I am not religious in a a formal sense. However, I have been known to help people from time to time, with no ulterior motive. Recently I reaped some unexpected benefits from something I'd done several years ago. While I was studying for my Masters in Creative Writing, I opted to do a module in scriptwriting. There I met a delightful short film maker. As she wasn't a native-English speaker, I offered to look at her script to check her English. I did this for two films, with no charge. She was very grateful.
A week ago I received an email from her saying that she would like to repay me by making a promotional video for my debut novel, Water's Edge. We met several days later. Her enthusiasm bubbled over, her only concern being that I might not agree with what she was proposing. She suggested making two videos, the first giving an idea of what the book was about, the second acting out a couple of minutes' worth of scenes.
Of course I accepted - I was delighted. I'd already produced a video trailer, but, as she gently pointed out, although it promoted me, the writer, and the location, Switzerland, it didn't promote the book. When she showed me examples of good book trailers, I quickly realised that I hadn't quite achieved what I intended to when I made my video. Having agreed to her ideas, I offered to do more editing for her, with no charge, of course.
These days when most things seem to incur a charge, including promoting a book, it was such a positive experience, restoring my faith in the human race - or at least, one of them.
Jane
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