Shelves and the City is perhaps the only influencer trip where its attendees are more excited about a visit to the public library than they are about free tattoos and an open bar.

That’s because Shelves and the City, a trip for 95 book creators hosted by HarperCollins last weekend in New York City, isn’t a typical influencer trip.

“It feels like book summer camp,” says Lindsey G., who posts book content on her Instagram account @_booksandbanter. “With Cosmos.”

She raises her glass in the direction of a group of creators taking photos with a 360-degree glam-cam on a rooftop in Williamsburg. Inside, at the “Romantasy Ball,” they posed for photos under an archway of hardcover books and danced in dresses made of lace and crushed velvet, wearing fairy wings and devil horns.

Throughout the weekend, creators described the event as a “book summer camp for adults,” and if you look at the programming, it’s easy to see why. Attendees were treated to a karaoke pajama party, book-themed scavenger hunt, sushi bar, cocktails, hand massages, silent reading time, a rooftop dance party, and volunteering at the Brooklyn Public Library, which most said was their favorite activity.

This year marked the third annual Shelves and the City, or “Shelves” for short, which is arguably the most coveted book creator event invite, largely because it was the first—and still one of the only—of its kind.

Lindsey G. “screamed a little bit,” when she got the invitation. “I had a little bit of imposter syndrome,” she says. “I was, like, ‘All I do is talk about books online.’ ”

“That's the goal of being a content creator—to come to this,” says Carla Sanchez, who posts on TikTok and Instagram as @carlareadsnyc, while contemplating what she should get for her first tattoo: a book with a blade going through its pages or an open book, without the sword. “We're constantly messaging each other about books and having conversations. Getting to actually meet each other and have that dialogue in person is definitely the most special part for me.”

In the worlds of fashion, beauty and entertainment, brand trips for content creators are common—but not in the world of books.

“Unfortunately, book creators are on an island of their own,” says Talia Cadet, who posts online @taliacadettt for more than 300,000 followers. “We're just not afforded the same opportunities and grand trips. We get the least, it feels like, in terms of opportunities. So for HarperCollins to put on this trip and to invite nearly a hundred of us is really special.”

Sam Fox, the executive director of content creation and strategy at HarperCollins, comes from the world of women’s magazines, where brand partnerships have been commonplace for more than a decade. “These creators are literally putting books in the hands of people who are learning about these stories that are making them feel so seen and heard and validated,” she says. “They deserve the same treatment that creators and influencers in every other industry get.”

While publishers and book brands frequently host dinners and one-night events for creators, Shelves was the first brand trip for book creators. Even so, this marks the first year that the event received brand sponsorships, from brands like Nuuly. But publishers are now starting to explore events at a larger scale. Last weekend, Dell Romance hosted a reading retreat at the Dixie Dude Ranch in Bandera, Texas. And in February, Cosmo Reads hosted a night in Atlantic City.

Support for book influencers has become only more important at a time of low literacy rates and book bans, according to Fox.

“Knowing that they genuinely care about protecting the right to read and protecting libraries, that is why we do the rest of it,” she says of influencers. “Because the people who are excited to do the community service activity at the library—they are the people who deserve these big moments the most.”

And book content creators in particular, have had a major impact on the industry, compared to influencers in other industries. They’re not only credited with boosting book sales (particularly in the romance genre) but also with helping revitalize physical bookstores.

“I'm just propping up my phone in my bedroom,” says Lindsey G. “To know that there are people watching, there are people engaging, there are people that this is making a difference for, this weekend is saying, ‘Hey, we see you, and we want to help you continue.’ ”

Though romance and fantasy are the biggest BookTok genres, and the most represented genres at Shelves, many creators remarked on just how diverse the group was, not only in terms of race and ethnicity and account sizes, which range from 2,000 to 1.2 million followers, but also when it comes to genre, with creators specializing in romance, dark romance, romantasy, fantasy, dystopian fiction, mystery, classics, memoir, sci-fi, and literary and translated fiction.

‘Best day ever!’

The weekend kicked off on Friday night, when attendees—who were flown in everywhere from Los Angeles to Michigan to North Carolina—descended upon the HarperCollins office in floral dresses, tiny mics, and “SATC” friendship bracelets on their wrists, marking their places in advanced copies of books with bookmarks from a custom beading station.

Empty cocktail glasses littered tables with stacks of Taipei Story by R.F. Kuang and Tempest by Victoria Aveyard. In an announcement that unleashed the biggest scream of the evening, the creators were given 10 minutes to fill a box with books from a table stocked with tall stacks of special editions and advanced copies.

A staff member remarked that it was about to get crazy. Instead, the creators formed a respectful line. “I see Madder Lake!” someone yelped, referring to the forthcoming adult romantasy debut by Katie Wu. “This is the best day ever!” another whispered. “I love this energy,” a HarperCollins staffer remarked. “It’s so calm, like a library.”

On a book scavenger hunt on Saturday afternoon, groups of creators took to the streets of Williamsburg, where they dodged a deafening motorcycle rally to complete the tasks outlined on their maps. They snapped selfies in front of the Taipei Story billboard, delivered book-related hot takes in front of a movie theater, and offered dollar bills to passersby if they could name an author.

At the same time, a dozen other creators opted to read in total silence on the rooftop of the hotel, armed with snacks, Diet Cokes, and furry blankets.

“I'm the reader of my friend group. I am just the weird friend who's sitting there with a Kindle in my hand,” says Adrienne Joseph, who posts on TikTok as @adoseof.books, after gabbing with a new friend over cocktails after the scavenger hunt. “It's so cool because I'm in a room full of people who just have their Kindle in their hand all the time, and it's not that weird. It's so nice to be around people who just get it.”

And later that night at the Romantasy Ball, Carla Sanchez showed off her wrist tattoo: a tiny paper airplane, folded from the page of a book. “We all waited for each other and were there for moral and emotional support,” she said. “And someone said to me: ‘it is a representation of all the pages that led you to this moment.’”

She turned to face the arch of books, suspended in the air, like a sculpture. It was the moment everyone had been waiting for: Staff were about to announce the winner of the scavenger hunt. Outside, you could hear cheering from across the street. It was even louder than the motorcycles.