When former Bachelor star and rugby player Luke Bateman landed a two-book fantasy deal with Atria Books (Simon & Schuster Australia) just weeks after launching his BookTok account, the internet didn’t just notice — it exploded.
BookTok and the wider publishing community have been buzzing with questions about privilege, opportunity, and the barriers faced by marginalised writers.
The uproar isn’t just about Bateman’s deal, but what it reveals about how the industry works and more importantly, who it works for.
The meteoric rise of Luke Bateman on BookTok
Bateman’s journey from reality TV to BookTok to a major book deal was fast. He started posting book reviews in late April, quickly gained a massive following of 175K with the 27 videos he posted (at the time of writing), and within a month, signed a two-book deal for a fantasy series he hadn’t even written yet.
For many authors, especially those from marginalised backgrounds, the speed and ease of Bateman’s success felt like a slap in the face.
Bigambul and Wakka Wakka author, academic and editor Dr Melanie Saward described the mood in the community: “There’s this one conventionally attractive, mildly famous young man [who] has come on, being charming and nice, and the entire community’s kind of lost its mind and thrown all their weight behind him,” she told PEDESTRIAN.TV.
“So that was the initial thing… he’s jumped on and had this meteoric rise, and there’s been a lot of anger around that.”
She explained that Bateman’s instant platform was a harsh reminder of what the publishing industry really values. “They’ll tell writers that they need to go back and work on their manuscript, five, six, seven, 10 times before they can even start querying. But he’s come out with a platform and a pitch and been given a two-book deal, which is more than most of us dream about. So it feels like people have just learnt a harsh lesson about the publishing industry really quickly.”
The ‘disappearance’ of literary men and the reality of who gets a platform
This controversy is also unfolding against the backdrop of recent debates about the so-called “disappearance of literary men”. Some commentators have claimed that men are being left out of literary fiction, with headlines like “The Disappearance of Literary Men Should Worry Everyone”, in the New York Times.
But as Jing Xuan Teo from Amplify Bookstore points out, the reality is more complicated — and Bateman’s deal is proof that men, especially white men, are still being handed opportunities that others can only dream of. Conduit Books was founded by Jude Cook back in April of this year, aimed at publishing literary fiction and memoir “focusing initially on male authors”. The news was picked up by The Guardian, Literary Hub and Bookseller. Xuan thinks this is the perfect example of the double standards in publishing.
“[Jude Cook] is like, ‘Young men don’t read anymore. There’s a death of the literary man’. I don’t subscribe to that belief because the fact that this got so much press and so much chatter tells me that there is, in fact, no need for this,” Xuan told PEDESTRIAN.TV.
“If a woman of colour were to start a publishing house you’re not gonna get the same amount of chatter, you know. This isn’t really a real thing, in my opinion, ‘the death of literary men’.”
Xuan added, “You are giving white men a platform based off no merit, and no prior proof of sales, which is what people hear often in publishing ‘Oh, you want a book by [a] person of colour? Well, that’s not gonna sell.’ So, no.”
Atria’s marketing moves in BookTok
This isn’t the first time Atria Books has made headlines for its marketing choices. Earlier this year, the publisher sent TikTok influencer Marc Sebastian — who openly admitted, “I don’t [like to read]. But maybe I could…” — on an 18-day leg of Royal Caribbean’s nine-month “Ultimate World Cruise”, with the explicit goal of getting him to read and promote one of their books to his 1.6 million followers.
Sebastian’s campaign, which he ran under the hashtag #marcreadsabook, was less about books and more about spectacle. The publisher’s own statement to Publisher’s Weekly made it clear: “We hope seeing Marc, who is not normally a reader, pick up a book in real time, will inspire others to start reading too.”
The campaign brought visibility — #atriabooks got 98,000 views in a month, and #thelastone (the book Sebastian read) got 4.8 million views — but book sales barely budged, with just a 54-copy bump the week of the announcement, per Publisher’s Weekly.
The move left many BookTok users and authors asking why a publisher would rather invest in a non-reader’s cruise than in actual book lovers and writers.
Why some find Luke Bateman’s deal so concerning
For many, Bateman’s deal is a symptom of an industry that values virality and appearance over substance and hard work. Xuan explained, “For a white man to start a BookTok a month ago and get a two-book deal… that’s very, very rare. There are people who work for years before getting a book deal.”
And it’s not just the deal — it’s the money and support that come with it.
“You have to go through a panel of people in the room who have to collectively say yes [to your book] for this to happen, right? And then they have to say, ‘Okay, what is our budget? How much are we giving for advances?’ But like, authors of colour will not get [an] advance that big,” Xuan explained.
“You will not see them give that opportunity to a person of colour. Absolutely not. People of colour cannot be mediocre. You have to write a fantastic, incredible, stunning 10 out of 10 book to even be considered to be published.”
Luke Bateman’s response to the BookTok drama
Bateman, for his part, has publicly acknowledged the criticism and says he wants to use his privilege to help others. “Obviously, a lot of these conversations are very new to me, and I wholeheartedly understand that so many people have felt let down by the industry,” he said to Chattr.
“I have so much empathy, love, and grace for people who struggle, and I have no idea what they’ve been through in their life, the challenges they’ve faced, or, you know, the discrimination.”
He says he’s been speaking with marginalised authors and wants to use his platform to promote their work.
“I’ve actually spoken with a few [people]. I was speaking with a Latino woman yesterday who was sharing her story, and she was actually saying that she was just at a conference on the weekend,” he said.
He continued, “The authors in there were saying how publishers had told them to publish under different names, or, yeah, or do stories — I won’t quote because I can’t remember exactly what she said — but basically, do stories that would fit more into a different audience.
“I just said, like, I obviously have advantages that other people don’t. How do I capitalise on those to help lift everyone up?” he said. “If I can use my platform and my voice and my privilege and position in society to help uplift others.”
“I suggested books by Aboriginal authors — he hasn’t read any”
While Bateman has talked about wanting to use his platform to uplift others, Melanie says she hasn’t seen action yet.
“When he first arrived on the scene, I suggested three or four children’s books in fantasy that he could read that were written by Aboriginal people, and he’s not read any of them yet. He’s not made a video about it. So have I seen him use his platform for good yet? No, I haven’t,” she claimed.
“The [Chattr] article that came out this morning, he said, ‘Oh, I’ve had a conversation with a lot of marginalised people, for example, a Latino woman. Well, firstly, Latino is not correct. When you speak about a woman, it’d be Latina or Latinx. So he’s not had much of a deep conversation with this person, and he didn’t name her, which means she’s not gaining anything off of him talking about her. So he’s still not using that platform for good yet, where is that?”
Melanie’s frustration is not just with Bateman, but with the industry. “Why does he get the platform first and then begin to uplift us? It’s giving white saviour, to be honest with you. And I don’t need a white saviour. I need the publishing industry to take notice of us,” she said.
Where do we go from here?
Both Melanie Saward and Jing Xuan Teo agree: the real issue isn’t Bateman himself (he may end up being a decent author), but a publishing industry that continues to overlook and undervalue marginalised voices, while investing heavily in white, male, and celebrity platforms — often at the expense of genuine talent and hard work.
Melanie wants to see people of colour at all levels of publishing — not just as authors, but as editors, marketers, and decision-makers. She points to the need for publishers to put real marketing muscle behind diverse books, not just the ones they think will sell easily.
“Putting their marketing dollars behind marginalised authors that they have on their lists is a really, really important thing. I got additional marketing for [my book] and an additional marketing committee, because they actually have set up a committee inside [Penguin Books] that looks at books that come from marginalised people. I credit that with making a huge difference to my book,” Melanie explained.
Xuan echoed the need for publishers to “put their money where their mouth is” and genuinely champion diverse voices, not just when it’s trendy. “If [publishers] really want to make this right, they can go and find a diverse author and give them the same platform, give them the same marketing spend, make it an equally big hoo-ha,” Xuan said.
“These minority stories are not just a good business investment now, but they’re valuable.”
Despite all the noise about the “disappearance” of literary men, Bateman’s deal and Atria’s influencer-first marketing show that men — especially white men — are still being handed the keys to the literary kingdom. The conversation isn’t necessarily about Bateman, but about demanding better from an industry that continues to overlook and undervalue marginalised voices.
“No one should be shitting on Luke, you should be shitting on Simon & Schuster. This is Simon & Schuster’s problem… If you were given the same opportunity, who wouldn’t take it?” said Xuan.
The hope is that this moment leads to more than just outrage — that it sparks real action to amplify the stories and voices that have always deserved a place on the shelf.
PEDESTRIAN.TV has reached out to Atria Books and Luke Bateman for comment.
Lead Image: TikTok
The post Who Gets A Book Deal? Luke Bateman’s Success Puts Publishing Inequality In The Spotlight appeared first on PEDESTRIAN.TV .
