By: Sir Khalid Rehman
Magazines and newsletters have an attractive and appropriate masthead that features its name (sometimes also called the nameplate) and its dateline details mentioned. It has a table of contents, main article, follwed by other articles, features, photographs, and pictures, body text and headlines. At least ten parts of a magazine/newsletter design must be kept in mind when planning or executing the periodical.
1. Masthead/Nameplate: The banner on the front of a magazine or newsletter that identifies the publication is its masthead or nameplate. It usually contains its name in graphics or in a logogram. It can also contain a subtitle or motto besides publication information including volume and issue and/or date. In newsletters it is on the first page. In magazines, it is there on the main title as well as inside, preferably with the TOC.
2. Body (Inside Pages): The body of the magazine or newsletter is the bulk of the text excluding the headlines and decorative text elements. It's the articles that mostly make up its content.
3. Table of Contents (TOC): It lists articles and special sections and the page number for those items. In newslettters it usually appears on the front page, and before the rest of the contents in magazines.
4. Print Panel: It lists the name of the publisher and other pertinent data, including staff names, contributors, subscription information, editorial and advertising contact addresses, etc.
5. Signposts: Visual signposts or cues let the readers know where they are and where they are reading. They break up text and images into readable, easy-to-follow blocks or panels of information. Apart from the main headline, various other heads are:
Blurb: The blurb is one or more descriptive lines placed between the headline and the body of the article. They indicate, elaborate or expand on the headline. They may be placed in one or more decks, set in a typeface size that is less than the headline and more than the body text.
Byline: The byline indicates the name of the author. Generally appearing between the headline and the body text, and prefaced by the word "By" or "From" or other wording, it may also be used to give credit for photographs or illustrations. It could also appear at the end of the article, sometimes as part of a mini-bio of the author.
Crosshead: It is one or more lines of text found between the text blocks of the article. It elaborates or expands on the headline and topic of the accompanying text. Sometimes it is given just to break the monotony of continued text.
Deck: You make a headline or subhead in single, double or triple deck as required.
Headline: After the nameplate, the headline identifying each article in a newsletter is the most prominent text element.
Kicker: The kicker is a very brief phrase found set above the headline, usually in a smaller type than the headline. It serves as an introduction or as a section heading to identify a regular column.
Running Head: More familiarly known as a header, a running headline is repeating text — often the title of the publication — that appears, usually at the top, of each page or every other page in a newsletter design. The page number is sometimes incorporated with the running headline.
Subhead: Subheads appear within the body of articles to divide the article into smaller sections.
6. Page Numbers: Page numbers can appear at the top, bottom, or sides of pages. Usually page one is not numbered in a newsletter.
7. Continuation Lines (also Jumplines): When articles span two or more pages, continuation lines are used to help readers find the rest of the article. Most commonly they appear at the end of a column, as in continued on page 45. Continuation lines at the top of a column indicate where the article is continued from, as in continued from page 16.
Continuation Heads: When articles jump from one page to another, continuation heads are sometimes used to identify the continued portion of the articles. The continuation headlines, along with jumplines, provide continuity and cue the reader as to where to pick up reading.
8. End Signs: A dingbat is usually used to mark the end of a story in a newsletter or a magazine. It signals the end of the article.
9. Highlight (also Pull-Quotes): Used to attract attention and to manage space, a small selection of text is pulled out and quoted in a larger typeface and placed at an appropriate position.
10. Photos / Illustrations: A newsletter design layout may contain photographs, drawings, charts, graphs, or clip art.
Mug Shot (also Portrait): The most typical people photograph found is the mug shot — a more or less straight into the camera head and shoulders picture.
Formal or informal pictures: Formal or ceremonial photographs are sometimes necessity of an article but informal photographs are more natural looking and hence more attractive.
Cutout: Some pictures or photographs are cut along the outline of an interesting shape — a head or body, and object in part or whole and set in an unusual position — sometimes even pushing into the text block, to make the page look unusual and more distinguished. This is a cutout.
Caption: The caption is a phrase, sentence, or paragraph describing the contents of an illustration such as a photograph or chart. The caption is usually placed directly above, below, or to the side of the picture it describes. /END
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