Book Trailers

The previous few weeks we have been sent several book trailers for upcoming and current released books. Some book trailers are huge productions, some are computer graphics, and others are well-produced self-made films. As publishing companies and authors look for new and improved ways to catch your attention and purchase their latest release.

Big Production Trailers

The first trailer is Voyagers 15 years celebration:


Jasper Fforde's Shades of Grey: (REVIEW COMING SOON)


Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters by Ben H. Winters


Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-Smith


Self-created Productions

Kell's Legend and SoulStealers by Andy Remic

Kell's Legend


SoulStealers


Animation Productions

Dante's Journey by JC Marino


CassaStar by Alex J. Cavanaugh


Young Adult

Leviathan by Scott Westerfield


The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman


Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick


While I really enjoyed the trailer to Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters, I have no intention of ever buying the book. It made me chuckle a little bit; however, it did not leave me with a urgent desire to run out to the bookstore and purchase a copy. Leviathan was really well done and may help individuals who know nothing about the first World War (although it is an alternative history novel) but, had I not already read the book due to word of mouth, I doubt that it would have found a place on my bookshelf.

While Remic's self-made videos do a decent job of illustrating what you are going to get when you open up his Clockwork Vampires series, it certainly does not invoke any immediacy to run out order the books online.

The small publishing firms are using it to promote their novels as well, With Dante's Journey and CassaStar as examples. This is the real reason I see the trend for using book trailers, it gets new authors and small publishing firms the opportunity to launch their products and generate buzz for their products. While it easily serves the bigger publishing companies as well, it is a cheap and effective way to help rookie authors promote their works.

For each of these great book trailers there is only one that spikes my interest, Jasper Fforde's Shades of Grey and I already have the book. I just has me moving it up in the pile of unread books that I currently have on my desk.

While a lot of the book trailers are ingenious. My questions is to they actually increased book sales? How often has a book trailer tempted you to try a new book or new author? Do you even care if a book has a trailer?