The New New Thing

Wench Pat recently blogged about the stresses of promo and publicity to help keep a writerly career healthy.  In the 20 years I’ve been published, I’ve seen a lot of that.  Personally, I think a good part of the appeal of self-promotion is to achieve an illusion of control in our careers.  (Where believe me, few of us have a whole lot of control!)  So, because we love our books and want to be read, we often do dabble in the perilous waters of promotion.

The first big wave of promo that I recall was bookmarks.  Author Brenda Joyce made a huge splash by producing very high quality bookmarks featuring photos of buff, partially naked male bodies.  She got lots of publicity, people fought for the bookmarks, and she immediately was Someone in historical romance.  And we were off to the races!

Bookmarks alone won’t make a star—the stories have to be ones that make readers want to buy,   Soon so many bookmarks were being produced that the marketing impact of them dwindled to near zero.  Not that they aren’t useful—I usually have some printed up to show upcoming books.  It’s convenient to have a bookmark to hand someone when they express shock at meeting a Real Writer.  With the bookmark, a person can go to my website for more info and I don’t have to say much.  Very handy.

Have you ever bought a book from a bookmark?  I did once.  The bookmark quality was abysmal, but it was romantic science fiction, a subgenre I love.  I have many prettier bookmarks where I have no interest in seeking out the book because it’s not the sort that interests me.  It’s the content of the story that counts.

Which brings us to the new, new thing: book trailers and teasers (the latter being shorter.)  As always, those who get in on the ground floor do best with a new type of promotion.  I first heard of book trailers from Christine Feehan, who is a marketing genius as well as a prolific and much loved author.  I think the trailers helped raise her onto the bestseller lists (though again, you have to have the books to support the promotion!)  http://christinefeehan.com/

So now teasers are blossoming everywhere, and they may very soon be so common that they’ll be fairly useless.  Since I’m unquenchably curious, I decided to give this a try for the paperback release of The Marriage Spell (out May 29th, buy yours now!).  My fingers are crossed that it isn’t already too late for a teaser to have much impact. 

Some people have expressed interest in how teasers are done, so I’ll give you a quick rundown here. 

1) Decide on a budget.  These can be made for almost nothing with the right software (that combines sound and images) and sufficient talent, but most of us don’t have the skills or the time.  There are production companies that specialize in these, such as COS Productions, a pioneer in this area.  ( http://cosproductions.com/ )  The more acting and movement are involved, the more expensive the productions.  (Here is COS’s page with costs for different types of teasers: http://cosproductions.com/services.htm )  A production company will help not only in the making, but in the distribution, so there are advantages to going that way.

And for the clever and bold, here is an example of a very witty cheap alternative:  http://noonebelongsheremorethanyou.com/  Not being that clever, I worked with a publicist and COS.   There was collaboration between me, the publicist, and the producer at every stage.  (It’s been said that a writer needs only a pen, an artist needs only a brush, but a moviemaker needs an army.  This is true even with a one minute book teaser!)

2) The foundation of a good teaser is –surprise! –a good script.  What are the salient points of the story and characters?  What words will express what is intriguing and different about this particular story, and say why someone should go out and buy the book?  This is HARD—the shorter a piece of writing is, the more difficult. 

My 51 second teaser had a script of about 76 words.  Alternating between voice over and written phrases is one way to convey more information in a point/counterpoint way.  In those 51 seconds, the teaser needed to convey the setting, the essence of the characters, their conflict, and maybe a hint of the resolution.  I think it came out okay—if you go to my website ( www.maryjoputney.com ) the teaser is partway down the home page and will play automatically after it loads. 

3) Just as the script is the foundation, images are the fabric of the teaser.  Finding the right ones isn’t easy, though.  If you’re doing an expensive movie trailer with live action, you can hire actors (or strong arm friends and relatives) and rent costumes.  Otherwise, you’re stuck with stock photo sites, and it’s hard to find historical images in such places. 

For the hero of my teaser, that problem was solved easily: Jack Langdon is basically naked. <g>  But the model’s coloring and build were right, he had short brown hair that fit with Jack’s life as a military officer, and he had a pensive expression that worked for me.  (And yes, he was gorgeous. That didn’t hurt. )

The producer located most of the images and made good choices, but I didn’t like the original image for Abby, my healer/wizard heroine.  As written, Abby is tall and full figured, pleasant looking but not a raving beauty.  The producer did her best, but the image she found didn’t work for me—I thought the woman looked dull and unappealing.  The producer had done her best to find a female who fit the period, but I found the image unacceptable.  A pity we can’t use images from Regency movies, but because of licensing and permissions, that just isn’t practical.  (Though I can put one here safely enough, blogs being ephemeral. )

So I went hunting myself.   There are a ton of stock photo sites, but finding the right picture is difficult because you have to figure out search parameters that will bring you the kind of images you want.  I don’t envy the people who work at these sites—coming up with multiple search terms for every photo has to be monstrously difficult.  (I had help from two sister Wenches on this, fortunately!)

After much whining and snarling, I eventually found an image I liked.  The young woman was wearing a rather odd Jacobean page costume and holding a book and a glass of wine, but she also appeared pleasant and compassionate and sort of historical.  She’s looking to her right, as if she might have just learned that a dying army officer have been brought into her dining room.  That suited the story, so we went with her. 

4) Then we picked the music, using this site:   http://shockwave-sound.com/  You decide on  a style, then listen to clips.  Each clip comes in different lengths to suit different applications.  The site plays the music with enough voice over to make them unusable unless you pay the license fee.  (The photo sites also mark the pictures in some way so you can’t just use them without paying.  Which is only fair.)  I got lucky when I went to the music site: I picked Celtic, and liked the very first clip I listened to, a lilting Celtic harp tune. 

5) Based on my summary of the story and the approved script, the producer put together  a draft teaser which we all reviewed.  After corrections and changing pacing and finding the new image of Abby,  the teaser was approved and posted on a number of sites.  (This is another place where a production company earns its fee.)  There are a number of free sites where you can post these, including YouTube and MySpace and, of course, your own website.   The more places it’s posted, the better. 

Ideally, a teaser will reflect the nature of the book.  Pat Rice was doing a teaser at the same time I was, but even though we both had paranormal historicals, the feel is very different.  You can see hers at www.patriciarice.com   As with mine, the teaser is on the home page and will open automatically.  At COS’s site, you can see a ton of other teasers with lots of different flavors. 

Has it been worth the hassle?  Hard to say yet.  I’ve gotten one email from someone who loved the teaser, said it really made her want to buy the book, and she then loved the book.  Score one in the plus column! 

In another bit of cross-promotion, this Monday, June 18th, I’m  blogging over at http://plotmonkeys.com/  The Plot Monkeys are Leslie Kelly, Carly Phillips, Julie Elizabeth Leto, and Janelle Denison, and they’ve asked me some fun questions!  Maybe I’ll you there—

Mary Jo

Comments

[Angela]

I think that the less diverse your fan-base is, the harder it is to self-promote your work. An example would be historical romance vs paranormal romance. Because Historical Romances have been sneered at as "bodice rippers" for so long, generally don't focus on the history and history is typically seen as a "fusty" subject, the potential cross-over audience is a lot smaller than paranormal romance/urban fantasy, which has garnered fans not only across the romance genre, but crossing over into sf/f and the coveted teenage demographic--which is why myspace and YouTube book trailers have worked so well for authors of those genres (teenagers populate myspace and sf/f fans spend a lot of time online).

For me, even if I'm intrigued by an excerpt, bookmarks, book trailers, cover-flats, etc don't make me more inclined to buy the book, particularly now, when my primary genre(historicals) has homogenized in terms of what is and isn't offered.

[Kathy Kremer]

I watched both trailers and thought they were well done. I already bought The Marriage Spell yesterday but haven't yet had time to read it. You're on my "autobuy" list, so you had me when you said hello.

[Maggie Robinson]

Ooh! I loved them both. I've already read The Marriage Spell, but if I hadn't, the trailer would certainly spur me on. Pat's looks great too. Despite the length, I find trailers unusually emotion-producing, so y'all are doing something right. Tres cool.

[Nina P]

Wonderful post, Mary Jo!

When I saw TMS's trailer for the first time, I (being a former techie) wondered how it was made. Now, I know. Thanks!

My favorite part in the trailer is the opening sound. It took me about a half a second to identify the crack. Then I was flooded with emotion. Primary was my instinctive need to protect by lashing out at those causing hurt. If I didn't already own a signed hardback copy of TMS, my next stop would have been Amazon. I just couldn't imagine living not knowing what happened to Jack. A well done promotional piece. You sold me! Bravo!

A quick aside… I am saddened, Mary Jo, that your new publishing house has asked you to leave your paranormal/fantasy story elements behind. I love this side of your romance novels. Your beautifully complex characters struggling to come to grips with their inner power will be sorely missed by me. (Though I will never leave your fan base.)

To Angela’s point, I picked up my first Romance Novel precisely because it contained paranormal elements. Paranormal Romance creates the kind of world I like to read about. Humanity blended with powers we can almost believe in. See in ourselves, even in the real world. I’m just one of millions of readers, but I do wonder who leads the pack (in cover art and story element trends) the Publishing Industry claims to be chasing.

Nina, thinking she can't be the only one feeling this way.

[Kalen Hughes]

"I am saddened, Mary Jo, that your new publishing house has asked you to leave your paranormal/fantasy story elements behind."

And I'm ecstatic to have you back in the land of straight historical romance, so there's just no pleasing us. LOL!

Great book trailers, BTW!

[Nina P]

Alright, Kalen... I'll trade Mary Jo to you. But I want her back in a couple of books. :-)

[Patricia Rice]

You so politely make the insane anarchy of film production seem so organized! I needed my fainting couch on a regular basis.

Maggie, that's a fascinating insight. Through the struggle of trying to figure out what to include that would vaguely translate 100k words into 50, I hadn't thought about the emotional qualities of the images. Wow, one more thing I need to think about should I ever be so nuts as to repeat this venture.

But one of the fun results is that you can type THE MARRIAGE SPELL or MYSTIC GUARDIAN into Google and turn up a ton of websites! And of course, Mary Jo's book hit 140 on the NYT in its first few days on the shelf. For a reissue, that's incredible, so maybe all her hard work created some velocity.

[Jane O]

I know authors are expected to do all sorts of promotion these days, which strikes me as a bit unfair. I would have thought it's hard enough to WRITE a good book. Let the publisher do the promotion.
But aside from the unfairness, I'm always a bit dubious about the effectiveness. Speaking as a reader, I don't think I have ever bought a book because of marketing efforts. I rely on book reviews to tell me about authors I haven't read before — and if I have read them before I already know that I like or dislike them, so I know if I'm going to pick up their new books.
I expect that the problem for the new author, rather than the established author, is to get the book reviewed in the first place. Do the marketing strategies work there?
And much though I'd like to watch the trailers, my computer isn't willing.

[Janga]

I though both the trailers were lovely--very evocative. I nearly always enjoy the trailers I see. I must have watched Christina Dodd's Trouble in High Heels trailer a dozen times, and I thought the one that a board regular did for Eloisa James's Desperate Duchesses was terrific. But the trailers I have seen have all been for books that I planned to buy anyway. I am doubtful that a trailer would persuade me to buy a book.

[Bonnie]

I prefer to select my books by reading blogs like this one, reading reviews and most importantly by reading excerpts posted on author's sites. The last is most important because I don't always agree with the reviews but reading excerpts allows me to hear the author's voice and get a feel for her style.

Mary Jo, you are one of my favorites enjoyed greatly by me and recommended to friends.

[maryjoputney]

From MJP:

Thanks to all of your for your feedback! You're confirming what I've rather suspected: that teasers probably don't make a huge difference except perhaps among a handful of readers.

The real key is to do something so clever that everyone sends it to their friends, like the Miranda July clip: http://noonebelongsheremorethanyou.com/

Since I'm not much of a reader of literary short stories, I won't be buying the book, but surely some people who saw that trailer and laughed will give the book a try. That's the essence of viral marketing.

>>Alright, Kalen... I'll trade Mary Jo to you. But I want her back in a couple of books. :-)
<<

LOL! As Kalen said, there's no pleasing everyone. :) Perhaps someday I'll find an outlet for my fantasy side. We'll see.

Mary Jo

[Kalen Hughes]

Mary Jo, I'm sure you'll be back in the paranormal fold soon, but for now those of us who love the pure historical are happy to have you back for a bit. Even it it's only on loan. LOL!

[Jo Beverley]

Jo here.

Very interesting insight into the book trailer biz, Mary Jo. No one knows what works in promo.

And yes, Jane, it'd be nice if we only had to write the books. The thing is, self-promo works, and apart from really huge titles that probably don't need it anyway, publishers never do it to the max.

I say it works, because I'm sure that at least part of the success of romance over other pop fic genres is that for decades now we've been reaching out to readers in a variety of ways instead of sitting back expecting them to find us.

Jo :)

[Cathy Leming]

Mary Jo ~

I love your sweeping historicals, but I'm also more than content with the paranormals. I started THE MARRIAGE SPELL yesterday--can you believe it's taken me this long? I was avoiding paranormals while I wrote my own--and I'm always so pleased to slip into one of your stories. Your writing style is smooth ... so smooth, yet compelling. The flow is superb. Your voice settles me and I love to spend time with your characters. Be it historical or paranormal, I will never tire of your writing.

Cathy Leming (aka Eadarainn)

P.S.: Love the teaser, but admittedly more as an art form than publicity.

[Cathy Leming]

Might I also add, that I read to slip into another world. I like to really get lost in fantasy. Historicals are certainly one way to do that, but the natural progression into a whole 'norther world--at least for me--is fantasy.

Mary Jo, I loved the romance in your Guardian series, and appreciated the simple explanations of the magic. Rather than creating a world of magic that us mere untalented men and women had to fit into, you created a world of normal men and women, full of prejudices, that magical persons struggled to fit into, and yet still cared--to the point of action--so much for the less talented and unenlightened folk.

What a wonderful world. Can you write both, perhaps? I'm still waiting on Jean's story. Has she been an elusive lass to nail down? Or did I miss her story?

[Queen Bee]

Thank you, ladies, for sharing your book trailers, and I hope they attract new readers to your wonderful books.

However, as a current reader, I have to admit that this kind of "commercial" leaves me cold. Every one of these that I've watched is almost interchangeable. I know you must rely on stock images, but there's nothing distinctive to signify a particular book. They all have the Celtic-music-flutes, too, like this is the only kind of music that signifies the past. I'm sorry to be negative, but this could be advertising any number of historical romances. It certainly wouldn't make me buy one over another or even tempt me to look for a new writer.

Keep writing the beautiful stories that readers love. Be writers, not commercial-directors. Your characters are already the best advertising you have!

[maryjoputney]

From MJP:

<

That's an interesting perspective, Jo. I'd like to think that all the effort that romance authors have put into promo over the years has helped keep the genre healthy.

Cathy, thanks for saying such nice things about my writing style! The hardest part of writing for me is simply getting the words down, saying what I want them to say. I always feel like I'm trying to stir the lumps out of the oatmeal. :) So it's good to know when I succeed.

<

Your timing is excellent. A DISTANT MAGIC is Jean's story, and it will be out in hardcover in mid-July from Del Rey. I'll do a blog on the story around the release date. It's my most ambitious story yet--which is one reason I'm happy to be working on a straightforward Regency historical now. :)

Mary Jo

[LisaK]

As I read the blog and thought of the cost and the reason behind making the trailers. I kept thinking where else could you place them to reach a broader fan base of people who may not ever visit an authors personal sites. Do your publishers have trailers to view on their websites, for the people whom may not want to leave one site for another? Or may not have ever read the author?

[sleeky]

Speaking of odd promotions, I did a quiz for Loretta at funtrivia.com:
http://www.funtrivia.com/quizdetails.cfm?quiz=264274&edit=yes
I hope she'll approve. :-)

[sleeky]

Ooops, here's that link made better:
http://tinyurl.com/2f7txt

[Cathie]

Mary Jo, I have bought books based on bookmarkers. I have gotten them from the authors themselves as well as authors sharing other authors bookmarkers, and from romance sites, etc. I have had the joy to read many new to me authors that way. I too started some book scraping with the book markers and promo. Its beautiful to go back and look at them. So as a reader, I enjoy having them. I do have quite a few magnets on my fridge but I find I don't use them to look up the author. I mostly have them easier to check with my scrapbook or when I'm reading and put the info in a notebook. I do love to go to chats in the evening. I don't do well with chatting on loops. Its difficult for me to stay extended times. I'd doing better on blogs, but I do forget and tend to go back and read a couple or 3 weeks of the blogs to chat up on and catch up. Yeah I miss all the contests, but I love to be able to come here and read up. I don't go to many blogs, mostly just a few group ones like this. I prefer that than individual blogs since its alot to keep up with.
As for the trailers, I like to see, but I think thats more for a reader who has never read the author. I like them more to see whats put together since I already know the author I know the blurbs.
Hope this helps from a reader's info :) I just too wanted to let you know that today was one of the days I caught up with a couple of weeks of blogs so I posted all over, since I'm having a more comfy day! Thanks for letting me visit!

[Cathie]

PS MaryJo, I'm reading A KISS OF FATE (HC) and just so wonderful! I will probably get the HC of the second book and I believe the third is out soon in HC, right?

PSS, I just read about your new upcoming series Pat. It sounds exciting!

[LorettaChase]

Hey, Sleeky, thanks! The quiz was both fun and funny.

[AgTigress]

Really, I do think that multi-tasking has become quite ridiculous.
Writers research, create and write. Publishers publish, and that includes marketing, as well as printing the books! Good grief, do we have to do EVERYTHING ourselves?
Apparently, yes. I am incensed by the lack of marketing of my own latest (non-fiction) title in the UK; I am doing better with the US edition.

Imagine an eye-rolling icon...

[AgTigress]

Why have we all gone into italics?
Just asking...

[Jane George]

I've viewed the trailers,(and Miranda July's refrigerator/white board), and I've given this marketing approach a couple of days of serious thought.

The realm of fiction is SO rich because the story unfolds in the reader's imagination. Even the biggest budget movie productions often fall short of the mark.(And writers' budgets are not Hollywood budgets.)

IMO, these COS productions failed to mesh the two apples and oranges media successfully. I was left with a kind of, "huh?" reaction.

I think it could be done, but more bookish elements would need to be added. I would layer in bits of handwritten text to look like old manuscript or correspondence. I would use more symbolism, bits of period paintings ghosted over other imagery, flash animations done from hand drawings, etc.

In other words, put a lot more work into it, which means time and money.

I'm really interested to know how effective these trailers are for you established writers. Please let us know! Because, while I trust my aesthetic judgment implicitly, my mass-marketing instincts, well, they suck.

[maryjoputney]

From MJP:

Lisa K., Pat and I both have publishers willing to use the trailers, though I'm not exactly sure how--I really must ask. :)

AgTigress, I have no idea why the italics! And sadly, we do have to do too much in the hopes our work doesn't drown in the general clamor.

Cathie, I'm glad you're enjoying A KISS OF FATE. I believe that the second Guardian novel, STOLEN MAGIC, is still available in hardcover, though it would probably require a special order. As you say, A DISTANT MAGIC, the third Guardian book (Jean's story), has a release date of July 17th. I hope you enjoy them all!

Jane, I'm not convinced that trailers will make a lot of difference, but like my cats, I'm always curious and wanted to give it a try. :) If there is any really dramatic effect, I'll say so here, but I think that like most advertising, we'll never really know. such is life.

Mary Jo