My Book Design Journey Begins
The book design class I’m in is really great. We have a lot of creative freedom and there’s always some cool books brought in to pass around and discuss. My favourite book was a history of England from the 1800s. It was written in Latin, but you could still pick out some of the place names.
We’ve done a lot so far this semester. We’ve completed a case study, analyzing a book of our choice on its materials, measurements, organization and message. Our second project called Hello Book involved designing a little chapbook to introduce us to the book form and practice making our own books from scratch. We’re soon starting an experimental book, which I really look forward to. I’ll talk about all these in upcoming posts.
Besides all this, there’s our term project: a book that could be about anything. My idea is to make a semi-educational, illustrated children’s book, designed to casually familiarize them with type terminology. It would be the kind of book that is read to children by their parents, who are likely designers or design enthusiasts.
The children could have it read to them when they are younger (six to eleven) and revisit it when they are older and ready to read on their own. Parents could then read with them and delve into the meaning of some of the words if the child is interested and ready.
The terminology, maybe even classic typeface names, would be incorporated in place names, character names, etc. All the characters would be letters, though I would not include all twenty-six letters of the alphabet due to time.
The illustrations would be made of type, as well. I would be drawing on skills I learned in Typography 3 class, doing the mixed type lettering assignment shown below. I combined pieces of three typefaces to make new letterforms. I’ve been thinking of using them to make a children’s book, and this is the perfect opportunity to use that process in a new way.
That project was a lot of fun and I am excited about where I’m going to take my book! I will post my progress as I go along and we can discuss it in the responses. Cheers!
