Novel Marketing: A EMS3O Culminating

DUE: January 17th

There are a number of ways to market a novel, and a number of different strategies to attempt.

Look up a few different ways to publicize a new book.  Sometimes it`s also important to be aware of why things don`t work.

For your culminating assignment you will need to create:
Two posters
One video
One review
One additional media piece

Each of these pieces will be part of a larger "Media Campaign" for a novel of your choice.

Step One:
Choose your favourite book (or a book you'd like to work with for this assignment.  It doesn't have to be your favourite - but since you'll be doing a lot with / for it, it's probably best you like the book.  Or that you've, at least, read it.)

Step Two: The First Poster
For your first poster, you need to create a marketing poster that you could picture being used in the TTC.  Think of those posters they have beside the subway door - and create an image that would garner attention for your text.  This should be a Splash Poster (which you'll remember from the earlier assignment.)

You may use whatever software you think is best in the creation of this poster.

Here are a few examples (some are better than others):


 

Step Three: The Second Poster
This poster will be something a "street team" could use to plaster the town.  Remember - this is something that must be dirt cheap to make - so think black and white, easy to photocopy.  You will want something grungy with an urban slant to it to make it appeal to the people in the selected neighbourhoods.

Think about Zines when you create this image.  This style of advertisement is very popular with concert promoters.  There's no reason why it couldn't work just as well for book publicizing.

Here are some examples:

 




Step Four: The Movie
Here is where your video editing skills are put to the test.  You need to make a book trailer.  What is a book trailer?  It's like a movie trailer - but for a book.  You need to use video to try and garner attention for your chosen novel.

There are a number of examples that can be found by googling "Book Trailer" or looking that phrase up on YouTube.  A few noteworthy example are linked below:

Lemony Snicket - 13 Words
Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess - Instructions Book Trailer
Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters
Boo - A Day in the Life of the World's Cutest Dog


Step Five: A Book Review
Remember your training and you will make it through this.  You will need to think back to the movie review you wrote, and then apply those skills to novels.  Feel free to check out professional book reviews in order to get a feeling for the tone you should take in your review:

New York Times
Globe and Mail
The Guardian


Step Six: Another Media Piece
Having read through the various examples of book publicity you will - no doubt - have a few good ideas as to what else you could create.  Here are a few ideas:

• An interactive fiction piece that mirrors your book
• A documentary based around your book
• A video acting out part of your book
• A photo essay based around your book
• A podcast
• A Facebook media campaign
• Author Interview

Step Seven: Putting it All Together

The final step is to compile all of this wonderful material.  I would suggest creating a blog specifically for your book - but there are some other online ways you can compile all of your work.

You will need to upload your finished video(s) to YouTube in order to have them stream live from your blog.

That's all.  Not much to it, right?  You got this covered.  Off you go.  Be wonderful.

Rubrics

Posters

Knowledge	Thinking	Communication	Application
- all required elements are present - assignment guidelines are adhered to - information is correct - learned inkscape and photoshop techniques are used in poster - no more than two images from the scott_shop.psd file are used in your finished product - poster shows an understanding of the required elements for movie posters	- all required elements are present - assignment guidelines are adhered to - at least two images - not found in scott_shop.psd - are used in your finished product - images and text are integrated in such a way as they compliment each other	- poster is of acceptable size (no smaller than W750 x H1000). - text is used in an effective way to communicate ideas - images are used in an effective way to communicate ideas - images attract and audience, and not cluttered	- all required elements are present - assignment guidelines are adhered to - posters could feature in a professional advertising campaign

Video

Knowledge	Thinking	Communication	Application
- assignment guidelines are adhered to - information is correct - video editing techniques evident in video	- all required elements are present - assignment guidelines are adhered to - Key elements depicted in video	- video is used in an effective way to communicate ideas - audio is clear and easy to understand - visuals are clear	- all required elements are present - assignment guidelines are adhered to - video could feature in a professional advertising campaign

Review

Knowledge	Thinking	Communication	Application
- assignment guidelines are adhered to - information is correct - all elements of a film review are present in final product	- all required elements are present - assignment guidelines are adhered to - Key elements explored in review	- review is used in an effective way to communicate ideas - no unintentional spelling / grammatical errors - information is presented through smooth transitions	- all required elements are present - assignment guidelines are adhered to - review could feature in a professional advertising campaign

Additional Piece
The additional piece will be based whatever rubric it is closest to (video, image, or written.)

Collected Medium

Knowledge	Thinking	Communication	Application
- An understanding of online portfolio creation is demonstrated - all elements are compiled together in an effective manner	- digital portfolio contains all required elements - digital portfolio could be e-mailed or shared to easily publicize your book	- images, texts, backgrounds, and graphics are used in an appropriate manner to garner attention rather than distract -no unintentional spelling / grammatical errors	- advertising campaign is fully realized and capable of being used for a professional campaign

Family Documentary

Family Documentary
It’s time to put your video editing skills to use, for the power of good.  Over the course of this year you have watched a couple of documentaries, all the while knowing the time would come when you had to create one for yourself.

We looked at:

• How many seconds are normally between cuts
• Different shot types, and why they’re used
• How backgrounds are often staged for filming
• The different between talking heads and additional footage

Instructions:
You must find a willing family member – surely there will be many who care about your academic success, and interest – to regale you with a personal experience or key moment from their life.  You will be creating a short documentary around this moment in their life.  Keep in mind the elements that contribute to a successful documentary that we studies in class.

Requirements:

• At least five minutes in length
• Must include a number of shot types, where appropriate (long, close, etc.)
• Must include an establishing shot of the setting (Extreme long shot)
• Must include both talking heads and appropriate additional footage
• Must document a key moment or experience in your subject’s life
• Background / Film locations must express characteristics of the subject
• Appropriate soundtracks that do not detract from the spoken elements
• These may be instrumental, and quiet – or used during additional footage

Knowledge	Thinking	Communication	Application
Assignment guidelines adhered to. Video editing knowledge is evidenced in final product. Elements of successful documentaries evident in final product.	Assignment guidelines adhered to. Key element is tied into additional footage, and audio tracks used in final product. Filming locations are appropriate to subject matter.	Audio is well balanced; voices are always clear Additional footage complements spoken elements Documentary follows a clear narrative path	Assignment guidelines adhered to. Well-crafted documentary created as final product Video ready to be shared with the world (uploaded to YouTube, properly encoded on hard drive, etc.)
R     1     2     3     4	R     1     2     3     4	R     1     2     3     4	R     1     2     3     4

Due: December 13

Big Assignment: Making a Mini-Movie

You've learned to use Adobe Premier in the following ways:

• Embed clips and video files
• Create smaller clips from larger video files
• Add audio files (this works the same for small sound effects)
• Fade out video
• Fade in video
• Fade between two video tracks
• Add titles
• Use transitions

Essentially you're expert movie makers right now.  Everything they do to edit "real movies" you can now do.  How fantastic is that?

Your assignment - which must be completed and handed in - must fulfill the following criteria.

[   ] Choose a theme (cartoons, Dr. Who, or soccer) and add a soundtrack that fits the theme

[   ]  Use at least three video files 

[   ]  [   ]  Create at least fifteen smaller clips from the larger clips

[   ]  Fade between two clips

[   ]  Use three appropriate transitions that don't distract

[   ]  Add sound effects where appropriate (http://www.mediacollege.com/downloads/sound-effects/)

[   ]  [   ]  [   ]  Create an entertaining and engaging video that follows a narrative path.

You can find the clips at: 1058-PickUp\[TEACHER]\Video Files

Note: Your video must be at least 3 minutes long.