Call to Write, Third edition Chapter Nineteen: Visual Design

Chapter overview  Two reasons to consider visual design in a writing class  Basic principles of visual design  Basic purposes of visual design

Why look at visual design in a writing course? There are two reasons:  The ability to read and evaluate visual messages has become part of the new kind of literacy.  Visual design is a factor in producing print and digital texts.

The goal of the chapter  See the intro to the chapter, page 636.  To help you understand design so that you can produce documents that 1. Fit the situation 2. Help readers navigate the page (move around to find the important information) 3. Influence readers in ways that you intend

Visual design and purpose: Information  One of the main functions of design is to identify things, places, publications, and organizations.

Company logos and trademarks  Everyday we see thousands of logos and trademarks, from our breakfast cereal to our vehicle, computer, jeans, and favorite fast food.  We see signs for Coke, Pepsi,, Dell, Gateway, Hyvee, Ford, Lee, Disney & more!

Three kinds of visual information  Textual  Representational  Numerical We will look at each type now.

Textual graphics  Used to organize and display words, phrases, sentences, or paragraphs.  Emphasize key points.

Textual graphics: examples  Bulleted lists  Pull quotes  Tables  Charts  Timelines

Representational graphics  Refers to the use of pictures to orient readers in time and space  Also used to illustrate processes (for example, how to change the oil, the process of photosynthesis, or how to burn a CD)

Representational graphics, cont.  Show the relationships of objects to each other  Capture events (the big football game, celebrating a successful campaign, wedding and baby photos)  Think of how hard it would be to perform many tasks without some pictures to guide you, and how much we value pictures of special events and people.

Numerical graphics  The final type of visual is numerical. This includes the following:  Tables of numbers  Line graphs  Bar charts  Pie charts

Ethics  Notice the comment about how easy it is to distort things (either by accident or intention) with visuals.  There is an example, too. The first graph exaggerates the increase in fuel efficiency of cars. The revised graph on the next page is much closer to the truth.

A second purpose: persuasion  Visuals can have a very persuasive impact: Remember the photos of the burning twin towers and reports of people buying flags, red and blue ribbons, donating blood and giving money?  See the posters on page 641: The Uncle Sam poster is one of the definitive images of our country during that era.  Note the other images in this section.

Four Basic Principles (CARP)  One way to remember these four things is to think of an acronym such as CARP.  Contrast: Refers to providing something interesting to catch the eye (bold)  Align (place) visual elements: Refers to where you put them on the page  Repetition: Repeat a visual element throughout a document  Proximity: Group similar items together

Working with type  We won’t cover every detail in this section, but you should look it over; several items are extremely important.  We need white space, so chunk down paragraphs and make them more readable.  It’s difficult to read ALL CAPS.  Some type faces are easier to read than others: Many should be used sparingly, and only for titles or decorative purposes.

Planning a visual design  See page for five things to consider when planning a visual design.  Notice that this section echoes the writing process: planning, making a rough sketch, and then producing a more polished final product.

Keep this book!  Many of you will end up helping to produce a flyer, newsletter, brochure, or other print publication.  This chapter lists guidelines for each one, pointing out the features of successful examples.  Refer to pages

Newsweek and visual design  Grab one of the issues of Newsweek magazine and take a look.  Notice how skillfully it uses CARP in the overall page layout, as well as in ads.  Notice how the mix of text, white space, photographs, and other graphics create a very appealing layout that invites you to read.

Student Companion Website  Go to the student side of the Web site for exercises, chapter overviews, and links to writing resources for this chapter:  Click on the textbook cover, and then select Student Resources.