This time, the beneficiary from the rare online powers of good is a writer from Arlington.
Author Shawn Warner held a book signing at a Kroger store in Fort Worth for his new young adult novel Leigh Howard and the Ghosts of Simmons-Pierce Manor. A shopper named Jerrad Swearenjin passed by his table and noticed that he seemed "super defeated when I first walked past him," so he decided to meet the author and buy a couple of copies of his book.
Swearenjin also asked Warner if he could film this interaction for his TikTok, where he goes by @internetfamouslol, and give away a signed copy of his book to his followers.
"OK," Warner says. "I won't say no."@internetfamouslol I was just shopping when i noticed this man trying to promote his new book. I honestly dont even read books nowadays. But something just told me to get a couple. #booksoftiktok #booktok #newauthor #showlovenothate #fyp #newbook #murdermystery #murdermysterybook #bookgiveaway ♬ original sound - Red
The video blew up on TikTok, garnering 3 million likes in just a day, but the blowing up didn't stop on the video platform. The sales for Warner's book also saw a noticeable increase thanks to Swearenjin's video.
Warner's book jumped to the top of Amazon's Best Sellers list on Wednesday as the video made the rounds on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and elsewhere, bumping conservative pundit Mark Levin's latest screed, The Democrat Party Hates America, down to the second spot. The book has also received over 800 five-star ratings on Amazon and a reader score of 4.9 on Goodreads out of 282 ratings.
The sudden wave of success prompted Warner to start his own TikTok channel @shawnwwrites so he could thank everyone for all the love and support he received for his book. So far, his channel had racked up over 771,000 likes in just a few days.
"I want to thank everybody for the love and kindness on the video that [Jarrad] posted," Warner said. "It was totally unexpected. I'm still in shock. I don't even know what to say about it."
Leigh Howard and the Ghosts of Simmons-Pierce Manor, published by Texas-based Black Rose Writing, is Warner's first novel. It's about an orphaned teenager who moves in with some wealthy relatives in a sprawling, haunted manor. The police are unable to solve her parents' murder so she takes it upon herself to solve the crime and bring some closure to her family and her life. She teams up with the ghost haunting her family's manor who exhibits multiple personalities and goes on an adventure that takes her through the gritty streets of organized crime.@shawnwwrites I have no words aside from Thank You supporting Leigh Howard and the Ghosts of Simmons-Pierce Manor! @internetfamouslol, @giwarnertamuedu. #booktok #booksoftiktok #newauthor #newtotok #yabooks ♬ original sound - Shawn
Warner said on TikTok that he's looking for a new place in Dallas to do another book signing that's sure to attract a long line of fans and followers. He's also looking into producing an audiobook and a hardcover edition of his Leigh Howard novel.
"The love and kindness just keeps pouring in," Warner said in a second TikTok Video. "You'd think as a writer that I'd have words for it but I don't. Just, thank you."
TikTok is becoming a new marketing tool for struggling authors all over the country in a special subsection of the video platform called "BookTok". Earlier this year, author Lloyd Richards' thriller Stone Maidens became Amazon's number one best seller when his daughter, Marguerite, gave his 11-year-old novel a 10-second promo on the video platform and even got the pair a spotlight interview on NBC's Today. Author Colleen Hoover found fame last year on TikTok with her romance novels like It Starts With Us and Too Late, both of which are in the top 20 of Amazon's best sellers.
