Hi Friends,
For months, I have been going back and forth on the struggle of Booktube vs. book blogging, and which is right for me. If you don’t already know, I started out as a Booktuber, but the struggle to keep up with videos and the YouTube algorithm turned me off. It wasn’t very good for my mental health. I had always been an avid writer, so I turned to book blogging. I wouldn’t say one is more cost efficient than the other, since money goes into both of them. Also, for a planner like myself, both seem to take a lot of time and effort to keep up with every week.
I never really felt like a part of the book community, and I noticed that after stepping away, I was reading more than I ever had before. Watching new Booktubers growing, while I was stuck at 100 subscribers after more than two years took its toll on my mental health. I do, at times, get upset when my blog isn’t performing as well as I might hope. But I feel more involved in the blogging community, which helps. Also, I think my writing is way better than my camera skills. I will say that I sometimes get the urge to film a video, and some topics are just easier as video content, rather than blog posts. However, I like owning my work, which isn’t possible with YouTube.
I know that Booktubers get more recognition than book bloggers, which is a bummer. Another big thing is that Booktubers are the go-to for sponsorships and paid promotions. I am not sure if book bloggers get these opportunities as well, but I know that it is a huge thing in the Booktube community. I thought that it would be fun to give you some personal pros and cons of Booktube vs book blogging, just in case you were stuck on the decision too.
| Booktube | Book Blog |
|
Large community, with a lot of original content |
Smaller community, with a lot of content inspired by Booktube |
|
Your content is owned by YouTube, and can be deleted at any time |
You own all your content, and nobody else can censor you |
|
Need a good camera, lighting, and a background |
If you want to do it long term, you need to buy a URL and hosting |
|
You have opportunities for free books and paid sponsorships |
Much harder to get noticed by authors and publishers |
|
You have to be on camera, and able to clearly communicate your point |
Can write a post in your PJ’s, from anywhere |
I hope that this list might help some make the decision between Booktube or a book blog, or at least make it a bit easier. I think that I might start posting Instagram (or maybe Booktok) videos, if I ever feel the need to film anything bookish. That way I don’t have to commit to a Booktube channel. I would love your support on my little bookish corner of the internet, so like and share this post! You can follow me on Twitter and Instagram as well (@bookswithbunny).
Until The Next Chapter,
Bunny
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I was never able to get into BookTube as a veiwer. Having to be on camera is a big reason I didn’t want to join. I’ve started using BookTok and it’s a nice combination of blogging/booktube/instagram You don’t have to be on camera and the community is generally positive.
I will say as far as hosting I blogged for about 8 years before hosting. I only did it because I needed something to do during quarantine. I felt as long as I backed everything up I could hold off on the expense. That was just my experience.
I have started a booktok too, and I agree that it is a nice combination of both. I also get your point on hosting not being necessary. It is true that you can still blog for free if you take the steps to back everything up like you mentioned However, I do like having my own custom URL and all the plugins you can use being hosted.
If you go away from, you will start to miss it haha. That’s cool you reading a lot of books. Been trying to be part of the book community as well.
Fransic – https://querianson.com/
Thank you! The book community is pretty friendly from what I have experienced.
I’d say I read more book blogs than I watch book youtubers and I’m sure there are a lot of others who feel the same way.
A lot of people say blogging is dead, but you can always find people that prefers blogs. I watch a lot of Youtube, but I love reading blogs too.
Thanks for sharing these! I am introducing book content into my blog and I am definitely curious about Booktube as well. It’s a whole new world for me!
I will totally be checking out your book content.