Bikers, Masked Men, Booktok and Bookstagram

By now, your FYP (for you page) has likely been crawling with bikers and masked men. Probably, even your Instagram. These two things seem to go hand-in-hand with books. And I mean, that's par for the course though right? We read about these guys and their attitudes and attributes all the time. We have all read an MC romance, a masked man book, or a stalker who prefers a Yamaha to a car. And now, it has come to life in front of our eyes.

The lines of fiction have been brought even closer to us with apps such as Tik Tok and Instagram. Some have even bridged over into X, Threads, and some even into OF - where they truly make fantasies come true, (for a price). How did this come to pass? Keep reading.

We have known about masked men, seeing as they have always been our faceless creators. They have embodied some of our favorites, from Damien (Scream for Us by Molly Doyle), Ghostface (Scream franchise), Ghost (Call Of Duty), and even recently, Koenig (Call Of Duty) and even Josh (Lights Out by Navessa Allen). They all take their cosplay to a new level with using audios from some of our favorite books, or doing a chase scene through the woods. They show dedication and anonymity, all while giving us either a smile across our face or a slight blush because, *that one scene*, has come to life. I know that I for one, hope we never lose these creators and they never lose the drive to continue to bridge these worlds from books to video games and even fanfic. 

Now, newer to the scene are the biker boys. Some are helmet creators, and some are actual riders. These guys give off the mystery of a masked man, but hold a different edge all of their own. They made a huge impact at the start of the 2024 riding season, and also, after a few of these books were released and gained popularity, one even featuring 5 ways to ride a biker; (Chaos by Luna Mason). Since then, these biker boys have been right up there with masked men, and are taking no prisoners. From rollers, to dancing, to even thirst traps, these guys seem to be coming for a throne that most of us didn't even know existed. 

Collage developed with images from Pinterest. Please contact Library of Angels for credit or removal.

Also, let me point out that we have all seen the debate about who book girls belong to. Masked men or biker boys, and not to sound to cringe, but why choose? I mean, why can’t we have both? We have all read at least one reverse harem. We know that sharing is caring, and in this world of content creation and fiction, why not embrace that. Why not enjoy both equally? Do we have favorites? Well yeah, but I mean it happens.

The hype up of both has been crazy and doesn't seem to stop growing, even with the threat of the Tiktok ban hanging around everyone's head. Some of these creators have even jumped to different apps to keep supplying the videos and photos. Lemon8 being one of them, there is even talk of NEPTUNE and Rednote. 

Now getting back to it. Some of these masked men have even given the confidence for, “the in the shadows” cosplayers to step into the light. As well as these biker boys have basically said, “get the bike” enough, that people are actually running to take their MSF and get their first bike. Some of these creators have also gotten in the merchandise world, and some have even collaborated with book box companies, authors, and even some book merchandise sites. It’s truly mind blowing if you think about it.

Social media, of course, has its ups and downs, but it is also a great way to inspire someone to try or start something new. So, while there are debates on what’s cringe and thirst traps all over the socials - can't we just look at the silver lining? That not only are the book girls looking into hobbies they never thought of before like cosplaying, riding a motorcycle, learning to dance, and maybe even play the guitar or take up cooking lessons (because yes, some of these creators do all of that), but also, some of these masked men and biker boys are stepping into the world of reading as well! They are asking for book recommendations and quickly seeing why we love our books so much.

Collage developed with images from Pinterest. Please contact Library of Angels for credit or removal.

Whether you love them or hate them, these types of creators are here to stay, and are constantly finding new ways to either make us feral or even sometimes make us cringe. And if you aren't seeing their content, and want to, I can guarantee one of your friends is reposting them on their stories, so just shoot me a link and I'm happy to supply it. Who am I kidding?! Im going to drop you some of their instagram handles.

Lets start it off with those masked men: @_callsign.void ; @callsign_alibi ; @callsign_a.c.e_ ; @callsign.mute.x ; @themaskedman_96 ; @coyotedoescosplay ; @the.honouredone ; @screamforme247  ; @white_masked22 ; @umbra_cosplays ; @grayton.d ; @iloveblackcrow ; @tobias_hdr ; @jay141riley ; @usghostz ; @grimdark_dude & this last one isnt a masked man, but he deserves a mention for sure @r.f.hali .

Now, let’s move onto some bikers, and surprisingly this list was harder for me to narrow down, (I know… SHOCKER): @zx10rzaddy ; @tatted.biker ; @bankz.r7 ; @tony.2.wheels ; @jerrad.sk1 ; @xmotojack ; @ax3l.whitlock ; @blitz.sr ; @cyclegroover ; @gixxersnow6 ; @strtlyfstyl ; @recklesszaddy ; @falvotrenz ; @saiyans_636 ; & @biker_grim ;

Shoot, those lists were longer than I thought.

These creators I have listed are profiles I have followed for a while and honestly enjoy scrolling my feed and seeing them, so go give them a look and a follow maybe. Who knows, you might find one that embodies that MMC from your last read. 

[Just remember, consent is key and just because they make spicy-ish content, doesn’t mean they have consented to inappropriate engagement in any form!]