In case you didn’t get a chance to check out our newly released Book Trailer, here it is:
Today, I wanted to share the backstory of how we made this video. It’s been a four month labor of love and I’m very proud of the end result. But it didn’t start off this way!
I almost made a horrible book trailer.
I was saved from making a terrible book trailer by discovering Jeff Goins’ blog Why Most Book Trailers Are Awful & How Yours Can Be Different. His insights were game changing.
Here’s why: we’re all narcissists. 😉
At least, that’s what Russ Hudson once said in an Enneagram training, and I can’t say I disagree.
The initial script for this book trailer was all about me; my story, my insights, my pivotal moments. Blah, blah, blah. My face up close for the entire duration of the video. You get enough of me in the dang book!
It was exactly as Jeff describes, a classic mistake made by many authors. Instead, Jeff suggests; “We made it about the reader, not the author. Every person wants to believe they’re the hero of their own story, so we spoke to that desire.”
It’s not about me. It’s about you.
The big switch came when I started asking, “hmmm, how would I describe the journey that my clients go on? How can I articulate the problem, and the solution, in a frame that is all about you, the viewer? How can I help the reader see herself as the heroine of this story?”
That’s how we came up with the current script and images.
It wasn’t always easy to find natural images that didn’t look overly staged, but we kept digging!
After narrowing down our initial set of images and videos, I noticed my own unconscious bias. I had inadvertently selected mostly images of white women from stock photography sites (yikes!). There were not a lot of pictures of women of color, or differently abled women, or women from a variety of socio-economic backgrounds and religions.
This saddened me and showed me I still had work to do. So I went back to the drawing board to find more diverse images. I had to be intentional because my baseline was to be too narrow and use my white privilege as the default. This is not how I want to run my business or create art.
The video got so much better when we incorporated a wider variety of perspectives that reflect the broader human experience. My dear sister-in-law Audrey was hugely helpful when I was selecting images over Thanksgiving break at her house. She gave me instant and tireless feedback. Thank you SIL!! Lastly, I sent a sample of the video to a select group of clients and friends for their feedback. I slept on it, and still didn’t like the timing of a few sections. So we made some final tweaks and then VOILA!
It was time to release it to the world.
So, that’s how it got done!
Thank you for watching, reading and hopefully feeling inspired by this video. I hope it supports you in finding your soul solution, whatever it looks like for you.
Big love,
Vanessa
Well, then, I’m crying. And not an uncommon experience as a highly sensitive person. The book trailer is excellent! Very moving. ♥️ and I could be biased since I already absolutely love the book (and your work). But what touched me the most was the blog. Your willingness to be raw, vulnerable, with your experience. As a fellow human, it resonates so deep! None of us will escape from biases, of all kinds, as this IS the human condition, yet, recognizing them, admiting them publicly, and making the conscious effort to change them, is what growth is all about. Kudos for allowing us to peek into that process for you and in doing so exploring and working on our own.
Abrazos!!!
Aww, love this note! I am learning and growing as a human daily. I appreciate your kind words and encouragement.