Book Trailers

Thinking about making a book trailer? Me, too. I asked some writer friends to share their trailers and tips.

Here are the tips:

Be short and sweet

Make sure you have the legal rights to the music and images

Give credit where credit is due

Provide buy links for your books

Here is a link to a video interview with some filmmakers doing book trailers:

http://utahbookscene.com/book-trailers/

And here are the trailers! (Can't wait until I can share a few of my own!)

J Loyd Morgan, The Hidden Sun
J Loyd Morgan, Waxing Moon
Cheri Chesley, The Tyrant King
Donna Weaver, A Change of Plans
James Dashner, The Maze Runner
Maria Hoagland, Nourish and Strengthen
Jean Viola Ryan, The Mark of Abel
Ally Shields, Blood and Fire (Guardian Witch #4) book trailer
PJ Sharon, Heaven Is For Heroes
PJ Sharon, On Thin Ice
Elizabeth Rose, Legacy of the Blade
Elizabeth Rose, Caretaker
Joan Reeves, Mystery of the Stormy Night
Nicole Hurley-Moore, Misrule's Mistress Trailer
Dotti Enderle, Severed Trailer

Thanks to all the great authors willing to share. If I missed someone, I apologize.
Stay tuned, I want to do this again when I have one or two of my own. If you have a book trailer to share, you can post it in the comment box.

Trailers Wanted

I want to talk/learn about making a book trailer. So--if anyone is interested, I'd love to post your (rated G) book trailer. If you want to share your creation process--that would be great, too. THANKS!

The Catfish Marketing Campaign Begins

I know I’ve blogged about this before, but here’s a reminder of the Catfish Marketing Campaign. Catfish Marketing, like catfish fishing means getting cold and wet, taking deep breaths and putting my head beneath the water and maybe even getting a little bloody. Catfish marketing means doing something every single ding-dong day to market my books.

But today is Sunday and I don’t work on the Sabbath. And tomorrow is my wedding anniversary, which means I’ll be spending the day with the man I committed to share eternity with more than half my life time ago. And then it’s the fourth of July and we’re going boating at Lake Mead, then its the weekend and Chandler’s birthday party followed by another Sunday. And not only is today the Sabbath, but Bethany, Brandon, Chandler, Sterling, Dave and Davey are visiting. Typically, there are five of us in our house on Sembrado, but last weekend a kid named Brad and a puppy named LaRue came to stay. And the week before we had Chelsea and two of her girlfriends—which I didn’t meet because I was in Washington, visiting my dad, who had a heart attack five weeks ago and has since last 60 pounds. That’s 60 pounds in five weeks—235 to 165. When people come to stay, it’s always nice to have clean towels, sheets and toilets. I like to sweep the crumbs out of the pantry, so that my guests think that we’re habitually tidy--even if I happen to be in Washington visiting my ailing father, who doesn’t seem to be getting better.

So, is there room in my life for Catfish Marketing? Can I really expect to not only publish two books in the next six weeks, plan and throw a wedding reception, celebrate my anniversary and two important birthdays, go on two vacations, pick up dry cleaning, mop the floors, provide meals, make sure the dog gets exercise and spend time every day marketing my books?

Yes.

Here’s the game plan. Today—with this blog—I’m kicking off the campaign and asking other anyone with anything to market to join me. It’s going to be a great month. Here’s a taste of what’s in store:

Donation ideas

A call for Ghost Stories

Media sites

Blog visits

Business cards

Free downloads

Review sites

Book trailer tutorials

Gimmicks

Publish said Ghost Stories

And more…

So, please join me as I devote a month to learning how to break out of my shell, get a little cold, wet and maybe even bloody while balancing a life and a houseful of people I love.