IDENTIFY: Structural Components of Editorial Design (everything in black below)
- page – the single unit of editorial design
- double page spread – two single pages side-by-side are the main and most important compositional element of editorial design. All grid building and layout is looked at through this lens.
- grid – the invisible architecture of the double page spread
- margins – the free space reserved at the top, bottom, outside and inside of a double page spread (top, bottom, left, right of a single page). In general, enough space should be reserved to make reading comfortable.
- columns – the vertical units of a page used to define where elements are positioned. Columns can be any number and are often between 2 and 12.
- rows – the horizontal units of a page used to define where elements are positioned. Rows are not automatically definable in InDesign but can be simply set with guides on your Master Pages.
- gutters – the space between columns. Gutters should have enough width to help define text columns and not hinder legibility (they should not be so close that you skip across the gutter while reading).
- baseline grid – a series of evenly spaced horizontal lines which determine where the baselines of text, as well as other elements, can be positioned. The leading of all typographic elements is usually a either the same amount, a multiple, or a division of the baseline grid which helps give visual structure to the overall grid.
- folio – the area where page numbers and publication title are positioned.
- Folios are often outside or below the perimeters of the article’s design (i.e. somewhere in the outside margin).
- bleed area – the space outside of the edges of the double page spread reserved for overflow of artwork
- slug area – the space outside of page and bleed edges reserved for file and technical information for production
IDENTIFY: Content Components of Editorial Design, in usual order of hierarchy
- headline – title of the article
- image: photos, illustrations, icons – images which support and supplement the reading experience
- intro/deck/kicker/standfirst – initial summary of the article, called out hierarchically to be read while visually scanning the page. A bridge between headline and text
- pull quotes/breakouts/callouts – information pulled and duplicated from the main article text, set in a way to visually punctuate the rhythm of the spread and orient the reader
- panels/box copy/sidebars – these hold information that relates, but is not essential, to the content and ideas of the main text. These subtext areas hold lists of pertinent information, interviews, info graphics, etc. to give the reader another perspective on the content, enrich the reading experience.
- information graphics – see above
- captions – image descriptors that act as a bridge between image and main text
- subheads – subheads break up the main text into logical sections
- text/body copy – the main content of the article which all other elements work to support and illuminate
- folios/footlines – folios usually contain the page number and publication title but can also have section or chapter titles. They do not necessarily (and most often do not) appear on every page of a publication and will be removed where full-bleed art is used. They will sometimes appear only on right-hand pages
- graphic elements – lines, textures, color bars or background images that help define, shape or highlight the construction of a spread and can lend mood or tone to the article
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Tip: Draw the underlying grid structure. You can draw on top of a photocopy of your article or on tracing paper overlays. Define the page edges, margins, columns, rows and gutters. Include both left and right pages as a single spread. On a second sheet (or on the same sheet with a different color marker) try to define the content elements of the article, including headlines, intro, pull quotes, sidebars, captions, subheads, body copy, folios, graphic elements & images.
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