alphabet-blog-vVideo might not be what you're expecting a post on on a writing blog. You might be asking, “What does video have to do with novels?”

Well, there's a trend recently of authors making trailers for their novel release.

I'm not too sure what I think of this. On one hand, many of the trailers I've seen are pretty cool, and the idea of having a trailer for Reckless Rescue is kind of appealing. On the other hand, it does seem a little… over the top?

But as a marketing strategy, does it really have anything going for it?

I don't have any hard evidence on whether it's effective or not, so I'm just going to give my opinion.

It's a new marketing avenue

Videos are big right now. YouTube is big right now. A lot of people are watching it, and I think there are only going to be more, so having your novel out there can't possibly be a bad thing. You might reach reader you might not gain through other channels.

It gives you a chance to create an atmosphere.

Moving pictures, atmospheric music, a few carefully chosen phrases. We all know it works in the movies, so why not for your book? Writers are used to only using words, but the potential once you add sound and images is huge. There is a chance to post your trailer on places such as GoodReads and Amazon, as well as YouTube, and of course, your own webpage.

My only advice would be, if you're going to do it, do it well. (Just like anything else.) A badly made trailer won't reflect well on your book. Better to have no trailer than one that puts people off you're book. Keep it short, you want to give an impression of the story, not tell it in the video!

So over to you. Have you watched any book trailers? Did they sway you towards checking the book out? What do you think about book trailers? Any great ones to share?

All this month I’m participating in the A-Z blogging challenge, writing a blog post for each letter of the alphabet, on every day of the month except Sundays. Check back regularly to see what else I have in store for you.