogging, but also can be great marketing. (But it’s not worth doing for the marketing if you aren’t passionate about it and/or have a lot of other platforms you’re juggling). It’s great if you like to talk more than write or want to be more visual.

Like with blogging it will take a while to grow a platform, if at all, so don’t do it only for that. Things that can help include– mentioning your channel on other social media, hosting guests or guest appearing on other’s blogs, asking people to subscribe/like during your posts, etc.

Where should I start?

A while back I posted on Twitter asking for people who do BookTubes and what channels they like to watch. And I found some really great sites I hadn’t found before.

My favorite, and go-to, Kim Chance. Kim is a published YA writer who is upbeat and encouraging while remaining real. Her videos cover almost everything a writer needs to know.

HopefullHappenings A wide range of videos, like Kim Chance, about the writing process, publishing, marketing, etc. Bonus: they’re relatively short but informational.

Mandi Lynn focuses on publishing, including everything a self-published author needs to know but also covers other important writing topics.

Francina Simone YA writer who tackles the more intangible issues of writing and especially reading like diversity, book reviews (what works and what doesn’t).

Just start searching.

Looking to learn more about other social media for writers? Check out my A Teen Writer’s Guide to Social Media.

And if you liked this post, please share it on such platforms and subscribe to my blog 🙂