What you need to know to do a book trailer?

[Everly]

This is something I have been asked a lot about, so I wrote a blog post. Since I came to writing via the film industry, I figured it was something I knew a bit about. The article is about what you need to know before doing your own book trailer as well as showing some great trailers that really work.

Hope it helps.
http://ellelapraim.com/top-10-video-b...

[Mandi]

Hi Elle. :o) I would love for you to check out my trailer for my children's book entitled Mortimer's Sweet Retreat. It is just over 1 minute long and I would love your feedback. Thanks so much. :o)
Mandi

Here is the link: http://bit.ly/vUNLne
Or you can search on youtube under: manditw84
Thank you and have a great day!

[Everly]

Mandi wrote: "Hi Elle. :o) I would love for you to check out my trailer for my children's book entitled Mortimer's Sweet Retreat. It is just over 1 minute long and I would love your feedback. Thanks so much. :o)..."

Hi Mandy,

I am going to give you my honest opinion because that is the only kind that actually helps. I think your children's book looks great! I love the illustrations. I think your video needs to be shorter, in that, I think you need to make each one of your frames move quicker in the beginning. Also don't show the shot of you with the book until the end. People are all about instant gratification these days, if it does not catch them right away, they move on. You need to jump right into pictures of the books. My other concern is that all the different kinds of fades your using, distracts from the great illustration of the books. I would just use one fade that looks like a book turning. That way, we feel like we are reading it.

Ok, those are my thoughts, I hope they help. I would like to remind you that just the act of doing a trailer, puts you worlds ahead of other people. Congrats on that!

[Mandi]

Aww, thank you. :) I may be doing a second trailer for my other book soon so I'll definately take your advice which was very good advice btw. :) I appreciate you taking the time to look at it. :)
Mandi

[Greg]

Hi Elle,

I did a trailer too and also wonder what (if anything) it brings. I would have loved to have been able to invest in real production quality and actors but we self-pubbers don't have the funds for that.
Still, if you could take a look and tell me what you think, I would appreciate the feedback.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTGbWv...

[Red]

I think it looks good Greg. I quite enjoyed it.

I did a trailer recently, well it's longer than the average trailer, to be sure, but it's for a very different type of book, genre and story, one very personal to me.

I wanted to do one that represented the story, and went farther into explaining what it contained, the theme. Not everyone's patience would take it :-) but naja, there it is. It was fun, and it was free.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LUGYD9...

[Greg]

Hi Red,

Thanks.

I detected a hint of German in your comment (naja) and then confirmed it when watching your trailer. You are right... it's long, but I have it playing on another screen now just so I can keep enjoying the music. Who is that? What is it called? I couldn't understand the lyrics so well (music is always harder than spoken or written German) but really enjoy the slightly medieval sound it has. Is it also gay music, in it's theme?

Very cool sound.

I also followed the link to your EditMe site and think you have as good looking novel. I have never read gay fiction before and am as yet unsure of how it would sit with me, but may give it a shot when it is released. Let me know.

[Dana]

I just completed the trailer for my new book, The Delaware Detectives. If anyone would like to take a look at it, I'd love to hear some feedback.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PRWM9-...

[Red]

Greg wrote: "Hi Red,

Thanks.

I detected a hint of German in your comment (naja) and then confirmed it when watching your trailer. You are right... it's long, but I have it playing on another screen now just s..."

Thank you for taking the time to reply to my post, and I appreciate the feedback. Sorry for the delay in my response because for some reason my notices only work sporadically.

Yes, I'm a German speaker and live in Germany though am actually Native American. I never get tired of that song either and, of course, have heard it probably twenty times in a row while editing the trailer. It is called "Rosmarin" by Faun. It's German Medieval Folk music, and no, it isn't gay music. It is about devotion, loss and rosemary symbolism. I've added the lyrics to the vid description now, if you'd like to read them.

The novel itself, is somewhat problematic determining genre, in that it has gay characters in it, in a relationship setting, but the story is very much different than much fiction labelled gay. Also, it is not sexually explicit either, although sex is discussed at times, it is not strictly gay specific as one of the characters is bisexual. The themes themselves can affect anyone especially the main one: dealing with the after-effects of child sex abuse, and the life changing/lasting personal and psychological problems it can cause.

Honestly, I do not read gay fiction myself very often preferring sci-fi and fantasy generally. The story itself has to grab me. This novel evolved to be what it is differently than what I'd planned, even though it is semi-autobiographical in nature.

[Judy]

Hi,
I completed a book trailer, and for me, it was a lot of work. I'm not all that technology savy. Here is the link, and I would love your comments.
http://youtu.be/kw7epfOIFw8

Judy
I also have it posted on my Goodreads author page that I am working on.

[Greg]

When you have made your trailer, there is a list of 31 places to promote on one of my older Blog posts. It may save you some time.

http://www.gregscowen.com/2011/09/31-...

[Judy]

Thanks for directing me to this blog post and your blog. It sure gave me food for thought.

[Tellulah]

Greg wrote: "When you have made your trailer, there is a list of 31 places to promote on one of my older Blog posts. It may save you some time.

http://www.gregscowen.com/2011/09/31-...-..."

Thanks for this! I'm hopefully going to be shooting my trailer next month and this is great.

What do you all think about certain genres being more trailer friendly (or effective?)