Final draft - Contents

Below is my final draft of the contents page for my student’s magazine. It is totally different to my previous draft and much more simple.

 I wasn’t particularly happy with how my previous draft looked like so I’ve researched contents pages of different magazines – fashion, sport, science etc. etc. – and noticed that most of them tend to have almost the same layout from issue to issue. Usually it something simple, with image and text around it or 3 -7 smaller images with text above or beneath each of them.

For my final draft I’ve chosen the picture from the first draft however it smaller now and based on the white background. Also:

• ·      I’ve put the name of my magazine in a big handwritten black font. It stands out a lot on a simple white background and is different to the one on the cover page.
• ·      I was influenced by fashion magazines – a lot of them put the masthead in big font and the fact that this is a contents page above it, in smaller simpler font. Even though this is a students magazine, not a fashion one, I though this is a good idea, it looks good on my cover page and stands out very well, despite the small size of the text.
• ·      I’ve also noticed that a lot of magazines divide their contents in groups by themes. So did I. I’ve used the same sans-serif font for both subheadings and pages reference’s but different sizes and colours.
• ·      The whole page has 3-colour writing on it – red, black and white. I thought these colours will stand out a lot on a white background (and white on a dark photo) and also they reflect the colours on the photo. They don’t look overwhelming and too much and the text is easily read. 
• ·      In my last draft the editor letter was somewhere in the end, according to my contents. However, I realised that usually it is put at the very first pages of the magazine, between adverts and contents pages. 
• ·      All the headings and writing are in a straight neat and nice column. They are easy to read and balanced with the image. Also, the picture and text don’t distract the eye of the reader from one another.
• ·      I’ve put the page number of the interview on the actual picture of the model. This sends clear message to the reader who is the interview with and about and doesn’t need any explanation. Also the white colour of the text stands out and contrasts with picture but echoes the background.
• ·      I’ve also added the advert of a mobile version of the magazine and the website, as this is also often seen in the real magazines.

Overall my idea was to KEEP IT SIMPLE.  I’ve tried to create a balanced and eye-catching page, which will be easy to read, give all the needed information, but not too much. Also, I’ve focused on the ways to make the reader READ the magazine, not just look through pretty pictures. Once again, this page looks as a contents page for a magazine that aims for older students, what is exactly what I wanted. In a way, it even looks classy – straight lines, simple colours, one big and good picture and a heading that stands out. Being honest – I like it!)