My name is Magda M. Olchawska and I’m an author of children books (Mikolay & Julia Adventures www.mikolayandjulia.com) as well as an award winning filmmaker.

In this guest blog I’m going to share with you a few ideas & concepts about creating a book trailer.

You have your book written & you are about to be published.  Just before your book comes out you probably try to arrange book tours and try to get as many interviews & reviews as possible, try to get the top reviewer from Amazon to agree to read your book etc.

One of the new tools a lot of writers started using as part of the marketing campaign is a book trailer.

I just want to make sure that we understand each other book trailer isn’t going to sell books (just like a movie trailer doesn’t sell cinema tickets.) book trailer is going to make more people aware of your book.

It’s going to be easier for people to watch 60 sec. trailer than read a synopsis.

If you are either using a company or making a trailer yourself there are a few basic rules to keep in mind:

• Don’t make it too long. The average trailer should be between 30 sec.-90 sec. at the most. People loose attention after 90 sec.
• Make sure you are using a font that can be read and understood. Nothing fancy.
• Having music is necessary for your trailer. Music is an integral part of any kind of trailer. It often expresses more than words will do. However before you choose the right music make sure it fits your trailer. Don’t mislead your readers/audience in any way.
• Make sure you are telling the book’s story visually. Don’t give away too much. You don’t have to explain everything to your audience in a trailer.
• While making a trailer your job is to make sure it provides relevant information about your book & is mysterious & intriguing enough for people to go to your Amazon page & buy the book right away.
• Think about your book trailer as a 20-word logline of your book. How would you describe your book in 20 words? What would you say with the images in that 20 “words”?
• I strongly suggest having your website’s link through out the duration of your trailer. The best place for that is in the bottom left corner. This way you give the audience enough time to register the name of your blog/website.
• Leave enough time for your audience to become familiar with your book cover.
• Don’t try to use MTV cutting style (very fast paced cutting) for your book trailer ‘cos you won’t be able to convey any information this way. It’s not a music video.
• Try to come up with one thing that is very unique in your book & use it in your trailer. It could be your book’s trademark.
• When you buy or choose visuals for your book trailer, try to make sure they are attractive & are able to tell your story. Don’t buy random images or images that look outdated.
• Your book trailer is going to represent your book visually. If your visuals aren’t good people will think your book isn’t good either.
• I would also suggest to write a script for your trailer. This way you will know what you want to portray.

Try to do a little homework & watch as many movie trailers as you can. The people who make them are Pros & know how to trigger emotions.  It doesn’t mean you have to spend millions on your trailer. The less money you have the better ‘cos you really need to be creative.

If you would like some help with your book trailer please visit me at http://www.magdaolchawska.com/about/creative-consultations

Thank you so much for reading my blog. I hope you enjoyed it.

If you would like to find out more about my work as a writer & filmmaker please visit www.magdaolchawska.com

If you would like to find our more about my children books please visit www.mikolayandjulia.com

So you’ve decided to take the bull by the horns.  This is YOUR BOOK and you want to see it through from start to finish; make your dream of being a published author come true!  You are going to self-publish! 

Now what?

I wrote a guest blog for a dear friend & author, Magda M. Olchawska, that offers some step-by-step guidance on how to self-publish a book.  I encourage anyone who has made the choice to self-publish, but isn't quite sure where to go from here to check it out!

How to Self-publish a Book by Heather Payer-Smith Author of “The Nameless World” http://www.magdaolchawska.com/entry/217