The Write Focus: August 2023

Branding ~ Key Fundamentals for a Trailer

Our last episode on Branding continues a focus on book trailers. For sample trailers, view the Show Notes for the August 23 episode at the website.

It’s the Key Fundamentals of the Script for Trailers and Clips along with the skeletal framework that can expand or contract as needed.

Beginning in September to the end of this season, The Write Focus launches the next series. Plot is the structure that develops characters in conflict. We’ll discuss different kinds of structures before examining in detail the best structure I know, highly adaptable, well paced, with opportunities for dynamic character development and growth. It’s Discovering Your Plot.

TIMINGS

00:00 Welcome
00:39 Intro
01:30 Key Fundamental #1
02:55 #2 with an adapting script
05:22 #3 and #4
08:06 #5 with the trailer’s shape
09:42 #6 and #7
11:52 Caveat
13:00 Last Words & Closing

Total Run Time 14:25

LINKS

KEY FUNDAMENTALS FOR VIDEO TRAILERS available at Buy Me a Coffee https://www.buymeacoffee.com/winkbooksr/e/150474

A Video Trailer showing Branding in Action: https://youtu.be/uthI5gEWic8

Purchase the ebook at these inks:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07YL8GBM1

https://books2read.com/u/bPyKQ7

Purchase a paperback 8 x 10 with Characters / Plot / Branding / Sentence Craft here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08691892S

As always, THANKS for listening to The Write Focus.

We focus on productivity, process, craft, and tools. Our podcast is for newbies who want to become writing pros and veterans who are returning to writing after years away.

Our next focus is PLOT: What Writers Want to Know and Need to Know.

Support the podcast with a cup of coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/winkbooksr

· You can find workbooks and templates at Buy Me a Coffee. Just up is the Enter the Writing Business Workbook and templates from the Discovering Characters series.

· Available Now: worksheet templates and a video trailer script for Discovering Your Author Brand.

For more links and resources, visit www.thewritefocus.blogspot.com .

Write to us at winkbooks@aol.com.

If you find value in this podcast, please share with your writing friends or write a review. (We’re small beans. We don’t have the advertising budget of the big peeps. You can make a difference.)

Listen on your favorite podcast site: from Apple to YouTube, Spotify and Podbean (my favs), Google Play, Amazon Music and Audible, Samsung and Player FM, Deezer and Podcaster, the rivals iHeart and Tune-in, and too many to list.

Here are the 4 easiest. Make us a favorite, and follow along easy-peasy, once a week, while you fix a quick dinner, drive a short commute, or take a brisk walk.

My favorite podcast is Podbean. https://eden5695.podbean.com/

YouTube direct link to the Branding Playlist https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXi3M_aM-d7L4OtDk2Bde7LDwQ2l7K8NE

Apple https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-write-focus/id1546738740%20

Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/4fMwknmfJhkJxQvaaLQ3Gm?si=ffeb71ed17c3409d

Branding ~ Trailers and Clips, a Hallmark of an Author Brand

We’re talking Branding, and we’re almost through with this series.

Promotion is a key element of the writing business, for indies as well as traditional authors. All writers need to learn the basics of self-promotion.

That doesn’t mean promoting our selves. It does mean discovering and pursuing the best ways to promote our writing, the books or blogs that are our product.

1^st Key Question: What amount are we willing to spend? For new writers, with few products (less than 5 or 7 stories), spending for ads doesn’t pay off. The ROI / Return on Investment isn’t strong enough. We should concentrate on building our catalog. 20 books or more is the common discoverability measure.

For writers with those 20 books, or 15 or more, spending for ads can begin to have a higher and more reasonable ROI.

2^nd Key Question: Where do we place our ad expenditure? Social media, obviously.

But that’s a crowded game. So~

3^rd Key Question: What kind of ad do we place? Ah, this is the interesting question.

Simple posts, without any cost, can work as a starting point.

When people browse right past ads, what can we do that will catch their attention? I’m not talking reviews; that is long past the attention-getter for the browsing reader. We’re at that first nanosecond, when the cover hooks the reader.

Ad people—pro marketers—say we need to see something 7 times before we consider buying. We need additional looks—something beyond a static image when we must complete with a crowded social media.

These last two episodes in our Branding series focus on one way to reach beyond a static image. This way may not appeal to many, but it satisfies a great need inside me. I’ve made it a hallmark of the M.A. Lee brand.

It’s the book trailer. Let’s explore.

TIMINGS

00:00 Welcome
00:39 Intro
03:05 Trailer and Clips
04:15 2 Cardinal Sins
08:40 3 Cardinal Virtues
12:41 Locating Music
13:50 Last Word & Closing

Total Run Time: 15:18

LINKS

Melissa Marr’s trailer for Wicked Lovely https://youtu.be/-orEn_zdKSM
K.M. Weiland’s Dreamlander trailer www.youtube.com/watch?v=mOLD_rTDTBU
M.A. Lee’s historical mystery Digging Into Death https://youtu.be/zX1BPx6VUnU
M.A. Lee’s Regency mystery The Key to Secrets https://youtu.be/1Sj7NfvxzXg
Edie Roones and M.A. Lee’s trailer for Outlaws of Wild Sherwood https://youtu.be/aCftiZFqq1E
A Video Trailer showing Branding in Action: https://youtu.be/uthI5gEWic8

Purchase the ebook at these inks:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07YL8GBM1

https://books2read.com/u/bPyKQ7

Purchase a paperback 8 x 10 with Characters / Plot / Branding / Sentence Craft here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08691892S

Thanks for listening to The Write Focus. We focus on productivity, process, craft, and tools. Our podcast is for newbies who want to become writing pros and veterans who are returning to writing after years away.

Our current focus is Branding: the Way Writers will Reach the Readers.

Support the podcast with a cup of coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/winkbooksr

You can find workbooks and templates at Buy Me a Coffee. Just up is the Enter the Writing Business Workbook and templates from the Discovering Characters
Available Now: worksheet templates and a video trailer script for Discovering Your Author Brand.

For more links and resources, visit www.thewritefocus.blogspot.com .

Write to us at winkbooks@aol.com.

If you find value in this podcast, please share with your writing friends or write a review. (We’re small beans. We don’t have the advertising budget of the big peeps. You can make a difference.)

Link to Audio https://eden5695.podbean.com/e/a-branding-hallmark-trailers-and-clips-436/?token=b8f836307deb0fc45bd3892e56b73833

Here are the 4 easiest. Make us a favorite, and follow along easy-peasy, once a week, while you fix a quick dinner, drive a short commute, or take a brisk walk.

My favorite podcast is Podbean. https://eden5695.podbean.com/

YouTube direct link to the Branding Playlist https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXi3M_aM-d7L4OtDk2Bde7LDwQ2l7K8NE

Apple https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-write-focus/id1546738740%20

Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/4fMwknmfJhkJxQvaaLQ3Gm?si=ffeb71ed17c3409d

Branding / the Author Brand (and a Sample Blurb Script) / 4:35

We’re talking Branding, and we’ve covered Books and Series. Now we take a good look at how writers brand their own business.

1^st Question: Pen name or not? Different pen names?

2^nd Q: What guide helps create our brand?

3^rd Q: How do we create an author biography?

Finally, picking up from the last episodes, we offer a last look at Blurb Scripts, boiled down to essentials with two examples.

TIMINGS

00:00 Welcome
00:39 Intro
01:15 Inquiring Minds of Curious Readers
04:00 Author Branding & Pseudonyms
07:10 Key Questions / Author Bios
09:46 Brief Blurb Script with 2 Examples
15:05 Last Word & Closing

Total Run Time: 16:33

LINKS

Link to Joanna Penn’s “Using Different Author Names or a Pseudonym as a Writer” www.thecreativepenn.com/using-author-pseudonyms/

A Video Trailer showing Branding in Action: https://youtu.be/uthI5gEWic8

Purchase the ebook at these inks:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07YL8GBM1

https://books2read.com/u/bPyKQ7

Purchase a paperback 8 x 10 with Characters / Plot / Branding / Sentence Craft here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08691892S

Direct Link to the Audio https://eden5695.podbean.com/e/branding-attract-readers-to-your-brand-here-s-a-blurb-script-435/?token=e2c83969b2c7959656cf2a4d0ad26826

Direct Link to the Video Playlist https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXi3M_aM-d7L4OtDk2Bde7LDwQ2l7K8NE

See a previous post for easily available podcast links.

Branding ~ Clever Market Copy / 4:33 and 4:34

We’re talking Branding. Clever Titles was last episode; this one is Clever Market Copy.

Market Copy means taglines and book descriptions, also known as Blurbs.

We have 3 Rules that govern all Market Copy.

Success happens with our understanding of the different roles of taglines and blurbs. Don’t be surprised if you spend hours and hours crafting the perfect market copy. Remember, along with a great cover that blazes with story and an intriguing title, clever market copy will turn that browsing reader into a buying reader.

We have an in-depth look at Tony Hillerman, first with titles that intrigue but need covers and market copy to sell and then two blurbs that clinched sales.

Look for an additional “between” episode on Saturday with examples for Ellis Peters and Elizabeth Peters (otherwise, this episode with run super-long!).

TIMINGS

00:00 Start
00:39 Intro
01:39 Taglines / Taglines vs. Loglines
07:56 Blurbs
09:05 Example: Tony Hillerman
15;55 Last Word
16:23 Closing

Total Run Time: 17:23

Additional Between Episode Featuring Ellis Peters and Elizabeth Peters

This episode airs on SATURDAY AUGUST 12. The Link will not be available until then. View the above episode for links and expanded show notes.

Timings

00:00 Start
00:39 Intro
01:04 Market Copy in Action / Ellis Peters
07:04 Market Copy in Action / Elizabeth Peters
14:12 Last Word
14:40 Closing
Total Run Time 15:40

Link to Episode https://eden5695.podbean.com/e/branding-market-copy-additional-between-episode-434/?token=5863929bfa623bd67cf5e5b56081cc0c

Branding Worksheets at Buy Me a Coffee https://www.buymeacoffee.com/winkbooksr/e/150472

A Video Trailer showing Branding in Action: https://youtu.be/uthI5gEWic8

Purchase the ebook at these inks:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07YL8GBM1

https://books2read.com/u/bPyKQ7

Purchase a paperback 8 x 10 with Characters / Plot / Branding / Sentence Craft here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08691892S

Our current focus is Branding: the Way Writers will Reach the Readers.

Support the podcast with a cup of coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/winkbooksr

You can find workbooks and templates at Buy Me a Coffee. Just up is the Enter the Writing Business Workbook and templates from the Discovering Characters
Available Now: worksheet templates and a video trailer script for Discovering Your Author Brand.

Write to us at winkbooks@aol.com.

If you find value in this podcast, please share with your writing friends or write a review. (We’re small beans. We don’t have the advertising budget of the big peeps. You can make a difference.)

Branding ~ Clever Titles / 4:32

Branding: Glance III A = Clever Titling

We’re talking Branding. Before we launch into this week’s episode, let’s have a reminder.

1^st ~ We have nanoseconds to capture a reader’s interest. We can capture that reader with three glances. The 1^st glance is a cover that blazes with story. Our cover has to represent our story with 3 little words focusing on 1] the protagonist, 2] the subniche of our story, and 3] on setting.

2^nd ~ We select images that tweak what our competition is doing. Those 3 little words, ever so important, guide us, then we narrow in to capture the mood or tone of our story.

3^rd ~ Glance III, which we start this episode, seals our contract with readers through Clever Titles and Cover Copy.

Let’s look at Clever Titles.

TIMINGS

00:00 Start
00:39 Intro
01:50 1^st Job ~ What hooks a reader?
06:12 2^nd Job ~ Understand our Keys
07:40 Titles with Tricks
09:40 Examples with Perry Mason and Victoria Holt
12:25 Examples with Nora Roberts and Alistair MacLean
14;42 Examples with Dick Francis and Phyllis A Whitney
17:05 Last Word
17:33 Closing
Total Time 18:33

Our current focus is Branding: the Way Writers will Reach the Readers.

Support the podcast with a cup of coffee at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/winkbooksr

· You can find workbooks and templates at Buy Me a Coffee. Just up is the Enter the Writing Business Workbook and templates from the Discovering Characters series. Coming soon are worksheet templates and a video trailer script for Discovering Your Author Brand.

For more links and resources, visit www.thewritefocus.blogspot.com .

Write to us at winkbooks@aol.com.

If you find value in this podcast, please share with your writing friends or write a review. (We’re small beans. We don’t have the advertising budget of the big peeps. You can make a difference.)

Here are the 4 easiest. Make us a favorite, and follow along easy-peasy, once a week, while you fix a quick dinner, drive a short commute, or take a brisk walk.

My favorite podcast is Podbean. https://eden5695.podbean.com/

YouTube direct link to the Branding Playlist https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXi3M_aM-d7L4OtDk2Bde7LDwQ2l7K8NE

Apple https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-write-focus/id1546738740%20

Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/4fMwknmfJhkJxQvaaLQ3Gm?si=ffeb71ed17c3409d

A Video Trailer showing Branding in Action: https://youtu.be/uthI5gEWic8