Book trailer commandments

Stolen from the book trailer blog.

Length: Keep it to 1:30 or shorter. Even the most impatient of us will watch for a minute and a half.

Voice Talent: Hire a professional or just use type and music. Authors are not voice actors.

Visuals: Keep some kind of visual continuity.

Typography: Avoid overused fonts such as Helvetica, Trajan, Courier, and Onyx. Integrate the type into the overall design.

Tone: Don’t be overly dramatic.

Soundtrack/Voice Over: Again, don’t be overly dramatic.

Video: Avoid montages of cheesy stock video footage. Shoot your own or use stock wisely.

Text: Keep it short. Billboard short.

Fictional Characters: Preferably keep them anonymous—let viewers use their imagination.

Canned Effects: Avoid them.