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Make a Book Trailer with PowerPoint

I’m a cheapskate.

I’m also technologically impaired.

So when it came to making a book trailer for Sunwielder’s audiobook pre-release hype, I resorted to the old familiar standby from my years of selling office furniture – MS PowerPoint. The program’s been updated over the past 2 decades, but I still figured it out with some trial and error. And error. And a little more error.

The main thing I learned is regarding sequence:

1. Start with your text: Keep it pithy. I used my book blurb and pared it down to its bare essentials. That gave me about fifteen slides to populate with images.

2. Then add images: I took advantage of Pixabay’s royalty-free, attribution-free images for this one, frequently mashing them together to create a scene. Remember to check copyright details for the images you decide to use.

3. Add transitions: Don’t get too zany, but have fun. Timing is the hardest part. Just keep viewing and adjusting until you’re satisfied.

4. Add animation: Same as the above.

5 Add music: Once your presentation is done and the timing close to finalized, find a piece of music. I searched for royalty-free music about the length of the slideshow since editing music is beyond my brain’s ability. Again, check the copyright details. I added a slide at the end for the required attribution.

6. Tweak about 50-100 times.

7. Export from PowerPoint as an MP4 file.

8. Upload to Youtube, Goodreads, and Amazon.

Want to check it out?

212 thoughts on “Make a Book Trailer with PowerPoint”

  1. Τι συμβαίνει στο Blog του Writer's μου - Ρωτήστε έναν Τεχνικό Δάσκαλο - Ιστολόγιο says:
    September 26, 2022 at 3:40 am

    […] https://mythsofthemirror.com/2019/09/10/book-trailers-with-powerpoint/ […]

    Liked by 1 person

  2. What’s Happening on my Writer’s Blog – Ask a Tech Teacher - Newz Today says:
    September 26, 2022 at 3:20 am

    […] https://mythsofthemirror.com/2019/09/10/book-trailers-with-powerpoint/ […]

    Liked by 1 person

  3. Teacher-Authors: What’s Happening on my Writer’s Blog – Ask a Tech Teacher says:
    September 26, 2022 at 3:02 am

    […] https://mythsofthemirror.com/2019/09/10/book-trailers-with-powerpoint/ […]

    Liked by 1 person

  4. Which Video Tool Do You Use for Book Trailers? | says:
    May 23, 2022 at 12:19 am

    […] https://mythsofthemirror.com/2019/09/10/book-trailers-with-powerpoint/ […]

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  5. How I’m Doing on Laws of Nature | WordDreams... says:
    October 17, 2020 at 9:56 am

    […] thinking about doing Diana Peach’s PowerPoint book trailer idea but for the entire trilogy. I’ll release it when Book 3 is ready as background on Book 1 and […]

    Liked by 1 person

  6. How I’m Doing on Against All Odds–3 | WordDreams... says:
    December 10, 2019 at 11:39 pm

    […] planning to do Diana Peach’s PowerPoint book trailer idea. I’ll probably start with the new year, when kids are gone (sad) and life has calmed […]

    Like

  7. neuravinci says:
    November 22, 2019 at 9:43 pm

    I wonder – how effective are book trailers for book sales?

    Liked by 2 people

    • D. Wallace Peach says:
      November 23, 2019 at 9:55 am

      Great question! I don’t think they’re particularly amazing at getting sales. But, they do make a great an alternative to the “buy my book” posts that are so awkward and awful. Any creative ways that we can share our products is worth the effort, I think. Plus they’re fun to make. 🙂

      Liked by 2 people

  8. How I’m Doing on Against All Odds–2 | WordDreams... says:
    November 17, 2019 at 11:21 pm

    […] thinking about doing Diana Peach’s PowerPoint book trailer idea but for the entire trilogy. Canva has great presentation templates, meaning they’ll do a lot […]

    Liked by 1 person

  9. #authortoolboxbloghop:how I’m doing on book 3 trilogy – Alasklintin blog says:
    October 29, 2019 at 4:31 pm

    […] thinking about doing Diana Peach’s PowerPoint book trailer idea but for the entire trilogy. I’ll release it when Book 3 is ready as background on Book 1 and […]

    Liked by 1 person

  10. Himani says:
    October 17, 2019 at 12:18 pm

    Wow😍 That’s just great Diana! Yes even I have tried making great videos on powerpoint for many of my projects and I realised that it has so many great features to make beautiful videos

    Liked by 1 person

    • D. Wallace Peach says:
      October 17, 2019 at 1:26 pm

      Thank you, Himani. It’s so great to see you again. I just got back to blogging after almost a year of family care-giving. I’m glad you enjoyed the trailer. Since you’re a powerpoint user, you know how easy it is to do. Thanks for the visit, my friend. ❤

      Like

  11. #AuthorToolboxBlogHop: How I’m doing on Book 3 of my trilogy | WordDreams... says:
    October 16, 2019 at 12:57 am

    […] thinking about doing Diana Peach’s PowerPoint book trailer idea but for the entire trilogy. I’ll release it when Book 3 is ready as background on Book 1 and […]

    Liked by 1 person

  12. Make a Book Trailer with PowerPoint — Myths of the Mirror – Rexton digital says:
    October 14, 2019 at 12:58 am

    […] via Make a Book Trailer with PowerPoint — Myths of the Mirror […]

    Liked by 1 person

  13. thebookofjess says:
    October 12, 2019 at 9:03 pm

    It looks great!!💙

    Liked by 1 person

  14. marianbeaman says:
    October 11, 2019 at 7:12 am

    Huge thanks! I’m doing a book trailed now, and that looks much easier than some other suggestions, Diane. 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    • D. Wallace Peach says:
      October 11, 2019 at 8:33 am

      I’m so glad you checked out the post, Marian. It isn’t that hard, but it also isn’t quick, particularly if you’re working out any timing and playing with tenths of seconds. Just be patient and you’ll get it. I was really glad to find something free and easy to do. Have fun!

      Like

  15. Writer's Tips - Create videos, podcasts, book ads, #Instagram stories says:
    October 10, 2019 at 11:03 pm

    […] Make a Book Trailer with PowerPoint […]

    Liked by 1 person

  16. What Words May Come says:
    October 7, 2019 at 6:51 am

    Very cool!

    Like

    • D. Wallace Peach says:
      October 9, 2019 at 5:23 am

      Thanks for checking out the post, Kevin. It was fun to play around with powerpoint, and it wasn’t that difficult overall. I’m working on another one (when I should be writing), an indication of how much I enjoyed making the first one. Have a great day and Happy Writing!

      Liked by 1 person

  17. Sean P Carlin says:
    October 4, 2019 at 5:31 pm

    Oh, wow — that looks great! About five years ago, I was at the Writer’s Digest Conference where they were offering a seminar on book trailers — whether they’re worth it. I never really pursued the matter beyond that hourlong workshop, but I’m curious, Diana: Do you find it helpful to have a trailer to post on social media?

    Liked by 1 person

    • D. Wallace Peach says:
      October 4, 2019 at 7:43 pm

      It actually has sold a few books, Sean, believe it of not. 🙂 I only have this one, but will do more as I have the time. It’s free, it’s easy, and it was a lot of fun. When my audiobook goes live, I’ll load the trailer onto Amazon and see if that raises any interest.

      I don’t have the budget for paid trailers or actors! But after (not before) making this, I did some research on trailers and there are quite a few different approaches that even a do-it-yourselfer can easily pull together. If you know how to use PPt, the rest is pretty easy.

      Liked by 2 people

  18. Emma, West Sussex says:
    October 1, 2019 at 8:19 am

    What a fantastic trailer – absolutely inspirational!
    Emma 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    • D. Wallace Peach says:
      October 1, 2019 at 8:38 am

      Thank you so much, Emma. It was the best I could do without hiring a cast and director. Ha ha. And it was free and easy. I can think of so many fun ways to use PPt now. If you ever feel inspired, give it a try!

      Like

  19. Bel says:
    September 29, 2019 at 7:27 am

    Great job on the powerpoint Diana! I haven’t touched powerpoint in a long time – you inspire me once again. It would be cool to mix it with videos. 😊

    Liked by 1 person

    • D. Wallace Peach says:
      September 29, 2019 at 8:05 am

      Mixing videos in there would be great, Bel. I’m just intimidated and would need to battle through the learning curve. It’s a great alternative to an ordinary slide show. Adding music made all the difference to me. Thanks for the visit, my friend. Hope you’re having a beautiful start to autumn. 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  20. John Maberry says:
    September 23, 2019 at 11:04 am

    Love it! Now all I need to do is get the next book done. LOL

    Liked by 1 person

  21. How to make a book trailer – Jean's Writing says:
    September 23, 2019 at 9:54 am

    […] MAKE A BOOK TRAILER WITH POWERPOINT […]

    Liked by 1 person

  22. inese says:
    September 22, 2019 at 12:18 pm

    So very cool, Diana! Thank you for always sharing great tips!

    Liked by 2 people

  23. Julie Holmes, author says:
    September 22, 2019 at 11:35 am

    This is great, Diana! And I never thought to use PowerPoint. Great suggestion!

    Liked by 2 people

  24. Sarah says:
    September 20, 2019 at 10:00 am

    Wow! This is so awesome, Diana!! 😄 I could never do it, it would take ages! 😂 Your artistic eye shows definitely in this – the pics you chose are just perfect and make me want for more! When did you say the movie’s going to come to cinemas? 😉

    Liked by 1 person

    • D. Wallace Peach says:
      September 20, 2019 at 10:29 am

      Ha ha ha ha. A movie? Lol. Now that would make my day. Thanks for the sweet comment. The hardest part about making this was finding the images. The rest was easy (mostly). If you can repair your appliances, you can do this! I’m so glad you enjoyed it. ❤

      Liked by 1 person

  25. Marje @ Kyrosmagica says:
    September 19, 2019 at 11:32 pm

    Reblogged this on M J Mallon YA/Paranormal Author and commented:
    Great post from Diana about creating videos for promoting books.

    Liked by 1 person

  26. Marje @ Kyrosmagica says:
    September 19, 2019 at 11:31 pm

    Thanks for this must try or get my daughter to she studied media at A level and knows how to create videos. 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

  27. rsrook says:
    September 19, 2019 at 12:56 pm

    This is pretty impressive!

    Liked by 1 person

  28. Smorgasbord Blogger Daily – Thursday 19th September 2019 – Bette A. Stevens, D.Wallace Peach and Gloria Smud | Smorgasbord Blog Magazine says:
    September 19, 2019 at 10:01 am

    […] Please head over to read the rest of this helpful post: https://mythsofthemirror.com/2019/09/10/book-trailers-with-powerpoint/ […]

    Liked by 1 person

  29. Joel F says:
    September 16, 2019 at 8:14 pm

    Thanks for this. Another day of learning.

    Liked by 2 people

  30. Teri Polen says:
    September 16, 2019 at 8:27 am

    This sounds completely beyond my capabilities, Diana. Luckily, i have a computer-savvy friend!

    Liked by 2 people

    • D. Wallace Peach says:
      September 16, 2019 at 8:58 am

      You could do it, Teri. The hardest part, to be honest, is collecting the images, particularly for speculative fiction, but you’d be surprised at what’s available on Pixabay. Then it’s just a matter of assembly. 😀 I’m glad you enjoyed it!

      Liked by 1 person

  31. Jack Ronald Cotner says:
    September 16, 2019 at 8:25 am

    Very nice and great advice for us technically impaired folks. Trailer is awesome.

    Liked by 2 people

  32. cath says:
    September 16, 2019 at 4:09 am

    A lovely presentation, well worth the time spent. I use power-point for teaching, but my technical slides seem very tame after seeing this.
    Sunweilder looks intriguing. Congratulations.

    Liked by 1 person

    • D. Wallace Peach says:
      September 16, 2019 at 8:31 am

      Thanks, Cath. I used to do boring static presentations for work, so I knew the basics. Adding timing and music was new for me and took some experimenting. I’m glad you enjoyed the show. It was fun to pull together. Happy Writing!

      Liked by 1 person

  33. Joanne Sisco says:
    September 16, 2019 at 4:09 am

    I laughed out loud at step #6. I could relate to that one!!!

    The trailer is AWESOME! Give or take step #6, you made it sound so easy to do 😉

    Liked by 1 person

  34. ParentingIsFunny says:
    September 14, 2019 at 1:08 pm

    Definitely saving this post for future reference!

    Liked by 3 people

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