Interludethe fourth novel by Sally Rooney, the “Salinger of the Snapchat generation,” has become a must-have. Why such enthusiasm?
“It’s officially my most prized possession,” says @rainbootromi to his 26,200 subscribers on TikTok. This is not an expensive villa or car. No. The object of all his desires is Interludea book for 25 euros. Since the announcement of its release, the new novel by the young Irish author Sally Rooney sparks a lot of excitement on social media. And this, long before anyone had the opportunity to discover its contents.
In July, two months before the official release ofInterludeSarah Jessica Parker is pictured with a copy of the book. Since then, the hunt has been on. Barely published in September, the book is out of stock everywhere. TikTok and Instagram are flooded with photos of influencers and everyday users posing with the cover, featuring the book in photos aesthetic (a staging allowing to bring out a particular atmosphere or aesthetic), or recounting the hours of queuing they had to do to obtain it. There are more than 23,000 videos on the subject on TikTok and 133,000 posts on Instagram. The challenge is clear: to prove one’s membership in the select club of those who have managed to get their hands on this book.
More than just reading
Like the latest fashion must-have, Interlude has become a symbol of social distinction. And this is not a phenomenon dating from the era of social networks, far from it. At the end of the 1890s, the American sociologist Thorstein Veblen addressed, in The theory of the leisure class, the notion of conspicuous consumption : these purchases made to display a status, a lifestyle or a personality. Whether the latest Ganni bag is truly aesthetic or whether Rooney’s book is up to par is ultimately of little importance. What matters is being among those who have it.
In terms of content, Sally Rooney’s fourth novel is divisive. The book follows the story of two brothers who attempt to navigate the complexity of their family relationships while confronting their personal challenges. For some, like The Guardianthe writer is “the literary phenomenon of the decade”. For others, like Mariannethe author “drowns her thoughts in boring stylistic effects”. But the reality is that, even without the hype caused by the launch and while elitist circles scorn it, explain The New York TimesRooney was already enjoying a fandom enthusiast on the Internet. Often nicknamed the “Salinger of the Snapchat generation” or the “Jane Austen of the precariat”, she manages to capture the concerns, emotions and social dynamics of GenZ and Millenials.
A perfect mastery of influencer marketing
Although this excitement may seem to be the result of an alignment of the planets, as is sometimes the case with certain trends, this is not the case. The explosion of I networksnintermezzo is the result of a well-honed strategy. Before each book release, so-called proofs (copies of the preliminary version of a work) are sent to journalists, booksellers and influencers to generate interest. In general, these beta versions circulate quite easily. For Interlude2,500 proofs were sent to a mix of journalists and influencers. The figure is rather standard compared to other publications of this magnitude, but each work had a unique number and the name of the recipient, thus creating a skillfully orchestrated rarity and increasing the desire to possess tenfold.
Sally Rooney and her publishing houses have understood that influencer marketing has become essential in the world of literature. BookTok now has (almost) full powers in terms of literary influence. One of the most active communities on the network has the ability to take a writer from unknown to bestseller. To sell, you have to attract creators who publish under this hashtag, which has more than 38 million publications. This promotional route, which was also taken last summer The Guest by Emily Cline, testifies to the renewal of the cultural capital of literature.
