Unleashing the Power of Book Trailers

• Engels
• Middelbare school
• vwo
• Leerjaar 5

TODAY IS BOOK TRAILER TUESDAY!!

Learning Objective

At the end of this year, you will understand what book trailers are, their purpose, and how to design one.

What do you already know about book trailers?

Introduction

Book trailers are short videos that promote books, just like movie trailers promote films. They aim to capture the interest of potential readers and give a glimpse into the story.

This year, you are going to design your own book trailer for your Literature Portfolio!

Book Trailer Example

You will watch a video of an interesting book trailer

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children - Ransom Riggs

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs is the first in a series of three young adult fantasy books. The story follows our protagonist, Jake, as he seeks information about his late grandfather. On his journey, he stumbles into a group of exceedingly peculiar children who have been driven into hiding. 

This trailer has it all. We get our main character and his grandfather right at the start, and the slightly off-kilter music tells us that things are a bit, well, peculiar. The trailer takes us through sepia-toned photographs as the grandfather explains the Home and that the children were hiding. 

 

Finally, at the end, we get our cliffhanger, leaving the viewer with the question: hiding from what? Not only do we get that cliffhanger, but we get an extra shot of something ominous. The music darkens, we get footage of belts and chains and a very spooky man lurching down a hallway. Ack! 

This is also another example of high production value paying off tenfold. The quality of the camerawork, sound design, and color grading suck the viewer in in the exact same way a movie trailer would. This is not only pleasing for someone who’s already excited for the book, but it’s going to hook people who aren’t avid readers, too. 

What is a book trailer?

A book trailer, simply put, is a sort of movie-style trailer for your book. 

This will be a video, usually under a minute long, which is meant to advertise your book to the reader. It’s supposed to do exactly what a movie trailer is supposed to do. 

Think about your experience watching movie trailers: they set the tone, show us some of the main characters, maybe introduce the main conflict, and leave you rushing to the theater to see the rest (or marking the date the movie comes out so you can do so). 

Book trailers function the same way! Some book trailers look like movie trailers, with actors, voice actors, and full scenes. Other book trailers are illustrated or stylized some other way, but all of them serve the core function of advertising your book. 

Benefits of Book Trailers

Book trailers help create excitement and anticipation for a book, attract new readers, and provide a visual representation of the story's mood and themes.

Reaching a Wider Audience 

Book trailers, when done well, can be extremely engaging. People are visual creatures, and they’re more likely to watch a book trailer than they are to read a book synopsis. Using sound, whether that’s music or voiceover, combined with the visual elements of the trailer will create a more dynamic, immersive experience. 

That means a book trailer is generally going to appeal to a wide variety of people. Ideally, this will mean it’s shareable across platforms. Maybe someone who isn’t even an avid reader might see it on Instagram and think hey, maybe I should check this out. They aren’t likely to go looking for upcoming releases—if not for the book trailer, they may never have checked it out. 

Elements of a Book Trailer

A book trailer should include a captivating hook, key characters, setting, plot highlights, and a call-to-action encouraging viewers to read the book.

Write down 3 things you learned in this lesson.

Have students enter three things they learned in this lesson. With this they can indicate their own learning efficiency of this lesson.

Write down 2 things you want to know more about.

Here, students enter two things they would like to know more about. This not only increases involvement, but also gives them more ownership.

Slide 4: Planning Your Book Trailer

Before creating a book trailer, plan your storyboard. Decide on the scenes, visuals, and text you want to include. Consider the target audience and the book's themes.

Slide 5: Creating Your Book Trailer

Use video editing software or online tools to compile your visuals, add text and audio, and create a cohesive trailer. Pay attention to timing, transitions, and music.

Slide 6: Showcasing Your Book Trailer

Once your book trailer is ready, share it on social media platforms, book-related websites, or during book presentations. Engage with the audience's feedback.

Slide 7: Evaluating Book Trailers

Evaluate the effectiveness of your book trailer by considering its impact on viewers, feedback received, and the overall alignment with the book's essence.

Slide 8: Conclusion

Book trailers are powerful tools to generate interest in books and engage potential readers. By creating compelling trailers, you can promote literature in a visually captivating way.

Ask 1 question about something you haven't quite understood yet.

The students indicate here (in question form) with which part of the material they still have difficulty. For the teacher, this not only provides insight into the extent to which the students understand/master the material, but also a good starting point for the next lesson.