Trailer

(book) trailer

like a movie trailer, but for your book

Should I make a book trailer?

Yes? It might make for good promo and it could be fun.

No? It’ll be really expensive, and it’s hard to do well. Your publisher probably won’t help pay for it (although it doesn’t hurt to ask your editor). You can save money by doing it yourself but… it probably won’t turn out so great (sorry, don’t throw things at me).

I’m going with “Yes?” How should I do this?

You could look into one of the companies that make book trailers (I know nothing about these companies, so you’ll have to research that yourself). Or you might try asking a student filmmaker to try his/her hand. Either way, make sure to keep the trailer short. Movie trailers are like two minutes long, right? Any longer than that starts to get taxing. Also, don’t use any music or images without first getting the rights.

How should I use my book trailer?

You can ask a blog or website to host it, like a cover reveal. You could release the trailer at the same time as some other big news (cover reveal, new book contract, award nomination, etc.) in order to create extra buzz. You can show it at your launch party and other in-person events. If you are going to do a school visit, you might ask the school to show your trailer ahead of time in order to get the students excited for your visit. And definitely put it on your website.