I totally agree. I consume a lot of book content & it sometimes is exhausting watching a creator do 1 controversial topic video after another. I can only imagine how exhausting it must be to research & film such videos over & over again.

I love watching "worst X of the year" videos (movies, books, etc.) Once on a road trip i queued one up to watch with my sister and she said "why would I want to watch something negative?" and I was shook. I thought everyone enjoyed that kinda thing 😅

While I did find you because of some of the discussion videos, I really did stay for your roundups, and seeing that you had a very diverse set of reading and interesting opinions. You're also very engaging and thoughtful, so I really appreciate your content, and thank you for continuing creating content that may not be "popular" but that you love to do. I'm constantly having my GR page open, ready to add more to my TBR pile with your recs. I may not respond to those, depending on my energy and "extrovert level" to comment. I love the positive community videos, both in this and in other genres of KZfaq I watch, again, thank you again for all you do~

I've worked in IT and developed algorithms for many of my products -- the tricky thing is that an algorithm isn't "smart"... it doesn't "know" anything about the content. It's all about the numbers/stats. Yes, the algorithm pushes the content with the most engagement -- and they can surely tweak and improve it to showcase more creators ... but it is also the viewers' responsibility for what gets boosted into our feeds! If we, the consumers of your content, appreciate the book reviews and hauls we need to ENGAGE as much as possible! I am as guilty as the next person. I don't always comment... I try to remember to click Like but sometimes I forget when I am multitasking. This is a reminder to keep engaging.

My Mom watches "The Housewives of ..." When it's on, l can't be in the same room. The drama/negativity causes so much stress and anxiety. I cannot!

I follow a TON of booktubers and I only ever watch their book reviews videos. I’m here to learn about new books. I want to hear discussions about books. Opinions. Suggestions. Feedback. I never mind a video that also teaches me something about books however I’m not a drama person. I don’t like negativity. I recently left Facebook and IG. So much nonsense and trash on there. It’s not easy to weed through it for the good stuff. I’ve added so many great books to my TBR from videos on utube and love it.

As a small youtuber trying to grow it's exhausting. The stuff that does well for me? Talking about being trans. It feels like youtube is yelling at me i'm only allowed to be a trans person, and an angry trans person would be best for the algorithm, but that is EXHAUSTING and I have mental and a lot of physical health issues. I'm trying to grow because i'm working on a book, i'm a reader and writer, not so I can shout about one aspect of who I am, the fact i'm trans. Not so I can be angry all the time and worsen my existing health issues. Even if it's a more positive video... I don't want to constantly talk about being trans. I'm not ashamed of who I am or anything but i'm more than that... but not according to KZfaq. Probably doesn't help I just do what I want video wise and read all over the place so I have no niche whatsoever. But when I came out as trans... oh that stuff does great. That's the ticket... -_-

This is the BEST Booktube Discussion video EVER. 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏

I have noticed that negative content perform way better. Not just KZfaq.

i feel like the more controversial, sensational, negative, critical etc etc the content the better it performs because it falls under "rage bait" which people seem to love to hate. i'd love to understand the psychology behind it. on the back end, the **all knowing algorithm** seems to bias triggering extreme emotion out of viewers above all else (in my opinion). i feel like you give a great balance of playful critic and literary discussion that feels authentic.

You hit the nail on the head, it is like watching Real Housewives. You need to do what makes you feel like you are contributing to the community.

You should always make the content that you want to and enjoy, rather than just following the clicks. I do think your discussion videos are exceptional, not because of any negative content, but because you are always balanced, articulate, thought-provoking and well-informed.

I understand what you are saying and agree that as a society we are more often drawn to drama and negativity I would still point out that it's not all negativity vs positivity and more about what we are collectively thinking about. For instance, you and so many other BookTube creators have weekly or monthly wrap ups and you all are discussing completely different books whereas discussing Cait Coran being a racist was something that we were all talking about at the same time. It's the same as talking about the most popular movie or tv show vs talking about a movie from your childhood that no one is talking about. It's not about positivity vs negativity it's about chasing what's of the moment.

100% agree with all your points! as a small booktuber, it can absolutely be draining. i constantly have these battles in my head: "i like this idea, but is my audience gonna? is youtube gonna push it to my audience?" it's like this constant struggle of pleasing your audience AND youtube. it's extra hard for adults with jobs because 1) you have to find the time to READ and 2) also find the time to create content as a one-man team i think on top of negative content performing better, there are certain "looks" and "aesthetics" that the algorithm also pushes more (ex: having huge bookshelves stacked with books, having regular book hauls, aesthetic book shopping vlogs, etc,.). though i think this is a separate conversation to have.

I'm not sure if people are addicted to drama or just drawn to controversial topics due to the lack of certain importance of discussion. It might be both. It's okay to have negative opinions or thoughts, nothing is roses all the time. People don't need to be endlessly positive. Negativity is draining. So, not absorbing an unbalanced amount of negativity that can lead to energy loss & mental health impacts is vital. Being mindful of our consumption is important.

Funnily enough, I didn't come to your content during the discussion videos. I was recommened to you by my auntie who wanted me to branch out my book community videos. I was also in a rather bad headspace at the time and needed some changes to what I was watching. (I will admit I don't think it was helping that I was stuck watching Daniel Greene so often as there was a weirdness happening to his content and whatnot Merphy Napier started to branch out in her content in better ways and I think that had to do with Philip Chase (Dr. Fantasy) actually interivewing her and bringing her into his fold more often.) So you and Reads with Rachel actually became the new norm for me, followed by Ellotte Brooks and Jessie Ownes. (I do wish mynameismarines and lou reading things was able to post more often but I get it as their lives take priority.) And I noticed my TBR expanded HUGELY after starting to watch your guys content. Now granted Reads with Rachel did a lot of my TBR, but I also notice a lot or recs came from you as well. And I can't help but giggle when I start seeing Merphy Napier picking up a book you guys already recommend and read prior because I'm like "Oh! I get to see how she views the book." because I know one perspective but hers is a little different. (though people are telling her to read fourth wing and she's like ".... I'll only do it if it's a buddy read with you guys because I will suffer." Because she's not much of a romance person and I agree... she will suffer and will not like Fourth Wing.) But that's not to say that I *do* appeciate the discussion videos. I enjoy the more nuianced and measured perspectives. I enjoy the discussions that aren't rooted in pure outrage and spite. Even if it is within spite, I find that your guys takes are far more complex than the ones I've seen in the past. (especually the bookbanning)

Keep it up! Your videos are high quality, and it's important to guide the community in the right direction also!

I don't comment on your videos as much as I should. But I watch almost all of your videos. I relate so much to not having time for catering to the youtube algorithm. I just gotta have peace with low views 😂

I enjoy all your content, and the experience as a librarian you bring to your videos is awesome. I like the contrast from the "This is awesome, read it" type of posts--- which are fine, but I like the nuance you discuss when reviewing books. Children's books don't get enough attention on booktube, and I like that you take time to talk about the artwork, the layout, etc.

I tend towards rant reviews or communi-tea bookish content, because I do want the messy drama. I watch booktube to be entertained first and foremost. Reads w/ Rachel, Unresolved Textual Tension, Cindy, Jess, I watch the channels that focus target this type of content. Channel size doesn't really matter. I discovered you recently and sub'd because I love how real you are, but yeah, I'm not going to watch or comment on every video, especially if it's just a monthly wrap-up. I figured I'd share my perspective because I'm sure a lot of people who consume booktube do so in the same way I do. Just being honest. Much love.

I enjoy both your reading wrap ups and your discussions. I think you come from a lot of the discussions from a more informed view point. I may not always agree with you but I do respect you and I think you should create the content that you enjoy or means something to you.

I totally agree. I love books and sadly I found you based on a negative controversy. Sadly I did not even know there was a book community. I know some you tubers are emailing or texting their subscribers so that they can beat the Algo rhythms. I will make a point to stop in for your videos now, sometimes we have to just ask the viewers . Might have to do that on my channel as well.

I tune in because your voice is soothing. And because you're Black and you read the good stuff! & I appreciate your channel.

I love your wrap of videos! Sidenote: So I haven’t seen your videos in a while and this video came up.Thank goodness because I see I was unsubscribed which I know I didn’t do. I resubscribed, but I thought you should know. I don’t know where I can report this. Cause it happened with another KZfaqr I followed as well.

Not related to the topic, so I’ll understand if you don’t answer. Do librarians mind when we take the books off of the main themed display? I grabbed 4 of the Juneteenth books from the display the other day and on the way home I wondered if they are bothered by me creating wholes in their display and realized that I do it all the time. I browse the display while in line to check out and always grab something. I just want to make sure I have good library etiquette 😊. Btw, I enjoy your wrap ups and have read several books because you loved them and added quite a few picture books to my grandsons’ personal library after seeing them here.

You have to do what makes you happy. For me I can say that my brain sees a video longer than 30 minutes and it starts to complain. Something about it makes me say nope it’s too long. Makes no sense because I can watch two videos in a row but my brain doesn’t love the commitment. A lot of your discussion videos happen to be shorter than the wrap-ups so I end up clicking on those more. I actually love watching book reviews. In general I watch that much more than negative videos. Your “negative” ones are some of the few I’ll watch because I like how you articulate your thoughts and it doesn’t feel like it’s just for the sake of drama.

For the past year or two, I've been trying to cut out negative content for a kind of sappy reason. There's enough negativity and cynicism (justifiably, given who crappy the world is in general) in our world that I don't want it in my entertainment. Same reason I prefer 'cozy', low stakes media nowadays. I like reading, watching, or listening to things that help me relax or escape, not remind me of all the bull going on in reality.

Your positive content makes my tbr increase every. Single. Time. Which means i have to be prepared to pause often and check my library for the books you recommend lol

I like your perspective on balance and it is unfortunate that positive content is so underrepresented in what gets pushed to viewers. I think there is a place for controversy and addressing negative events, particularly when it comes from creators who critically discuss these events such as yourself, and there is also a place for content that celebrates successes, growth, and connection. Appreciate you sharing your views, as always!

I appreciate the strive for balance.

I don't know what the 2020 situation is, I came here from commentary YT (I think?), but have always loved reading. Recently picked up the hobby a lot more and started engaging with more bookish content, and you channel came into my life. I know about the whole parasocial relationship thing, but truely, when you said, "I do this because I don't have people in my life who read and engage with books the way that we do" it rang to loud for me! That's truely it. Even though I don't read as much juvenile literature as you, your channel feels like a cozy family living room to me, where some kids (complimentay) are playing in one corner, some adults (derogatory) are taking politics in another, and in the next some people are talking fandom. Idk, that's corny as hell but I just really appreciate your work!

Just starting, but the positive content is attractive for you and your community, and the negative content is attractive for random people seeing it pop up in their recommendations. It makes sense that negative content attracts random people who don't know you - I do hate that youtube encourages it though. I rarely click on someone I don't know for a book review unless I specifically searched it out though.

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

Same, same, same.

I just want people to feel okay saying how they truely felt about a book. My biggest thing is I want to hear actual thoughts on a book. Positive reviews tend to not give a lot of depth to why it worked. Negative reviews usually have more critical thinking in videos (typically obvious some negative criticism is just bad takes). I also feel like booktubers who only review positives are more untrustworthy because I want to know that not every book is 5/5 stars. That’s just not realistic. I want authentic reviews (good/bad) that’s an analysis and doesn’t feel promotional

I've been trying to click less on negative videos recently. Even though they can be satisfying to watch, I don't want to be spending so much time on drama or whatever. I want to watch videos about things I like!! It sucks that it's tough on both the creator and viewer side for those videos to do well.

Hello, small bookish creator here. I have 23 videos over 200 views and of them I'd say 5 of them were "negative content" which is about 20%. That said of my 223 videos, I'd say 28 of them are what I'd consider negative content which is about 12% of all my videos. So yes rant reviews or drama specifically "this thing is bad or outrageous" does seem to get a disproportionate amount of views on my channel. That said, as far as I can tell, timeliness is the most important thing in making a higher viewed video. Talking about books or shows as they release, drama as it breaks, that kind of thing. We do have an algorithm problem for sure. And we know outrage generates more clicks than happy stuff, but that's not the only thing that brings people in based off my "New and returning audience" graph talking about relevant books or shows with a critical sense (what I loved and didn't care for) is the most reliable way to get returning viewers.

I think it's a shame that the algorithm will push a lot of drama, clickbait, ragebait, etc. Occasionally it'll be something really cool, but I try to avoid stuff that looks like clickbait. It's fun to get juicy bits like the Cait Corrain coverage here and there, but I still prefer the content that first drew me into watching BookTube, which is reviews and info on books! You were one of the first BookTubers I started watching, so I'm relieved to hear you still enjoy making that content. I think you've got a good balance going!

I tend to watch booktube discussions more than wrapups. I find wrapups especially where there are so many books that I haven’t read and don’t plan to read to be a bit overwhelming. (Though I actually do usually watch yours). If you really want to get book recs you have to watch closely with paper and pen or you can never go back and find the brief review of that book if you’re thinking about the book later, and I rarely watch KZfaq that way, it’s usually playing in the background while I’m doing something else. I’ll watch them sometimes to hear about new books but mostly what I am interested in is focused wrapups and recommendations lists on specific genres and themes Im looking for something good in, single text reviews on things Ive read, and yes the discussions which for me include positive discussions. I also really love career content from people who work in the world of books like writer videos and your librarian videos. But I do also like the mess. The mess is fun and I rather engage with booktube mess than celebrity mess and there just seems to be a human appetite for gossip. The author scandal mess can be a true crime-like guilty pleasure, getting the intrigue and thrill of true crime without the exploitation of death and violence. But when I notice those are the only book recommendations I’m getting or I’m watching hate reviews on books I haven’t t even read or learning about mess I have t even heard of before, I will pull back because that’s not what I want my whole feed will be made up of. I have a podcast that like 20 people listen to. Which gives me perspective for every listener does matter so just because less people listen to it doesn’t mean it wasn’t worth making. Income aside, for all the hundreds and thousands of people who listen to negative content there are so many people also that are listening to your positive content. This last part is not about you cause you don’t do this but sometimes when I see big creators who are accustomed to tens or hundreds of thousands of views say stuff like “Nobody watched that video” or “that video didn’t do well” and I know I’m one of the 5000 people who watched the video it can feel dismissive, like, I’m a person and I liked that video and don’t I matter? I know the sensationalist content doing better must be frustrating to creators especially those who make a living from this but the views on these platforms are not a direct reflection of the quality of the work.

Thank you for the video

The negative book review videos from booktubers whose opinions I trust saves me from wasting time starting a novel that is hyped but not worth my time, but I'm still curious what the book is about.

I don't think the "negative videos get more views" is purely an algorithm issue, but more a basic human psychology issue. I am the debates secretary for a private debating society, which means I come up with the motions each month. The motions that are most successful tend to be a statement that initially produces a strong gut reaction, but gives space for the main speakers to develop nuance around the subject. It is also easier for most people to identify something they want to argue against than it is to create something to argue for. One of my most successful debates was "This house does not recommend having children". I do not think it would have worked nearly as well if it was "this house does recommend having children" because the proposer would not be able to easily come up with arguments that the audience hadn't considered before. But by framing it in the negative the proposer could come up with novel arguments and the opposer had to contest those arguments and so the debate was taken into new territory for a lot of the participants. I think we need to get away from the idea that framing arguments in the negative is a "negative" way of doing things and instead see it as a way to shift attention away from simple regurgitation of the status quo and into genuinely new thought.

💜💜

TBH i think ‘negative’ content or content where ppl are critiquing certain books/people/systems can do well for multiple reasons. One that people have long held an opinion and are looking for someone to voice it. Another being that often videos that are negative/controversial have a lot of energy in them. There’s a level of passion that ppl bring to negative reviews that can be engaging as a viewer. just my two cents.

i'm a really inconsistent viewer bc my brain gets focused on one topic at a time so i'll not necessarily watch every new video for each person i'm subbed to bc it depends on what my brain wants to consume that week. but i followed book youtubers so i can keep up with what good books are coming out. it gives me a way to get recommendations for books i want to read that i might otherwise not find

Thsis one depends on who is saying things, what they are saying and how they are saying it. You will face negaitve comments somewhere and sometimes they can be helpful

But now my videos start whether you click on them or not. And yes, I have my auto start turned OFF. So, when I finally decide to look at certain videos, it appears like I’ve already started it earlier and just didn’t finish. That is not the case. 😖

My channel is just to document my thoughts and spark discussions while also keeping my editing skills sharp. I do not nor do I want my hobby to become my job. 🙂❤📚

Same thing I said my most viewed video I have is about beef not about the book itself

Ngl I do catch myself watching videos recapping drama or “exposing” someone more than anything else

I'd be a liar if I said I didn't click on an Author Behaving Badly, especially a deep dive.The latest controversy. Sometimes it's just liking messiness, but sometimes important issues are wrapped up in it all. I think for the most part, though, what draws me in is if I enjoy the creator, or the highlighted genre, or if one of the books in a thumbnail is something I've read or want to read. I mean, the library video appeals to me. Ultimately, I want to swim in book conversations. Which are your fave Real Housewives franchises?

It’s annoying as a viewer to have the algorithm show bookish videos I don’t want to see. I have to go through my subscriptions and make playlists to find smaller creators or the videos the algorithm doesn’t push.

I think it is just human nature - people love drama and entertainment in all spheres of life. I think it is a positive thing though if people discover your channel because of your more 'controversial' videos. Hopefully they'll then stick around and be exposed to the more positive things you cover as well. 📚🙂

I was starting to think you only post about when you frustrated about something. No shade. Made me sad cuz I look forward to ya opinion about a book.

im guilty 😭😩 i like to watch videos about awful books that i know i won't read bc i like to hear about how bad they are without reading it myself 🤣 if i could get to a point where i'm reading enough books that i can watch reviews of books i've read that would be great but i avoid reviews for books i haven't read yet that i want to read bc i don't want the spoilers :(

I appreciate your discussion videos but your videos are thoughtful "discussions" don't put yourself in the same category as the high-drama, negative, shock-value videos. I am one of those who doesn't watch them. I don't need the unnecessary drama-- I have enough of my own! LOL

Such a great video and I totally agree!! I just want to say that although I do enjoy your discussion style videos, I'm an avid watcher of all your round-ups and more positive book centred content (though a silent one! I don't typically comment on youtube 🫣). I've been reading sooo many more graphic novels this year and thats's 100% down to your reccs! That's all to say I'm very grateful for your videos and content 🩷

I'll tell you where negative content isn't successful: tumblr. I post about how much I hated some TV show...no engagement or people get defensive and tell me to go away. I gush about how much I love something and I get likes, replies, follows, etc. I guess you could say Instagram is that way too