Farewell, TikTok

Update: TikTok service has been temporarily restored in the United States, but the sentiments below are still true. Social media apps can be shut down at any time. Please read on for suggestions on how to stay in touch with your favorite events and authors.

Like many in America today, especially within our bookish community, I am heartbroken at the loss of one our major social media platforms. Last night, TikTok finally went dark in accordance with the law passed here in the United States that required it to either sell or cease operations. This is a tremendous limitation upon free speech and a huge blow to our ability to share information and organize. While I recognize that the app itself was and is flawed, I also recognize the importance of the platform. I wouldn't be writing for you without it.

As with many other authors, TikTok is the app that launched my career. I stumbled upon BookTok and reignited my passion for reading, then decided to follow my dreams, too. Because of BookTok, I chose to actually publish my work for the world to consume. I found the vast majority of my readers on that platform and built an incredible community there.

Now more than ever, it's going to be important to stay in touch with the authors you love most. The best way to do that for many is to subscribe to their newsletters. As we've just seen, social media can be stripped away at any moment. Newsletters let authors contact you directly. These communications are much harder to censor. It's also going to be important to follow your favorite authors on alternative social media platforms. While they can be eliminated at some point, most will be utilizing them to continue to reach out to you and rebuild the community we've lost. I encourage you to search them out, and if you can, send them a supportive message. So many are feeling lost today.

If your favorite authors have events, attending these would also be incredibly supportive. Signings that brought us together have also lost their community. I encourage you to search them out and follow them, as well. We're stronger together. If you would like to follow me on other platforms, my links are all available at www.samanthamoran.net/links. I will also list my social media handles here. If you have not done so, please subscribe to my newsletter. I will be utilizing it frequently. I refuse to touch "X" with a ten-foot pole, so you won't find me there. Please follow me on this other apps.

• Facebook: Samantha Moran - Author

• Instagram: @authorsamanthamoran

• Threads: @authorsamanthamoran

• BlueSky: samanthamoran.bsky.social

• Discord: Coven of Chaos

• Patreon: Wicked Little Readers

• Friday Night Writes: LinkTree

We are not done. We will not be silenced. We will continue to write and rebuild despite the loss we feel today. Happy hauntings and happy reading, everyone. I'll be back soon.

-Samantha