A Map of the Heart
Line 1 : Meditations
Line 2 : Books
Line 3 : Heart-full Living
Line 4 : Self-study Courses
Line 5 : Talks and Workshops
Line 6 : Awakening
Line 7 : Chilling
How to Make a Book Trailer
We’re used to trailers for films and TV programmes. They tantalise and tease us to the delights the main feature will hold.
Nowadays multimedia trailers are being increasingly used to promote books and the technology to do them is accessible to all.
Seven elements that make a good trailer
1. Short – less than 5 minutes, ideally 1 minute
2. Sneak preview of book’s content – but adds something additional to the book
3. Link to buy book – but not a heavy sell but do include the book cover for recognition
4. Impactful – if the book has a point to make, this should be contained in the trailer
5. Fully informative yet enigmatic – it should be self contained in its message and encourage the viewer to want more
6. Potential to go viral – include humour or make a point that people want to share
7. Must work on mobile devices – if the trailer includes text, check that it works on mobile devices
Keen as ever to get my feet wet, I’ve had a go at a couple …
This We Know – short and enigmatic …
This We Are – somewhat longer and gives a snapshot of each chapter in the book …
– let me know how I did
Online Trailer Production Tools
Powtoon – used above
Animoto
GoAnimate
SwitchVideo
Slideshare
– let me know if I have missed any
So That Was 2012 !!
Well that was a bit of a year !!
Before launching into 2013 (and taking a well deserved holiday in the sun), I thought it worth wrapping up the year on this blog with a bit of a summary of the journey I’ve been on this year.
Strangely, the only thing I had vaguely planned was to write Planes of Being but even then at the start of the year, the title and theme of the book weren’t fixed … roll on 2013 !!
What happened in 2012
New Books
Planes of Being
This We Know – unplanned and written and published in less than a month
Which lead to the world we would/could know series of interview interviews
100 Years of Ermintrude for Kindle
eCourses
Bending Time
Goals of Learning
Creating Meditative Audio Recordings
New services
Bending Space | The Cube of Karma
Soul Part Integration
Light Up Your Business
Guest Blogging
GoCreative!
ShelfHelp
Creativity Portal
Publishing Talk Magazine
So what’s planned for 2013?
Well not a lot as I am so looking forward to all the serendipities unfolding …
but I have a series of workshops planned for the last Thursday of each month – check out these happenings
… a book to co-author with the fabulous Vicki Wusche
… at least two new courses for Udemy
and the writing of next year’s opus on how to move to the next level of human evolution
So not much on really !!
Have a fabulous Xmas and stunning New Year
A Very British Blog Tour
I am so honoured that author and poet Christine Miller invited me, together with a hand picked group of British authors, to take part in this great initiative.
It’s ‘A Very British Blog Tour’ which visits and supports the websites of some authors who are dedicated to turning out some of the finest books available in Britain today.
Each author named at the bottom of the page has asked been asked the same questions, but the answers will obviously all be different. You simply click on the author’s name below to see how they have answered the same question.
By the way, we British have certain conventions, traditions and procedures that are expected. There is a dress code in the reading of this British blog and you are expected to comply with it. For example…
Now then, let us proceed in an orderly fashion. As you know, we are all very boring and staid in Britain, aren’t we?
Well, there’s a myth about the British and your starter for ten is – stuffy, class conscious, boring, staid! But is this still relevant in today’s world? Let’s find out from our wonderful writers what they feel about it.
So, without further ado, here are the questions and answers from:
THE VERY BRITISH WRITER: Tom Evans
Q. Where were you born and where do you live at the moment?
A. I was born in Moss Side in Manchester when it resembled the opening titles of Coronation Street. I now live in the Surrey Hills with my life partner and two dogs who take me for a walk whenever they detect I am need of inspiration.
Q. Have you always lived and worked in Britain or are you based elsewhere at the moment?
A. Apart from loads of business travel during my early career in broadcasting, I’ve always been here.
Q. Which is your favourite part of Britain?
A. The south escarpments of the North Downs of Surrey looking towards the South Downs. This is handy as they are a mile or so from my house.
Q. Have you ‘highlighted’ or ‘showcased’ any particular part of Britain in your books? For example, a town or city; a county, a monument or some well-known place or event?
A. As most of my books are non-fiction, geography of anything but the mind doesn’t feature. My first ever book of poetry, 100 Years of Ermintrude, however did include these two stanzas:
“Brian I’ve decided has got to go
I’ll miss his flat & friends in Pimlico”
“I never thought I’d ever live in Tring
A mother of two, now there’s a thing”
p.s. I’ve never lived in either place myself, been a mother of two or had a boyfriend called Brian!
Q. There is an illusion – or myth if you wish – about British people that I would like you to discuss. Many see the ‘Brits’ as ‘stiff upper lip’. Is that correct?
A. I see British people mostly as courageous innovators who are brilliant in both the arts and sciences but who also possess a keen sense of humour and healthy level of self-depreciation. In my opinion, any lack of flexibility in the upper lip is a stereotype which is best confined to history books and films about the various wars.
Q. Do any of the characters in your books carry the ‘stiff upper lip’? Or are they all ‘British Bulldog’ and unique in their own way?
A. Ermintrude was (or is) indomitable.
Q. Tell us about one of your recent books?
A. I wrote and published my latest book, This We Know, in less than three weeks. I didn’t plan to write it, it just happened. It is a meme exploring what we know, what we don’t know and what world we could know. I’m in discussions about making it into a documentary and would love to interview people about the world they would like to know.
Q. What are you currently working on?
A. I have started writing the third in a trilogy which takes esoteric and arcane knowledge and makes it exoteric and contempory. The first two books explored the meanings behind the Major and Minor Arcana of the Tarot. This book with the working title of Leaving Cubeland will explore and explain two glyphs, The Tree of Life and the Cube of Space.
Q. How do you spend your leisure time?
A. As I love the ’work’ I do, I don’t switch between one mode and another. Neither do I ’spend my time’ as such – if anything I bend, shape and morph it into intriguing shapes. I just love riding at 66,000 miles an hour on Spaceship Earth.
Q. Do you write for a local audience or a global audience?
A. Definitely global and any passing aliens who tune in when they are flying past.
Q. Can you provide links to your work?
A. Sure thing 🙂
This We Know
Planes of Being
Flavours of Thought
The Art and Science of Light Bulb Moments
Blocks
100 Years of Ermintrude
or another good place to look is my Amazon Author Page
To see how our other authors responded, click on an author’s name below.
Tamsen Garrie
Christine Miller
Clive Eaton
If you are a British author and would like to join in, please leave a comment below with your email address.
Frequently Bought Together
There are many proud moments in an author’s career like when you finish your first draft, when the first copy of your book arrives in the post or when you get your first review.
I was on Amazon this morning and I felt a pang of pride I simply have to share with you and it’s seeing that Amazon are listing that my three non-fiction books as being “Frequently Bought Together”.
Now I’ve no idea how many people have to do this before the Amazon algorithm kicks in – it might just be one!! It is however a significant milestone in any author’s strategy.
In the best selling author John Locke’s book, How I Sold 1 Million eBooks in 5 Months, his advice is not to even attempt this with one book.
So my advice to all authors is this :
1. If you are just starting out – think how you can write a series – publishers and readers alike will love you for it
2. If you have written one book and want to sell more copies – write at least two more
3. If your book is out in print only, make sure it’s available for the Kindle too (as it can be then read on all devices)
Note that your books don’t have to be published with the same publisher or a linked sequence of titles – it’s best if they follow a particular theme or logical progression though …
For example, my books flow like this:
Blocks – clear barriers to creativity
Flavours of Thought – understand not all thoughts are the same
Light Bulb Moments – tune into a special class of thoughts that take you on amazing leaps of imagination and creativity
P.S. the fourth book is being crafted right now and it extends the thoughts in these three to a whole other level … watch this space and I can’t wait until Amazon list all four as being Frequently Bought Together 😉
Afterword in 2013 – here is that book Planes of Being and another I didn’t even plan to write called This We Know
P.P.S. Not even two years after I wrote this blog, I find Amazon recommending not just three but five of my books to people via email