The Value of Book Trailers?

I have to admit...  I am easily distracted.  Some days it is very difficult for me to read at work because people stop by my cube, emails come in, etc.  I can get totally lost looking and giggling at lolcats.  My newest distraction today... book trailers.




Perhaps I am missing something...  do book trailers work?  How do they get out to the readers?  I found this Sholes and Moore trailer by searching Lynn Sholes.  It seems to me the reader has to actively search for an author's work.  What am I missing?  I suppose they are on an author's website as well.  Can they be uploaded to Amazon?  Do indie stores post trailers on their websites?

I think book trailers are fun.  :)  It's interesting to me what elements an author chooses to highlight, the music selection, if the author uses images of the characters or not... 

Authors - have you seen a positive impact because of book trailers? 

Readers - has seeing a trailer cause you to go out and buy a book?  Or made you not buy one?

Happy Holidays from Jess Lourey

GM Malliet, mystery writer and author of one of the best books of 2008, recommends creating trailers to promote your books. If she recommended wearing blue mascara and tube socks over your pants, probably we should do that, too. Fortunately, she's only gently nudging us toward the digital era, and out of respect to her bona fides, I have created a trailer for August Moon:



I love how writers share marketing tips. It reminds me of the first time my son Xander sparred at a Tae Kwon Do tournament. He's tall for a six-year-old and as kind as the day is long. His dad died before he was born, and I try to fill the role of both parents. In that spirit, I was coaching him on how to best kick ass (you can decide whether that is normally mom's or dad's job).

"All I know about sparring," I said, "is that as soon as the ref drops her hands to start the match, you get in there with a chinning kick. Catch your opponent off guard and they'll be running for the rest of the match."

So I get him all pumped up. "You can do it!" I tell him. I put in his mouth guard and yank on his shin and forearm pads. I walk him over to the waiting pen, where he nods to the three boys he'll soon be fighting. He indicates for them to lean their heads in close, and when they do, he pulls out his mouth guard and says, "OK guys, all I know about sparring is that as soon as the ref drops her hands..."

That's my boy. He likes winning, but not nearly as much as he likes treating people well. And so generous writers like GM and Joanna Campbell Slan and countless others share their marketing secrets, knowing full well that if we're all doing the same thing, their efforts will have less impact. I guess they just like treating people well. Thank you to all the generous writers out there for your gifts of blurbing, a pat on the back, sharing marketing tips, and all the nice stuff you do to make this a writing community! In the spirit of the season, care to share the best writing or marketing advice you've ever received?

p.s. As a gift to myself, I have just completed and sent September Grace to my agent. Here's the first chapter. I'm pretty dang proud of this one. Now, my kids and I are off to be with friends and family. Happy holidays, and stay warm, full, and generous!