How I’m Approaching My Novel’s Book Trailer

If anyone has been following me around for the last week or two, they’d probably have called the cops on me by now.

“Hi, um, I’d like to report a white Corolla that’s been driving around taking videos of the city. I saw him pull over on Acushnet Avenue, hop out of his car, take a video of the cemetery, hop back in his car, and drive off.”

I promise, I haven’t been up to anything nefarious. But I have been spending a lot of time over the past few weeks gathering shots for my novel’s book trailer, which I hope to release next month. My goal is to capture the essence of the book while leaving things mysterious and open-ended enough to intrigue potential readers.

It’s a fascinating dynamic—the push and pull of what to reveal and what to hold back. One person who viewed an early draft of the trailer told me I was “showing too much” and “giving too much away,” while another said I “wasn’t showing enough” and found it “too obscure.” That feedback actually makes me feel like I’m close to where I want to be: straddling the fine line that all great trailers walk.

Think about it—it’s the difference between every Christopher Nolan trailer and the trailer for Batman v Superman. Every Christopher Nolan movie releases a trailer about a year or so before the film’s premiere. Audiences watch it and leave with absolutely no idea what the film is about. On the other hand, you have trailers like the one for Batman v Superman, where there’s a shot at the end showing Wonder Woman saving the day, completely ruining the surprise. I’m aiming to land somewhere in between—giving potential readers a taste of what the novel is about without spoiling any major plot points.

I’m no filmmaker, though. In fact, this might be the first time I’ve ever used iMovie. But somehow, someway, it’s coming along nicely. I’ve burned through a lot of gas and might be on the FBI’s watchlist at this point, but progress is happening.

The trailer will be released in late December, so stay tuned for that and the cover art reveal at the end of this month. I can’t wait to share both as we inch closer to the official release of Whalers in February 2025.