The more I dive into the bookstagram world, the more I realize how basic my book photography lifestyle is. It’s not just about having pretty books. It’s about having cute Funkos and a nice theme. Here’s just a few tricks of the trade I’ve picked up so far from some of my favorite accounts. Check them out and back sure to follow To Borrow or Buy on Instagram!
1. Have a solid theme.
I’m still kind of working on mine but basically all your pictures should have the same aesthetic. For example, I decided I’m going to use the wooden floors in my living room as my background for my pictures. That way when someone scrolls through your feed it doesn’t look like a bunch of random pics but instead a nice cohesive feed of pretty book pictures.
2. Participate in book photo challenges.
Photo challenges are a great way to meet other bookstagrammers and get your photos seen. Some hosts will posts their favorite photos of the week on their account so you get free promotion if they like your photo. Plus, usually the host and other participants scroll through the challenge hashtag just to see what everyone’s posting, so that’s any easy way to get exposure.
3. Make your own photo challenge.
A step up from just participating in a book photo challenge is creating your own. What’s really cool about this is you make your own hashtag, which people will use when they share their photos, and it’s a nice (and easy) way to get your brand out there. I haven’t done one yet because I don’t feel like I have a big enough following just yet but what’s really cool is you can also partner up with someone to do this.
4. Get some Funko dolls.
Truthfully I didn’t even know what Funko dolls (toys?) were until I started seriously bookstagramming. Then I realized I was seeing them everywhere on my feed. There’s one’s for all kinds of shows and movies. There’s a whole Marvel collection, Dr. Who, The Hunger Games, and of course, Harry Potter. They’re cute collectible dolls that make any book photo look even better.
5. Use any kind of book paraphernalia in your photos.
Funko dolls are cool and definitely popular but any items that prove you’re a book nerd you should use in your photos. T-shirts, posters, tattoos, jewelry, bookmarks, literally anything. Photos that include more than just your books tend to do better. It’s a fact.
6. Do booktags.
Booktags are a fun way to engage with the bookstagram community and get more followers. It’s pretty simple. Another bookstagrammer tags you in their photo with the hashtag in the caption and you then do your own photo that goes along with that hashtag and tag other people in your photo. Of course, the problem with this is you need someone to tag you. However, easy solution is to start your own tag. Who knows? It could even turn into something big.
7. Use popular hashtags.
This is a similar concept. Take advantage of hashtags that a lot of people use. There’s the typical ones like #ThrowbackThursday and #ManCrushMonday but then there’s the ones specific to bookstagram. For example, #SockSunday is super popular. What’s great about these tags is people often like to scroll through and see what other people are posting so your photo will get even more exposure.
8. Engage with other users
Be friendly! Don’t be afraid to comment on other people’s pictures and always respond when people comment on yours. One of the best ways to grow a following is to get to know other users. The friends you make in the bookstagram community are the ones that’ll give you a random shoutout or do photo challenges with you. Plus, what’s the point of having a bookstagram account if you’re not going to interact with other people? That’s half the fun!
9. Use popular books.
As much as I wish you could just take pictures of any book you’re reading and it’d do just as well as if you took a picture of all the Harry Potter books, the truth is it won’t. If you can, try to take pictures of books that are popular or trendy right now. For example, I took a lot of pictures of Me Before You recently because the trailer came out and everyone was talking about it. Don’t be afraid to hop on the train of a trending topic. That’ll make your photo pop up even more in people’s searches, getting you more likes and followers.
Zakiya N. Jamal 
i’ve just started an account @_queenofthebooks_ and this is definitely going to help. Thanks!
No problem! 🙂