Irish authors Caroline O'Donoghue and Claire Wright shortlisted for TikTok Book Awards

Two Irish female authors have made the shortlist in this year's TikTok Book Awards.

London based Cork author Caroline O'Donoghue is up for Book of the Year for her novel, The Rachel Incident.

The Rachel Incident takes place in recession era Cork and follows housemates James and Rachel and their lives become more and more embroiled with Rachel's lecturer.

In her Hot Press interview, speaking on Irish female writers, O'Donoghue said: "there’s an explosion of us".

Also repping Ireland is Claire Wright, who has been shortlisted in the Breakthrough Author Category. Wright is the brain behind contemporary adult fantasy series Fair Ones.

Based on a retelling of Irish mythology, the series takes place in both urban and epic fantasy settings.

The awards span seven categories and include prizes for authors, "Booktok" content creators who post recommendations and book news on the platform as well as bookshops who use the social media.

The popular hashtag "Booktok" has reportedly garnered over 34 million posts on the short form video platform, which the site argue is helping to drive book sales, support independent book shops and supercharge the careers of up-and-coming authors or previously underrepresented genres.

This year's shortlist has been decided by a panel of industry experts including book influencer Jack Edwards and previous winner Eden Victoria, CEO of the Publishers Association Dan Conway, Editor of The Bookseller Philip Jones, Black British Book Festival CEO & Founder Selina Brown, and renowned authors Samantha Shannon and Sara Cox.

However, the Book Award winners will ultimately be decided by public vote. Last year over 160,000 people had their say and now the 2024 voting hub is officially open. Those who wish to vote may do so here.