Book Trailer 101

Several of you have been coming into the library to make your book trailers this past week. I've been noticing that we are struggling with where to begin. I'm here to help you with the technological aspects such as taking pictures and putting those pictures into movie maker, but I can't tell you what to take pictures of or write the whole trailer for you. :) So here are some simple steps to get you started so that you will have a plan when you come into the library. Remember, book trailers need to be finished by the beginning of August.

Steps for Making a Book Trailer

1. Read the book. (This may sound really obvious, but you cannot start a book trailer until you have read the entire book.)

2. Think about the concepts or the point that you are trying to get across. You want to entice the reader (tease if you please), not tell the whole story.

3. Make a book trailer scene list, scenes from the book that communicate your concept. What is the message you want to send? The trailer should be about the story, NOT the selling of the book or all the awards it has won. Sell the story don’t make a “commercial.”

4. Write a script. Try creating a spreadsheet with columns for subject (for example, man at desk), the photo, video, audio file name as you create them– for example, desk.jpg) and a third column for the description (man sitting at a desk looking bored) of each scene to help me keep focused and stay on track with the story. Stay organized – there are lots of pieces and parts to keep organized.

OR

Create a storyboard. Draw out your trailer frame by frame using short descriptions of what will be in each frame. Draw stick people to give yourself an idea of what you want. Whether you choose to use a script of a storyboard, you must have a PLAN for where you are going with your trailer.

5. Try to keep the trailer as short as possible. Don’t get caught up in telling about every character and every plot detail. It’s not easy but you don’t want to lose your audience. You want your trailer to entice them enough that they want to find out those details on their own by reading the book.

6. Do NOT under any circumstances use any media that you just happen to come across on the Internet. You must create your own images. You can take photos, draw pictures, act out scenes and videotape them… just make them original!

The Hunger Games- Not Your Typical Child's Play/ Book Review by Jill Emerson

I am usually slow to join the literature bandwagon. I avoided Twilight until the third movie was already out and my students’ declaration of its pure awesomeness finally forced me to read it. The Hunger Games trilogy was similar. Suzanne Collins did for dystopian societies what Stephanie Meyer did for vampires… create a new cult following amongst today’s teens, not to mention the equally large group of adult followers. The difference for me, however, was that I finished The Hunger Games trilogy; I quit after book two of Twilight. I just couldn’t force myself to read another 1300 pages of that monotonous vampire/werewolf battle-for-the-girl-with-no-self-esteem.

            The Hunger Games kept me hooked all the way to the last pages of its final installment, Mockingjay. I began the series only because the library’s middle school book club chose it as their February read. I cringed at their choice because I knew the premise: 24 teenagers are placed in an arena where they must fight each other to the death on national television. If you think that the violence must be watered down since it’s a “kids’” book, think again. The violence is graphic, the blood is abundant, and many, many characters—the majority children—die. In the second book, Catching Fire, the torture inflicted upon the characters only heightens, and in Mockingjay, most of our favorite characters perish in an all-out war. The only thing that makes this a “young adult” series is the fact that the main characters are teenagers.  If you can accept the idea of an entire nation following a sixteen-year-old girl in a rebellion, you will find that the series could go toe-to-toe with any adult futuristic war novel, except that like all YA, it gets to the point more quickly.

            You may be wondering why in the world anyone would let their child read this. First of all, Collins doesn’t glamorize the killings in these books. She forces the reader to consider the emotional, psychological, and moral consequences of them as we live through the experiences with main character Katniss. This isn’t like the bloody video games that many teens play daily, desensitizing them to violence. These novels evoked powerful book club discussions including how corrupt government can be in the wrong hands and what we would do if we were forced into a kill-or-be-killed situation. We also noted that, as far-fetched and repulsive as it at first seemed, the idea of watching people fight to the death would, sadly, probably be a hit in our reality-TV-obsessed society. And like any good teen novel, the series had a love triangle that sparked heated arguments over who should win the heart of Katniss who—unlike Twilight’s constant damsel in distress, Bella—was always coming to the rescue of her men. I’ll admit that as much as I thought the love triangle was complete overkill in the first book, I found myself picking a side in the Team Peeta/Team Gale debate and angrily slamming Mockingjay down on the table when Katniss didn’t end up with my favorite.

            YA is emerging into a category for youth and adults alike. The Hunger Games can connect teachers and students as well as parents and teenage children, with whom they often feel like they have nothing in common. Even though the content is intense, the story goes far beyond the entertainment value of war and presents many opportunities for lessons about survival, human decency, and compassion.