From the shelf to the feed: the evolution of the editorial paratext in the digital era

This thesis examines the evolution of the concept of editorial paratext, as originally theorized by Gérard Genette, in the transition from the printed book to the digital and social media era. Starting from the classical definition of paratext as the set of elements that accompany a text and mediate its reception (title, cover, preface, dedication), the work traces the transformations this concept has undergone in the context of the digitization of publishing, demonstrating how paratextual elements have expanded far beyond the physical boundaries of the book to circulate across multiple digital platforms. This paper examines how new media have transformed the forms, functions and actors involved in the creation and circulation of paratext. In particular, it focuses on specific forms of digital paratext such as book trailers, cover reveals, promotional reels, and BookTok content which, beyond their promotional function, constitute narrative spaces where all the actors involved contribute to the construction of the text’s meaning. Finally, a case study is presented, namely the novel Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros, which allows for a concrete analysis of how digital paratext, and especially the BookTok ecosystem, has contributed to shaping the cultural identity of the work.