It took 25 years, and a 16-second TikTok video, for this US man’s book to become a bestseller

Full-time lawyer Lloyd Devereux Richards from the US state of Vermont had a dream: To write a book. So he spent 14 years doing just that.

Then came 11 years of hoping and waiting for his novel, a thriller called Stone Maidens, to fly off the shelves.

It was not meant to be for the father of three, who was content just finishing the book.

But a 16-second video on TikTok by his daughter Marguerite Richards, 40, dramatically flipped the narrative.

The video, posted on Feb 8, detailed Richards’ novel-writing journey from start to finish and had a simple message: “I’d love for him to get some sales.”

The viral video garnered more than 40 million views and Stone Maidens hit No. 1 spot on Amazon.

Richards, who is 74, was left overwhelmed by the response and cried while reading the comments section of the TikTok post when his daughter showed it to him.

Stone Maidens was published in 2012. It tells the story of a Federal Bureau of Investigation forensic anthropologist investigating a serial killer who strangles women before dumping their bodies into a deep, narrow valley.

Richards said his novel was rejected by 85 agents before one took to it.

At the time, he received a modest US$15,000 (S$20,000) advance, he said in an interview with New York Post.

But after factoring in the costs of putting the book together, Richards said the income from his book was negative.

That is, before the viral video.

This is not the first time TikTok has boosted book sales, including through the hashtag #BookTok.

Readers use #BookTok to discuss their favourite authors and book picks.

A report in The New York Times said that in 2021 alone, BookTok helped authors sell 20 million printed books.

In an interview with the BBC, Richards said the experience is proof that writers should never quit.

And neither is he: There are reports he is working on a sequel.