Blend Concept Development by lois wandless

BLEND CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT

BLEND 2

Blend is a print publication focused on popular culture and news topics. The readership for Blend is constructed of an age demographic between the ages 18 - 35 years old, male and female, with an interest in popular culture and current affairs, similar to that of Vice or Paper. Vice media kit explains their readership is 18 - 35 year olds, 64% of those being female and 36% male, who are well educated and interact well with social media (Vice, 2016). The similarities of Vice’s current readership compares well with Blend’s target readership, this therefore offers Blend a foundation of approaches to layout, content and marketing. As Blend is operated single - handedly I took the role of Editor in Chief considering content and layout. Whittaker (2008) highlights that the editor’s role is to engage in every level of production throughout the magazine while also maintaining the maturity to be legally and morally responsible for all content that appears in the publication. The publication name “Blend” was adopted due to the definition of the word which is to “combine substances together”, this definition is fitting to the variety of content within the publication. The aims of Blend publication is to be informative but also offer opinion, as well as highlighting topics and discussion which are relatable for the audience.

VICE MEDIA KIT 2016

STATISTA 2018

I opted for Blend to be produced for a print format rather than online, as having little experience in print production I wanted to enhance my skills using InDesign and broaden my variety of content as most of my previous work is produced for online purposes. “Print production involves a range of processes that an idea for a design to take physical form” explain Ambrose and Harris (2008). The decision to produce a print magazine was also influenced by my personal preference, I would prefer to consume a print publication over online as I believe the tangibility is an aspect that online publications cannot compete with. I believe that a print publication can capture a moment in time and can be saved for the future, whereas it is harder to do this with online content due to the nature of the internet. Although an online publication has a higher chance of targeting a wider audience and is thriving in the digital era, Whittaker (2008) highlights that “any predictions that the internet would replace print are unlikely to be true in the immediate future”. Whittaker (2008) elaborates that “the simple fact is that print works, and innovations in technology and printing, such as the competition simulated by the introduction of Adobe’s InDesign, or the increasingly widespread use of PDF and computer to plate printing, indicate the print magazine production has a long future”. In addition to this research from Statista (2018) presents that while print magazine sales are decreasing, the consumption of print publications is still higher than any other format.

PRIMARY DESIGN RESEARCH: GIRLHOOD

PRIMARY DESIGN RESEARCH: FARID

PRIMARY DESIGN RESEARCH: GRIT

GIRLHOOD

BLEND

FARID

BLEND

GRIT

BLEND

FLAT PLAN

Due to the print nature of the publication I was able to gain creative freedom in terms of layout and visuals, therefore I created a flat plan in order to aid my visualisation process for the publication. Whittaker (2008) highlights the importance of planning the layout of a publication using either flat plans or a drawn out plan to A4, which allows the designer to consider limitations for example page measurements. Ambrose and Harris (2008) explain that â&#x20AC;&#x153;standardised paper sizes provide a ready means for selecting product formats that work together, such as A4 and C4 envelopes, which enjoy a synergy between their specificationsâ&#x20AC;?. Due to this I opted for the classic magazine page size of A4 210 x 297 mm, this option of paper size is also suited well to printing. The final copy of the publication is 48 pages, it was important to ensure the number of pages is divisible by 4 for the printing and production process.

The next process was to lay out a grid and guidelines on the InDesign document so that the publication will follow a style and structure. Whittaker (2008) explains that guidelines have become synonymous with a professional magazine production approach and provides a template for the publication to maintain consistency. I opted for guidelines which separate the page into quarters and the intersecting lines provide a centered mark to aid with image placement. I also inserted 3 columns for the text to be laid out, which maintains consistency throughout articles. Ambrose and Harris (2015) highlight â&#x20AC;&#x153;the rule of threesâ&#x20AC;? when considering layout, which suggests that things which come collectively in threes are more interesting and makes text more memorable. A master page, as explained by Whittaker (2008) as a page with guides and placeholders for material that would typically go in the header or footer of a page, was useful for enabling consistency and structured for each page of the publication. I added page numbers in the master page as Frost (2012) highlights that page numbering makes life easier for the reader, making the task of reading the material as easy and enjoyable as possible.

GUIDELINES

FRONT COVER

Frost (2012) highlights that “a magazine’s front cover is solely to invite the reader to buy, to tempt him or her into picking up the publication and becoming engrossed in the content”. Considering this I wanted Blend maintain a colourful and bold front cover, with these colours running throughout the publication. I believe that using different colours, patterns and designs throughout the publication makes the content more appealing for the reader and also represents the broad nature of Blend’s content. Ambrose and Harris (2015) describe the use of different visuals to be a “pace change” and elaborate that in most circumstances if every page of the publication looks the same the reader is more likely to lose interest especially if the publication is lengthy. Although Blend has differentiation through visuals and colour, there are still maintained ongoing themes visually, such as the repetition in use of lines and squares.

Considering typography I kept the range of different font within the magazine minimal including 4: Kandinsky, Reality Hyper, Franklin Gothic Medium and Consolas. I opted for bold and interesting typography for the magazine logo and chapter divisions however kept the headline and main body text simplistic. Moser (2011) explains that “the headline is the freestyle exercise, open to the creativity of it’s author”. The aim of the logo and chapter text is to gain the audience’s attention and become synonymous with Blend as a publication, Moser (2011) highlights this font “should stimulate associations in the reader and arouse their curiosity”. Furthermore this prompted me to support a minimal font for the main body of text and headlines, as I did not want to complicate the content for the audience and wanted to maintain a formal style.

KADINSKY REALITY HYPER FRANKLIN GOTHIC MEDIUM

CONSOLAS 29

INSIDE LAYOUT

In terms of graphics and images I opted for colourful patterns and artwork as a background for the written content to be laid over, I made this decision as the bold colours are attractive to the reader and holds their attention. In order to do this I edited the colour mode and DPI (Dots Per Inch) for every image in photoshop, Ambrose and Harris (2008) explain “Images will nearly always need to be worked on before they can be used in a design. Such work may need resizing or recolouring”. As these background images are such a big part of each page the quality and colour of the images needed to maintain high quality. In addition to these bold images I chose minimal foreground images as to not conflict with the vivid background images. Ambrose and Harris (2008) highlight “graphic designers use foreground, midground and background layers to create depth of field”. All images were either sourced of copyright free images or photography of my own, thus meaning that there were no commissioned images within the publication. I created my own artwork for the Kim Kardashian article as I wanted to use fun imagery for this piece to represent the informal context of the written content. Within the publication I utilised double page spreads for typography of different words synonymous with the noun “trend”. I opted to do this as it separates content and is a visual pace changer, which Ambrose and Harris (2015) state is attractive to the audience.

WRITTEN CONTENT

Considering written content is based on popular culture, with each article presenting a topic which has been trending on social media in recent months, as this edition of Blend is based on “trend”. Storey (2018) defines popular culture as a discussion of entertainment and leisure. The content challenges some aspects of popular culture through opinion articles and interviews, which express topics through a different pair of eyes. The articles included within the publication are feature articles, Adams (1999) explains feature writers to be “entertaining gossips, perspective analysts, eccentric experts, sympathy councillors, bitchy snoops, inspiring guides” which is an accurate representation of the content of Blend. I have decided to produce feature articles as my content because this style of writing is preferred for me and I believe it is the best way to display my writing skills, as well as this it will be beneficial to my writing portfolio in the future. Considering my future writing portfolio, the content in Blend presents a mix of genres from fashion, music, news and lifestyle, this therefore displays my writing capability range. Pape (2006) explains that commercially feature articles are valuable and followed well by readers, especially if the features are consistent from the writer. Using a varied range of article styles has enabled me to display my written skills however will also add variation to the content within my magazine. The written content follows The Guardian house style, for example “social media” being plural, following this house style maintains consistency within the content.

The content within the mental health article contains themes which may be sensitive or distressing for some readers and therefore means that the content had to be appropriate while also informing. The interviewee for this article wanted to remain anonymous due to the subjects discussed, Potter (2017) elaborates “there are strict ethical guidelines about dealing with difficult and distressing interviews”. Ethically, to be considered is the interviewee’s right to maintain anonymous, as some issues discussed may impact the interviewee’s future considering the likes of employment and social status. Also the interview addresses the individuals personal experiences, which is an intimate subject to discuss and is another reason for the individual to remain anonymous. When discussing mental health issues with an individual Potter (2017) highlights that the individual must “genuinely prepared” to discuss such topics, which I therefore ensured with the individual after discussing confidentiality and their rights surrounding this when being an interviewee. The Samaritans have published media guidelines for covering mental health issues and explain “your story may have an effect on vulnerable individuals”, which I took into account when writing the content and made sure to promote mental health services which anyone impacted by the article are available to contact. In reflection to this article I would have liked to represent the story from both sides, by talking to a GP for example who could oppose the opinion presented, however I was unable to secure this interview.

WRITTEN CONTENT

SOCIAL MEDIA

As well as producing the print magazine for Blend I produced a social media page on Instagram for the magazine. Smith and Anderson (2018) note that social media is most popular among the age range of 18 – 24-year olds and this means that Instagram is a useful platform to target age demographic of Blend’s target readership. The magazines Instagram page can be used to create attention for the magazine and is also a place where readers can connect with the magazine and share their thoughts and opinions. It is not uncommon for publications to operate on social media platforms for the main purpose of being able to connect with their audience, Tuten (2014) explains “Every day the influence of social media expands as more people join online communities”.

Considering the production of the print publication, I will use a printing company such as Mixam to create my final product. I have exported the publication with bleed marks for the printing process and the number of pages is 48 which is divisible by 4 when considering binding. Moser (2011) explains â&#x20AC;&#x153;The binding of magazines varies according to the thicknessâ&#x20AC;?. As Blend is a relatively thin publication I believe perfect binding will be more applicable, and will also give the publication a spine. Moser (2011) elaborates that perfect binding will give the publication a spine, which many publishers like to fill with the name, date and various themes of the magazine. The final product will be printed on uncoated paper as I believe that the texture and look of this makes a publication feel more expensive and desirable for the reader.

INSIDE COVER

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Aaron Smith & Monica Anderson (2018) Social Media Use in 2018. [Online]. [6 January 2019]. Available from: http://www.pewinternet.org/2018/03/01/social-media-use-in-2018/ Chris Frost. (2012) Designing for newspapers and magazines. Routledge Fook, J. and Gardner, F. (2007) Practising critical reflection: a resource handbook. Maidenheadâ&#x20AC;Ż: Open University Press, 2007. Gavin Ambrose and Paul Harris (2008) The Production Manual: A Graphic Design Handbook AVA Publishing Gavin Ambrose and Paul Harris (2015) The Layout Book Bloomsbury Publishing Hicks W, Adams S, Gilbert H (1999) Writing for Journalists London Routledge Horst Moser (2011) The Art Directorsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Handbook of Professional Magazine Design: Classic Techniques and Inspirational Approaches Third Edition Thames & Hudson Issuu (2016) GRIT Magazine [Online]. Access Available: https://issuu.com/gritz1ne/docs/gritissue1 Issuu (2018) Farid The Zine [Online]. Access Available: https://issuu.com/faridthezine/docs/farid_ the_zine___the_self_expressio

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Issuu (2018). Girlhood Magazine [Online]. Access Available: https://issuu.com/shenellsha_/docs/girlhood_final_sp.compressed John Storey (2018) Cultural Theory and Popular Culture: An Introduction Routledge Lee-Potter, E. (2017) Interviewing for journalists. Routledge (Media Skills). Pape, S. and Featherstone, S. (2006) Feature writing: a practical introduction. London : SAGE, 2006. Statista (2018) Magazine Industry in the United Kingdom [Online]. Article number: did-25515-1 Tuten, T. L. and Solomon, M. R. (2014) Social media marketing. [electronic resource]. Harlow, Essex : Pearson, [2014]. Available at: https://go.openathens.net/redirector/leedsmet.ac.uk?url=http%3a%2f%2fsearch.ebscohost.com%2flogin Vaid, H (2003) Branding; brand strategy, design and implementation of corporate and product identity. Cambridge, The Ilex Press Limited Vice Media Kit (2016) Vice Whittaker, J. (2008) Magazine production. London : Routledge