Book trailers are more often used for published books, or upcoming books, to raise awareness among consumers. Very few people create book trailers for unpublished books. But Cheri Lasota, author of Artemis Rising, has done just that. She created a movie-like trailer for her book, which she’s currently seeking representation for. The end result is impressive, to say the least, both in terms of scope and quality. Unlike most book trailers, which only run around two minutes, Cheri’s videos is well over four minutes long. Here it is:

Cheri was kind enough to grant me an interview, explaining the process and hopefully shedding some light on it all for those of us considering creating our own book trailers:

How did you come up with the concept and script for your trailer? (Did you look at other book trailers, movie trailers, etc.? Did you storyboard or do some other kind of outlining?)

I had known the director, Bill Thoma of Axiom Shift Productions, for many years. In fact, we were in the same writing group for a time. What I didn’t know was how brilliant he was at filmmaking. We pulled off a four and a half minute trailer in about 3 months with almost no budget to speak of.

Bill and I sat down over two consecutive evenings and he listened closely as I basically gave him a rundown of my novel’s plot. He asked a lot of questions, trying to get to the heart of what I felt were the most important elements of the story to get across.

Bill is outstanding at whittling down a 350-page plot into a few snippets of dialgue and some powerful images. And that’s just what he did. We created the script together, as I looked for excerpts of dialogue from the book, etc.  It was fun and collaborative.

I looked at a few other trailers, but most of them were a succession of still images with voiceover, and we wanted to do much, much more with this one. Essentially, I wanted to bring several scenes from the book to life.

The director eventually moved from the script to a step by step storyboard for shooting. Mostly that was for his purposes, as he came up with interesting angles/shots for the different scenes.

Did you think about doing other kinds of book trailers, like interviews or a still image-based trailer? What made you decide to go ahead with a more traditional, movie-type trailer?

Usually, book trailers are a succession of still images, but those don’t catch my eye like movie trailers do. Perhaps it is because I went to school for film. I like the visual medium of filmmaking as opposed to photography, and when I wrote Artemis Rising, I always saw it as a film.

Did you consider doing the entire project on your own before deciding to hire a director?

I definitely wouldn’t have tried such an ambitious project on my own. I don’t personally have the camera equipment or directing experience necessary. However, this project re-awakened my love for filmmaking, and Bill let me do any part of the project that I felt able to do. I ended up serving several roles: producer, actor, script supervisor, art designer, and costumer. I’ve never had more fun in all my life than I did on that film set. The experience was priceless.

How did you find your director and other professionals? What about staff?

The director was a dream to work with because he was always the calmest person on set. He knew the shots he needed, knew how to communicate with the actors, and had the experience to roll with any complications that came up. The director of photography, Brian Neubauer was also a fun and calming presence on set–and an excellent cameraman too. Once I settled on the right actors–I had difficulty finding ones with just the right look I needed–everything fell into place. They were incredibly professional and it was mesmerizing for me to watch them work (most had theater or film/TV experience). The rest of the crew are friends I had worked with before on other film sets, and I knew they were hardworking and reliable, particularly makeup artist and art designer, Lyndsey Shaw.

Did you pay cast members and other staff or was it all on a volunteer basis?

Because the project was low-budget, we paid the actors in demo reels and the rest were volunteers.

Did you have to get permits or special permission to shoot in public places? How did you find out about what you’d need?

Having directed projects before, I had a good sense of what I might need to get this project rolling: costumes, makeup, props, locations, crew lunches, transportation, camera equipment. I have to say, organizing is one of my favorite things, and I took over most of the communications with actors and crew. We filmed at my apartment, outside a church, another filmmaker’s backyard (with a huge handmade crane shot), and at Cannon Beach, Oregon. We considered a few other locations, but decided that gaining permission would take too long. But, yes, often locations will require written permission, etc. We wanted to avoid the hassle, and all the locations worked out brilliantly.

How did you find your locations? Did you have to scout new spots, or did you already have places in mind?

It was critical to me that we film at Cannon Beach, as I knew it would be the perfect location for a cliffhanger shot we needed. Other than that, I was really open to other locations for other scenes/shots. Bill and I took a day trip to the beach ahead of time, and we drove up most of the coast, looking for the right location. But for the cliff-hanging, we had to take safety into consideration, so it was important to find the right spot. I suspected we’d film at my apartment, and that worked out well as a base camp for all our shoots.

How long did it take to shoot the trailer? How much footage did you end up with?

Principal filming took place over a weekend–one day in Portland, OR/Vancouver, WA and one day at the Oregon Coast. The following weekend we did pick-up shots, green screen, and voiceover work that we missed the previous weekend. The whole process took about three months, for pre-production, production, and post-production. I’m not sure how much raw footage we ended up with.

What was the post-production process like? How long did it take?

Post-production was cool. Bill let me into the editing room, so I could go over shots and scenes with him. He also let me watch him edit from time to time, since I am interested in every stage of the process. But mostly, post-production is just Bill in the editing room, slowly putting shots together. He did a lot of effects shots that had me pleasantly surprised, particularly the shipwreck and the book title sequence at the end.

Were there hidden expenses or time-wasters you hadn’t anticipated going into the project? Anything you would have done differently in hindsight or any advice you wish someone had given you?

The project was much less expensive than I originally anticipated actually. But that may not be the case for others. My book trailer was quite long by traditional book trailer standards. Most are around 2 minutes. I wouldn’t give up my 4:30 minute trailer for anything, as it may be the closest I come to seeing my book on film, but I wish we had originally created a 2-minute version for marketing purposes. The director is actually working on shortening it now.

I thought I should mention why I decided to make a trailer in the first place. I’ve never heard of any other writer creating a book trailer before his/her book is published. This was essentially an experiment to see if I garnered more agent/publisher interest if I included a link to it in my submission query letters. It worked. I’ve gotten more agent interest in my novel than ever before. I would say it tripled my response rate from agents, and most of them mention they loved the book trailer when requesting materials, including the latest three who have are reviewing it now. Regardless of what happens, I can use the trailer for the life of the novel’s marketing campaign, so I knew it would be worth it for me.

But nothing can match the excitement I felt on the days of principal production. It was a dream come true for me to see my characters come to life right before my eyes. I wouldn’t have missed that for anything.

Image by Greencolander, via Flickr

But beta readers can be an elusive topic for the aspiring author, especially one who doesn’t belong to a formal critique group or otherwise have a circle of writerly friends. So, I’ve compiled this guide to help direct you toward forming a good relationship with your readers. I’ve had a total of four manuscripts read by beta readers (two partials through an online writing site, and two fulls through personal contacts), and so far I’ve had a very positive and productive experience with beta readers.

When to Use Beta Readers

Figuring out when to use beta readers can be tricky. There are two basic times when you should consider betas. First, when you’re just starting out writing. Betas at this point can point out the major flaws in your writing. Things like overuse of common words or repetitive sentence structure. I was guilty of the first offense when I started writing. I overused the word “that” to the point it was incredibly distracting once it was pointed out. I was lucky to have readers who mentioned it without disparaging the overall manuscript. Now that I’m aware of it, I can figure out when it’s appropriate to use “that” and when it’s not.

The other time you want to use beta readers is before submitting to agents, publishers, or literary magazines, especially for your first few manuscripts. At this stage, you want betas who can point out any major structural issues with your manuscript, as well as any underlying issues with your writing. You want to present the strongest manuscript possible when submitting to agents or publishers, and having an extra set of eyes helps ensure there aren’t any major problems.

When NOT to Use Beta Readers

While beta readers are invaluable when you’re first starting out and right before submission, there are times when using betas can be detrimental to your writing. The main time this is relevant is when you’re finding your own voice. It’s time like these when you’re still unsure of your own writing, but are getting better every day. You’ve ironed out the major technical issues and are working on forming your own style. This is an important time for a writer, and unless you have very, very gentle beta readers, hearing a bunch of negative feedback can have a huge impact on your confidence levels.

Feedback I’ve received right before submission could have crushed me when I was still unsure of my voice. It could have made me question everything I thought I knew about my own writing. At this point, though, I’m pretty comfortable with my style and the way in which I write, so I can easily pick through the feedback I get and figure out what’s valid and what’s simply a difference in style and voice between my betas and me.

If you’re sure you’ve worked out the technical issues in your writing but are still nervous about your own style and voice, be wary of beta readers. While good betas can help you refine your voice, they can also destroy it. If you want outside feedback, find writers who have a style similar to what you’re trying to create and ask them if something works or not. Tell them you’re still trying to figure out your own style and see if they can point you in the right direction.

How to Find Beta Readers

There are two main sources for beta readers: other writers, and readers. You probably already know readers. Look for people who read in your genre and who won’t be afraid to tell you if they didn’t like something. Also reassure them that you’re open to criticism and you want their honest feedback.

If you don’t know any writers, join some online forums. There are plenty of sites online that have critique groups. Authonomy, Absolute Write, YouWriteOn and WEBook are just a few. Specific genre sites are also out there. You can also use sites like Meetup.com to find local writers’ groups if you’re not comfortable sharing your work online.

It’s best to find other writers for early beta readers, as they’re more likely to be able to pick out specific flaws in your writing. Both writers and readers work well for pre-submission beta sessions.

How to Handle Feedback

What you do with the feedback you received is just as important as the feedback itself. Some writers get a document back up with a ton of comments and immediately start going through and changing everything the beta pointed out. That’s not the best way to perfect your manuscript. You have to remember that your betas are people, too. They’re not always right (but they’re not always wrong, either).

Look at the big-picture stuff. If your betas were confused by a certain passage or storyline, then that’s something you’ll need to deal with. It’s your job as a writer to make sure your readers understand what you’re saying. If your betas didn’t understand something, that’s your fault, not theirs.

If they found inconsistencies, plot holes, or loose ends, those are other important things to deal with. Characterization is a bit more subjective, but consider what your betas say about your characters, and adjust accordingly if needed.

The tricky thing to deal with from betas is comments on smaller things. Sentence structure. Word choice. Chapter breaks. Things like that. If you’re comfortable with your voice and style, you can likely figure out what’s actually an issue and what’s simply a difference in style between you and another writer.

Make sure you keep in mind whether this particular beta reader is someone who regularly reads your genre. Differences in genre standards can lead to misguided advice. For example, if your beta reader usually writes and reads chick lit and your book is horror, you might need to disregard advice to make things “lighter” in places.

But sometimes getting feedback from outside your genre can help you improve your writing overall, and can even make your book stand out from the dozens or hundreds of others agents and publishers see in your genre every day.

Treat Your Betas Like Gold!

I don’t care if you disagree with your betas. I don’t care if you think their advice is some of the dumbest, most-misguided, most trivial advice you’ve ever received.

They took the time to read your book.

In all likelihood, they took time away from their own writing to help you out. Sure, they brought their own preconceptions, their own prejudices to the table, but so will every single one of your readers in the “real world”.

When you receive feedback from your betas, you WILL send them a thank-you note. You will tell them you appreciated the time they took to read your book. You will NOT argue with them if you disagree with something they said. You can ask questions if you’re unclear on something they said, but make sure you do so in a manner that is respectful and polite.

Remember, no one has to read your book. You’re not entitled to beta readers (or any other readers). Treat them with respect, and if they then ask you to read their manuscript down the road, do so and give them honest, useful feedback without regard to the feedback they gave you previously. And if you are lucky enough and talented enough to get published, make sure you thank your beta readers in your book’s acknowledgments.

Image by j/k_lolz, via Flickr

That leaves me with quite the conundrum. Anyone who reads this blog regularly or follows me on Twitter or Facebook is probably familiar with my support of indie publishing and authors taking charge of their own careers. You’re probably also familiar with the fact that I’ve already self-published my own non-fiction book, Internet Famous, and have my own publishing company set up.

When I decided to self-publish Internet Famous, I had very set reasons for doing so. First, I wanted to get the book out quickly. I didn’t want to spend six months to a year finding an agent, then another six months or more finding a publisher, and then another year or more getting the book into print. The subject matter was timely, and I was afraid that if I waited that long, there could be a dozen books on virtually the same topic out in the meantime. The other big reason was that non-fiction has an easier time in the self-pub world, as it’s often easier to reach your niche.

So self-publishing Internet Famous was kind of a no-brainer. And while sales have been much slower than I’d hoped for, I consider it an ongoing project, and one that will soon be seeing some big changes. But more on that in another post.

Back to fiction. I love the indie novelist/author/publisher movement. I think it’s wonderful and empowering and a great thing for both writers and readers. There’s so much possibility there, so much room for growth, and I want desperately to be there, to contribute to it, and to challenge the conventions the publishing industry has held dear for generations.

But, and this is a big “but”, I wonder if I wouldn’t be better served by a mainstream publisher. That was a very difficult statement for me to type. As I’ve said, I love indie. I love everything about it. It speaks to the control freak that lurks not-so-deep within me. (Unless you’re an agent reading this; then I’m not a control freak at all and am the easiest writer to work with in the world. Promise.) And my book isn’t particularly niche-focused. It’s contemporary women’s fiction. Pretty mainstream, pretty commercial.

The other drawback to indie publishing for me at this point is time. I don’t have a whole lot of it. I have full-time blogging/editing/writing commitments already, none of which I want to give up. I have one self-published book out there that needs further attention. And I also have a lack of access to large numbers of book buyers. I live in a small town, I’m not particularly involved in my community, and there aren’t any real cities nearby. While I do have a large number of people who are familiar with my blogging (even a few fans, I think, which makes me smile every time I think of them), they’re not really my target market for this book.

So, I think I’ve developed a plan. I’m going to try the traditional route with this one first. I’ve created a list of roughly forty agents who I both admire and who I think might be a good fit for this book. I’m going to start querying them in the next couple of weeks, now that my rewrites are basically done. If I get no bites, then I’ll go through every publisher I think might be interested. If I still have no bites (which will be really depressing, btw), then I’m going to self publish.

What I’m hoping is that by the time I’ve gone through all the agents/publishers/whatever, I’ll have my next women’s fiction book finished (this would be either the sixth or seventh). And then I’ll release this one, the fifth one, for free to build a platform for the sixth. I’m honestly hoping I’ll find an agent, land a decent publishing deal, and start a long career as a novelist. I’m also not holding my breath and realize it’s a tough market out there.

So, while I will continue to support my indie friends, I’m gonna sell out and try my hand at mainstream for the moment. I may rejoin their ranks before long, and I’m sure at some point I’ll have a novel or two that don’t fit into the mainstream and will better fit the indie mindset.

Photo by paveita, via Flickr

I’m going to try to write regularly about my process as I work on this novel, sharing what I’m doing, learning, and experimenting with over the next few weeks as I hammer out a first draft and then later when I start revising. So this week I’m going to talk about character development, one of my absolute favorite parts of writing fiction.

One of the first things I do before I start writing a new novel is to cast my characters. Sometimes I  know instantly who my leading man would be, who my main character should be, or who some of my secondary characters would be played by. Other times I spend hours pouring over celebrity photo sites looking for the right face. That’s right—I use actors and actresses, not just random photos I’ve found online or in magazines.

There are a couple of different reasons for this. The most important one to me is that it makes it easier to hear their voices in my head, to see the way they move, the way they talk, their facial expressions if I’ve actually seen them in movies. This makes it much easier to write believable dialogue and believable characters in general.

For my current novel, I’ve basically got four main characters. There’s Cass, who in my head is Kate Winslet; there’s Dave, Cass’ husband, who bears a striking resemblance to Matthew Fox; Tessa, who, in a perfect world, would be played by Charlize Theron (though a bit older); and Grady—the leading man in this particular work—Hugh Jackman in my mind (this might have something to do with recently watching both Australia and the new Wolverine movie). In addition to casting like this, I’ll save a handful of images of each actor or actress in a “characters” folder within the folder for my novel. The only thing I won’t do when working on a novel like this is watch any movies these actors appear in that are at all similar to my current work-in-progress. It’s too easy to end up making the character exactly like an existing character without even realizing it.

One of the other primary bits of character development I do is to fill out a Proust Questionnaire for each character. I’m partial to Vanity Fair‘s version, though I’ll sometimes add in questions from the Inside the Actors Studio version, too, which was modeled on Proust’s questions. Proust’s original questionnaire is helpful, too.

I keep the questionnaires in a Google doc, along with my outline and research. But more on outlines in my next post in this series.

Feel free to share your own character development tips in the comments below.

Photo by nate steiner, via Flickr

All of those are perfectly acceptable options. But what if you want to do something different? What if you look at the options above and your brain just screams, “BORING!”

I have two more options for you: binding your own books (paperback or hardcover) or writing a “blovel”—a blog novel.

Hamish MacDonald was the first person I heard about who was doing his own book binding for his novels. He currently offers four books for sale, all hand-bound by him. He also offers a series of podcasts for the DIY novelist. It’s definitely worth checking out.

Kvasir House Press is another great resource for learning bookbinding and for other information related to self publishing. The owner, Chad Muller, offers an excellent two-part tutorial on how to bind your own books. The directions are excellent, and I honestly can’t wait to try them out myself.

No Media Kings offers a great comparison of self-publishing options that includes instructions for creating your own book press and for binding your own books. Definitely worth a read, though be aware that not all of the information in the self-pub options is accurate (mainly the assertion that POD books are only sold at retail price, which is false).

The other viable option for publishing your own books is to go the ebook route. But instead of going through SmashWords or the Kindle store, why not publish your novel on a blog? Serialized novels used to be quite popular in newspapers and magazines decades ago. Why not due the same thing on your blog? With one chapter released per week (or day), it gives readers a chance to come back to your blog on a regular basis. If you pair this with releasing a print copy of your book, you’re likely to see more sales than you would otherwise. And don’t forget to put a donation button on your blog so readers can support your work!

JungleG has a wonderful post titled “Procrastinating on that novel? Write a Blovel instead.” It gives a basic outline of what their approach to a blovel would be, though there’s plenty of room for customization.

We CAN! Promote Our Books has a great article on experimenting with the whole blovel idea (this time with a YA novel written entirely in poetry).

This idea has become so popular that there’s now a site dedicated entirely to providing authors with a space to write their blovel: Blovel Spot.

I’m sure there are plenty of other unique ways authors are self publishing their books. If you know of any, please share them in the comments below.

Photo by Marco Arment, via Flickr

One thing I didn’t mention is the speed I write at. The first draft of my first novel was completed in five days. It was only 46,000 words (a break-neck pace of 9,200 words a day). The scary part about that was that I didn’t hole-up in my house for the entire time. I went out to see friends, went to the movies, and otherwise led a relatively normal life. I’m still not entirely sure how I managed it and haven’t been able to since. My second novel’s first draft was completed in 33 days (91,000 words). The third was finished in a couple of months, and was around 56,000 words. The fourth was finished in 13 days and came in at a whopping 95,000 words (that’s an average of around 7,200 words a day). The fifth was written in approximately a month and came in at 62,000 words.

Subsequent drafts are done at a similar pace. I edited my first novel, adding 13,000 words to it and changing tense from present to past in about a week. I can realistically edit about 20,000 words in a day if that’s my only project (it rarely is). I redrafted my fourth novel (95k words) twice in the scope of a week, tightening up the prose and adding in bits here and there.

I couldn’t handle these kinds of schedules if I had a full time job outside the house. I write and copyedit on a freelance basis, and pick up web and graphic design projects here and there. If I didn’t work from home, my writing time would amount to an hour or two a day, instead of 8-10 hours a day (sometimes 12-14 hours if I’m on a roll or trying to meet a deadline). I write 7 days a week, even when I’m between projects. I’m always planning for the next one or the one after that even. On weekends I do try to cut my writing time back to 3 or 4 hours a day, though it doesn’t always work, especially if I’m working on a new project.

Here’s a bit more about how I write, and more details on specific projects. This is just how I manage it, and should by no means be taken as a definitive guide on how to write or anything to strive for.

Sometimes I start with an idea, other times a character. Inspiration comes from everything around me. Sometimes I’m inspired by something else I’ve read. Sometimes it’s a movie I’ve seen or a TV show. It could be a photo, or just an idea that pops into my head while I’m driving around or trying to fall asleep. My best ideas come while I’m in the shower or the car wash. I find it funny that water is so closely linked to my creative process since I’m an Aries (fire sign). I’m considering getting one of those desk-top fountains for my office.

When I get into the groove of a new novel, my characters talk to me. That’s actually how I know it’s time to start writing. When I can picture my characters and their interactions, that’s when I know it’s time to put them to paper. I start with an outline. This is usually hashed out in a day or two and might range from a page to ten pages, depending on how much of the story has already formed in my head. I can’t begin writing until I have an ending.

At the same time I do research and planning on the setting, characters, time period, etc. (depending on the genre I’m working in). With my first novel, this involved creating a map of the world it was set in and a listing of the different races and creatures in that world. I also had to sketch out how magic worked in this world and other things that were different from out own world. For my fifth novel, the women’s fiction novel set in the present, there was a lot less research and planning to do. The setting was based on a town not too far from where I used to live.

When all of my notes are done, I start writing. My notes are mostly kept in hard copy (or sometimes Google Docs). But I write in Microsoft Word (for Mac). I could not get by without my laptop. It makes it possible for me to write from the couch (regularly), from bed (occasionally), and in the car (obviously not while I’m driving). I couldn’t write at this pace if I was tethered to a desk all day. As I mentioned before, I write for 8-10 hours a day most days. I don’t take days off unless I’m between projects. Some days I might only write a thousand words, other days I might write 15,000 (that’s my record).

In school, I always did reports and papers the night before they were due, no matter how much time we were supposed to devote to them. And, I always got As. If I had failed, I might have changed my methods, but since I didn’t, that is the way that I write most effectively – in as little time as possible. Writing until I physically can’t write anymore or until my brain just absolutely refuses to keep going is the way that works for me.

I started out writing screenplays. I wrote my first one in four days, with no revisions. I then submitted to an online peer-review site, and got pretty good reviews – only minor changes were recommended. Screenwriting is such a competitive business that I never bothered pursuing it beyond that. But screenwriting is how I learned to write dialogue. And churning out a 120-page screenplay is, to me at least, way easier than writing a 70-80k word novel.

I’m currently between novel projects, though I have at least three ideas floating around in my head. Non-fiction is taking precedence at the moment, but by summer I’ll be back onto novel-writing. I’d like to try my hand at writing short stories and flash fiction, too, though I find the abbreviated format much more challenging than novel writing.

Here are some tips for writing this way, whether you are a first-time novelist or a seasoned pro:

1. Buy a laptop. This way you can write anywhere. I wrote in the car on the way to the movies one day. My personal favorite is the MacBook, though any laptop will work. I’d actually recommend going on the smaller size if you’re only going to use it for writing, as it makes it lighter-weight and much more portable.
2. Cast your novel. This helps with characterization. Pick actors and actresses for each of your major characters. It makes it easier to write character descriptions and makes your characters more life-like. When you can picture them in your head this way, the way the speak, the way they move, it makes it that much easier to bring them to life. You can use people from real life as well, just be careful not to base a character too closely on a friend or relative.
3. Use maps. If you’re writing speculative fiction, create a map for your world. If you’re writing something based in the real world, either use a map or create a fake one to keep your locations straight. If the bakery is next to the grocery store one day and then behind the library the next, it’s going to confuse people.
4. Outline. Create a scene-by-scene outline of what is happening in your novel. I change mine throughout writing, but at least it gives me an idea of where I’m going and where I’ve been. It’s a valuable tool if you get stuck while you’re writing and as a way to get to know your characters better.
5. Consider writing your beginning and ending first. When you have an outline, you can do this. Without the outline it’s much harder. If you’ve got your ending done, you know exactly where you need to end up. It makes it easier to get somewhere if you know your destination. This is something I did on my first novel, though I haven’t done it the same way since. Mostly because I never have quite as clear-cut of an ending in mind as I did then.

Feel free to share your own writing methods below or any tips you may have!