Some writers really enjoy creating book trailers while others want to and don’t know where to start. One of my clients panics at the thought and asked me if she has to create book trailers at all.

No, you don’t have to create book trailers, but if you want to experiment, you have quite a few options. You can hire a firm to create a production number for you, or you can do create a video yourself.

Some writers use book trailers as a big part of their promotion efforts. They can bring people to your blog or website, but those people may not be readers.  No one knows how effect they are in actually selling books.

If you are looking for ideas, there is no way better than to look at other book trailers. You can also ask your readers what they think. Knowing what readers want, especially your readers, is a great advantage.

Keeping an eye on book trailer contests is a great way to check out what other writers are doing.

The winners of the 2010 Moby Awards for Book Trailers have recently been announced. Watching them is a great education in itself. If you want confidence to try your hand at video, watch the nominees in the Trailer Least Likely To Sell The Book.

There’s also a category for the Most Annoying Performance by an Author. If it doesn’t increase your confidence, it can give you something to aspire to.

There are categories for the Best Big Budget and Best Low Budget, so the author created trailers aren’t judged against the big corporations.

Unlike the New Covey Trailer Awards which just have one category, so everyone is lumped together.

One of my favorite categories is Biggest Waste of Conglomerate Money. This proves that money alone does not a good book trailer make.

Here is the winner of The Best Performance by an Author. It’s a great education in how not to promote your book. If you do all the things he says he isn’t doing, you’ll have a great start on a book promotion campaign. However, this trailer doesn’t really promote his book.

Have you seen that book trailers make a difference in your website traffic or your book sales?

Leave a comment and share.

Write on,

Lynn Jordan

Even if you don’t have a publisher setting deadlines for you, you can still use deadlines to accelerate your writing process.

There are many ways to do this.

• Find an  accountability partner and share goals
• Tell EVERYONE and have your friends and family ask if you’ve finished your book yet.
• Use contests and challenges to motivate you.

Right now is a great time to get involved in contests and challenges.

The Rose City Romance Writers offer the Golden Rose contest to help you prepare for the Golden Heart contest of Romance Writers of America. You get a critique of 50 pages.

The Golden Rose Contest is now open. Click on the banner for details.

If you write articles, Ezine Articles is holding their 4^th 100 articles in 100 day challenge. It’s already into the second month, but you can still join. If you can’t make the 100 articles, do as many as you can. Even if you don’t win the goodies they offer, you will still have more articles than you do now. Articles are a great way to put your name in front of readers and get people to visit your website or blog.

If you have a blog (and you really should), Jeanette Cates is holding a 30 posts in 30 days blog challenge in June. There is a Twitter hashtag (#blog30) and a membership site. You can meet lots of great folks and get more exposure for your writing.

Pick a method. Set a deadline. Start writing.

What are your favorite ways to move your writing into high gear? Leave a comment and share it.

It seems that every time I open an email or a webpage, a video starts playing. At least almost every page has a video on it if it doesn’t start playing automatically. You’re probably thinking that you have to add video to everything else you are suppose to be doing to build your online presence.

Maybe you do and maybe you don’t. We have become screen watchers. We watch the television, the computer screen, and now our smart phone screen. Attention spans are shorter.

Some people can’t be bothered to write an email anymore. They make a video and send you the link. I would much rather scan words than sit through a video.

However, as writers, we have great appreciation of the written word. Reading tends to be our favorite learning style. I’ve surveyed my audience and this is overwhelmingly true.

Some of the complaints about videos are:

• The need to find the headphones if your computer doesn’t have decent speakers. (Most netbooks don’t.)
• Videos that start automatically
• Videos that don’t tell you how long the video lasts
• Videos without controls to pause or stop the playback

A  lot of training is provided by videos now. It’s nice to be able to see someone actually do the steps. However, if you are trying to follow along with the video and do the process yourself, it can be very difficult. Especially if the task involves using your computer. It’s much easier to have written material to follow.

Many authors are creating book videos. You may have been told that creating a book trailer is a must. That may be true. However, you want to make sure you are reaching YOUR audience.

The people who love video may not be readers at all. It doesn’t make sense to spend time and money to reach people who will probably never buy or read your book. Of course when the movie based on your book comes out, they may flock to it.

Of course, if your publisher tells you to create a book video, then it will benefit your career to produce one. I don’t think publishers are going that far yet.

Most of the videos are meant to promote you as well as your books. You can achieve the same results with short audios as well as video. A simple audio or video can let your audience see or hear you.

Soon I will give you some resources to help you make quick videos that will serve your promotion needs.

I am also preparing some WRITTEN training to help you deal with the technology you need to build your online presence.

How do you prefer your training? How do you feel about videos?

If you’ve done book trailers, how have they affected your sales?

Leave a comment and let me know.

Write on,

Lynn