| Author | Message | ||
     R.B. Russell (Tartarusrussell) Username: Tartarusrussell Registered: 02-2010 Posted From: 81.154.154.166 |
I created a video trailer for Robert Aickman's "Sub Rosa" last night, but I can't help feeling that that the medium is an odd one for publicising a book... (What's that phrase about "dancing about architecture"...?) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qGTdBi3eN4Y I think there is some advantage in showing the physical book, but is it possible to hint at any reading experience through the medium of video? (If there is a sudden spike in sales I'll make some more  ) | ||
| Zed (Gary_mc) Username: Gary_mc Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 195.166.117.210 |
Anything you can do to raise awareness of a product's existence surely has to be worth doing, right? I doubt these things actually incease sales dramatically - they tend to be seen by those already in the know - but there's always the chance that you might snag a few buyers via YouTube viewings, etc, if you have a striking trailer. Plus, we live in an age of image-obsessed idiocy, so I guess a book trailer helps push book awareness into those regions. Maybe. | ||
| R.B. Russell (Tartarusrussell) Username: Tartarusrussell Registered: 02-2010 Posted From: 81.154.154.166 |
I think you're probably right, Gary. When I first started publishing books twenty years ago there were, perhaps, a dozen different places to send review copies and attempt to publicise supernatural fiction. I'm not convinced that the Internet has increased the market, but it has certainly fragmented the venues for publicity and promotion. To replace the usefulness of a print magazine such as, say, "All Hallows", information needs to go to several different forums, and a multitude of bloggers. I'm assuming that video trailers are one part of the new way of doing things... (This is not meant as a grumpy old man's complaint - just an observation.) | ||
| Zed (Gary_mc) Username: Gary_mc Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 195.166.117.210 |
Ray, the biggest probem facing publishing, I've learned, is making people aware that the product is out there - this is even more difficult with the indie press, where there are no advertising budgets. A lot of great work goes unnoticed, even by we who know, and follow, the field. | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 129.11.76.216 |
I made a video for my PS novel and it got 500 hits (though most were generated by my steering folk that way). | ||
| Frank (Frank) Username: Frank Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 85.222.86.21 |
Personally, and no disrespect to people who have made trailers for books, but I think, as Zed said about image-obsessed idiocy, the trailers are going to have to be a lot better than they are to attract an audience outside of the usual people who will look anyway. For me the trailers are great, I love them, but they need to have all the allure of a trailer for a film, which, let's be honest, unless you're Stephen King, J.K. Rowling, or Dan Brown's publishers, nobody has the money for such a venture. What an age we live in ): | ||
| Zed (Gary_mc) Username: Gary_mc Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 195.166.117.210 |
Yeah, some of the book trailer from the bigger publishing houses are pretty amazing. Stephen King's latest book even had short films made for each story...they're on YouTube, btw. | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 129.11.76.216 |
It's just a bit of fun. MS Movie Maker is a clunky pile of poo, but it's fun getting it to do fun things. Like, fun. | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 129.11.76.216 |
You know, my experience in the small press is that nothing generates sales spikes other than the desirability of the product/author. Reviews don't lead to (m)any sales. Linking to websites results in few sales. Folk either want the book or they don't, and no amount of carrot-dangling makes a jot of difference. Just my penny's worth. | ||
| R.B. Russell (Tartarusrussell) Username: Tartarusrussell Registered: 02-2010 Posted From: 81.154.154.166 |
I have to admit that I've seen couple of seriously good video trailers for books, but I didn't consider buying the book as a consequence. Apart from anything else, (and not wanting to undermine my own efforts!), they aren't exactly objective :-) A review by a critic I respect, or a friend who shares my tastes, is a different matter entirely... | ||
| Zed (Gary_mc) Username: Gary_mc Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 195.166.117.210 |
To be fair, these book trailers from the big publishers are aimed at targetting yur average passing book buyer, not enthusiasts like us. ie. the kind of people who would be swayed into buying by seeing a good one. | ||
| Tom_alaerts (Tom_alaerts) Username: Tom_alaerts Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 194.78.35.175 |
I thought the Sub Rosa trailer was quite ok for something essentially zero-budget. But probably, to be bluntly honest, too static to lure people not yet familiar with Aickman. I did like the trailer of the excellent recent ghost novel Dark Matter; and the publisher did a cool competition: cut up and remix the trailer to make your own trailer variant. Here is the book trailer, it gives a quite accurate idea of the story atmosphere: http://www.michellepaver.com/trailer-for-dark-matter You'll find several fanmade variants on youtube. | ||
| R.B. Russell (Tartarusrussell) Username: Tartarusrussell Registered: 02-2010 Posted From: 86.141.54.133 |
I'm sure Tom's right about the Sub Rosa trailer being a little too static. I've tried another which hopefully has a little more life to it :-) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJ-I1gEb5ZQ | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 82.26.202.244 |
That's pretty good, Ray. But I'd set the first line in the text and "But they are not alone" on single page, to be followed by the descriptive stuff. Those are dramatic lines. Also, it's all still a bit flat. MS MovieMaker has some good 'cut' tools which can demarcate scenes. Might be worth adding some to grab attention midway through, cos at the moment, this visual presentation of the book is like a written advert. I was concentrating on reading the text and paid little or no attention to the background images. Therefore, you might want the text to 'breathe' occasionally, so viewers can get a good glimpse of those creepy scenes. Good music. All in all, I liked it a great deal, and offer my thoughts to be taken or left as you wish.  | ||
| R.B. Russell (Tartarusrussell) Username: Tartarusrussell Registered: 02-2010 Posted From: 86.141.54.133 |
Thanks Gary. I have to admit that I was hoping to take a little attention away from the images because they've been plundered from "The Bride of Frankenstein" and "The Student of Prague" ;-) | ||
| Tom_alaerts (Tom_alaerts) Username: Tom_alaerts Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 194.78.35.175 |
Ray, I will check your clip tonight. A recommendation: if you have access to a Mac, then the latest update of the standard iMovie application features an awesome trailer wizard. I've not yet seen it applied to a book trailer, but I think it is possible. Have a look at: http://www.apple.com/ilife/imovie/ | ||
| R.B. Russell (Tartarusrussell) Username: Tartarusrussell Registered: 02-2010 Posted From: 86.141.51.154 |
Hi Tom, I'm using a PC and some pretty basic software. I'm not sure how serious I am about making videos, but I've been having fun... | ||
| R.B. Russell (Tartarusrussell) Username: Tartarusrussell Registered: 02-2010 Posted From: 81.154.85.73 |
Here's a trailer for "Dark Entries" by Aickman which is a little less static (courtesy of footage from an Aickman TV adaptation): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TnDtrVNDBUc |