Fierce competition leads authors to radically improve book trailers

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Sept. 8, 2014 - PRLog -- The market for independent books has grown astronomically over the past few years. With that growth has come increasing competition. A lover of movie making, author Drew Farnsworth found himself unable to resist the urge to make a video for his book, Graham’s Charlotte, but had no money for creating one. Creating two minutes worth of footage can cost thousands of dollars and take days to produce with a professional crew. Big name publishers or the independently wealthy can afford that kind of expense, not small independents. In order to create something within a budget, Farnsworth out careful plans to organize the special effects ahead of time in order to ensure that nothing would go wrong during the short shooting schedule.

“We wanted to create a Hollywood-quality effect,” Farnsworth stated. “That meant we needed to be as resourceful as possible. In Hollywood, the camera is always moving. We just didn’t have the budget for that. We had to use every trick in the book to get the look we wanted.” So far, the audience for his book, 10-14 year olds, has responded with total surprise and sometimes awe at seeing the trailer. Farnsworth continued, “Some of the kids look at me with their mouths open and ask if I’m a famous director. I just have to smile and admit that I’m a nobody and I just made this because I believe that all advertising should be its own form of art.”

Farnsworth’s brother, Gavin Farnsworth, was in charge of photography for the trailer project. A recent graduate of Ohio University’s Master’s in Film program, Gavin was the craftsman behind the project. Drew said of the collaboration, “Some people have joked that we’re going to become the next brother directing duo. I said they were overestimating my talents and underestimating Gavin’s.” Instead, Drew wrote the script and Gavin handled the camera and lighting. Though it was based on the book, the trailer had to have its own narrative arc and pacing. “Anything on film operates completely differently from anything on paper,” Drew said.

Authors continue to be driven to provide new and innovative marketing campaigns. Authors in the Young Adult and younger age groups are particularly troubled by the high level of competition in the marketplace as well as the need to create flashy, fresh content. Creating a high quality book trailer can mean intensive investments of time and money. Farnsworth worked very hard to keep the budget in check while also making sure the shots were well crafted, going as far as teaching himself Adobe Premiere and After Effects in order to achieve some of the special effects. The result is a surprisingly fresh experience that resonates with kids and adults alike. His book Graham’s Charlotte is available now on Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/Grahams-Charlotte-Drew-Farnsworth-e...).

Watch the trailer at: drewfarnsworth.com (http://www.drewfarnsworth.com/)

Watch 30 second commercial at: http://Youtube.com