Blog for an online competition.. YCN

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Evaluation

For this 3 day project I have been asked to make a book jacket. The research for 2 days and then I had 5 hours to make the final. I think that this was quite challenging for time keeping and the research had to be very straight to the point and I couldn't go off subject as there was only 2 days for the research. As we were not given the title or subject of the book and only the genre of non-fiction I think the research was okay and that I have concentrated on the right parts of the book covers. I think I have enough reseach within my blog. What I needed to find out when doing this research is the layouts and the type used in the book covers. I used both fiction and non-ficton book covers to look at as I thought that I would benifit from looking at these, also penguin books, as this was what I based my book cover on. This was very useful because when looking at the back cover the barcode and what surrounded the barcode was always different, so looking at a few different penguin back covers I decided on a way of layout I liked and chose to do that. The strengths within my piece is that it is simple, clean cut and the title is easy to see and read when you first see the cover. The spine also does the same thing with easy visual. The way in which I think that this piece could be mis-read or mis-understood is that the image I have done for the front cover isn't instantly known to what it is. If you read the blurb this becomes a lot more clear, although a lot of people wouldn't go to that extent to do this, the story over the top of the image explains this also. What I have enjoyed about this project was looking at all different types of book covers. There was a lot I didn't know about the smaller parts of a book cover, things like the barcode, logo, price and the smaller print. It was good to learn about these parts of design.

Book jacket development

This is my template that I used for my book cover. I made this in InDesign. I am also going to be making my whole design within InDesign.

This is just a few stages of my development. 

FINAL DESIGN: 

This here is my final design. I am really pleased with my book cover. I have made it quite a clean piece because when looking at my research I have clearly stated that I was more keen on the more plain designs. With this design I have used a drawn image from the internet that I found which was of Orpheus and Eurydice in a very abstract form. The text I have used over the top of this image is the love story of these Orpheus and Eurydice, this may not all be readable but if you was to sit and concentrate on the cover imagery you would be able to recognize the link with the two. 

Orpheus and Eurydice

I am going to base my front cover on the love of Orpheus and Eurydice. 

Here I am just going to show a few images that I have seen on the internet of Orpheus and Eurydice and their journey. These images that I have chosen to show here are images that I think can inspire me when designing. I have picked Orpheus and Eurydice from the blurb because when doing a small quick amount of research after getting the information this morning at the start of the 5 hours we had to make the cover, I think that this was the route of specifics that I would like to go down. I always think that love and romance will get anyones interest and although these image may not instantly portray this, I think that when looking closer you can see this blossoming.

http://www.bonzasheila.com/stories/orpheuseurydice.html

This painting here is beautifully showing the story so well. I wanted to include this in my findings as the colour and work gone into this is so inspiring. I may not use this in my design but it has shown me more of the story with this image than trying to read a lot of words on a page.

http://www.bonzasheila.com/stories/orpheuseurydice.html

http://www.art-wallpaper.com/4814/Corot+Jean-Baptiste-Camille/Orpheus+and+Eurydice?Width=1600&Height=1200

This has to be one of my favourite images that I have found of Orpheus and Eurydice. The very limited use of pen in this is so abtract, but what I think is good about this image is that it is so modern and with the time we are in now that I think this would attract people more than an old type of painting.  I am going to use this image within my designs.

http://www.paleothea.com/Myths/Orpheus.html

As well as the first image that I have chosen to use for inspriration, I think that this continues on from that. When Orpheus takes one glance back at Eurydice to make sure that she is still following him, he looses her. This is a scene from the tradedy that is within this story.

Book title and information

Greek Myths and Legends

by Bob Scott

Back Cover Blurb:
The ancient stories of classical Greece come to life in an accessible and authoritative anthology that includes that chronicles the exploits of such heroes as Herakles and Perseus, the tragic love of Orpheus and Eurydice, Demeter's quest to find her lost daughter Persephone, and the machinations of Zeus, Hermes, Dionysus, and the other gods.

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Product Details ·       Paperback: 160 pages ·       Publisher: Penguin ·       Language: English ·       ISBN-10: 0140168249 ·       ISBN-13: 978-0140168242 ·       Product Dimensions: measure own mock-up book

Penguin books

http://www.shoptab.net/blog/penguin-books-spreads-its-wings-to-connect-with-more-fans-through-social-media/

I am going to do some more further research into some book covers and how the parts of what makes up the cover is placed on to the cover. I am going to look at a variety of different book covers, showing a few different styles of cover that penguin have published over many years. The penguin icon is very well known, people have grown up with these books, so it is an instantly recognisable logo.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/voxel-ux/3995712625/in/set-72157622426139855/

'All passion spent' is from 1939 and 'Animal Farm' is from 1955

These two book covers that have been saved are perfect examples of penguin books. Their layouts are simple and effective. They use Gill Sans on all their covers in the style which is a lovely clean cut font that I have used previously in other projects. I think that within this project I am also going to experiment with this font, re-creating the clean cut style that penguin have done so well. 

This Penguin cover is from the collection of Penguin shorts, this has not been published yet but an eBook has been in December 2011. So by looking at this design and the two I have linked just above you can see that the designs have not changed. They are still as effective as they ever were from the 1900's.

Here I have looked at the barcode part of a penguin book. I think that is layout of barcode is really nicely set. The small penguin section along the top I think adds that extra small personal penguin touch. I would like to use this type of barcode layout within my design.  

Book jacket research

IMAGES OF BOOKS FROM LIBRARY: 

in this section here I have taken photographs of book covers that I found in the college library that I thought were interesting. Here I am going to explain why I thought this and how they can help me with my book cover design. 

(non-fiction)

This book cover is from a non-fiction book so there for I think the information needed has to be bold, bright and easily understandable. With this design it meets those needs. The title has been placed in the centre, has a bold font and is very dark compared to the rest of the front cover, so it is automatically the first part of the cover that someone would look at. The blurb on this cover just has a number of quotes, this I think could work well when designing my non-fiction book cover. The placing of price, barcode and the make of the publisher is important, on a book there is places where you expect to see these and it is essential I think to follow on with this when designing.

This is another non-fiction book but has a lot of differences from the previous book jacket. This is minimal, clean and easy. The colour pallet that the design has used is what makes this work so well. In this book jacket design I really like the simplicity, the placing and font of the main title is eye catching and sophisticated. The spine follows on well with the front cover, keeping to the simple theme, not using all of the authors name and only the publishers logo is keeping the cover text to a minimum. The blurb is completely different to the previous non-fiction book as this here is about the book rather than just quotes. The blurb here is quite long but placed in a way that still makes you see the publishers.

(fiction)

I thought this book jacket the most interesting out of all that I found in the library. The back and front covers are exactly the same with the colour in reverse. The hand rendered type is what makes this special also, it makes this look very close and personal as all the text on this cover looks as though it's done by hand. The design is really clever as it doesn't have a blurb at all on any part of the cover and I don't think that it needs one after looking at this, like me, I think when you first look at this, your confused, then amazed as they are the same.. which way does it open?! But after looking at this, in those first few instances the last thing you think of is the blurb and where is it? When designing my cover, I probably won't be considering not having a blurb, but the way that the covers are the same is something I could experiment quickly with. 

This book jacket caught my eye for the clean and simple spine I first saw when it was on the shelf. After sliding it out the cover also got my attention, as a personal choice I prefer hand drawn illustrations that have been mixed with computer graphics. I think it works well and makes things slightly more personal. The text has been placed in expected parts of the page, in line and in a clean easy readable serif. The quote underneath the title I think is a good touch. It brings the front and back together more as on the back there is no quotes, just the average blurb along side a photograph of the author. Also on the back, the barcode and price put together, along side the illustrators name. All in all I think that this is a very good book jacket design, the text is set nicely  and I believe that it would catch anyones eye.

This book cover reminded me of the double page spread task that I previously did. The photograph along the bottom of the front cover has the same kind of idea as what I had, with there being only a small amount of imagery here. The text on this cover is effective with simplicity. Although this is a fictional book, I think with this layout and fonts it could pass as a non-fiction. I think that this whole layout and style of this cover portrays class and wealth, less is more. 

This book cover, like the Milan Kundera book has some illustration. I saw this book's spine first in the library and the hand rendered illustration within the text is what made me pick it up. Its girly, pretty and bright. The colour pallet in this design is exciting, making you look all over the cover. I like the way the flowers on the edge of the page go over on to the spine, connecting the three segments together. The font used for the normal text is a nice tall font, easily readable in lower or upper case. 

The photograph on this book jacket is striking and powerful. Although this is a fictional book, it looks like one of those real life books of people telling their childhood horror stories from the sad look on the childs face, along with the effect on the photo. The placement of text on the front cover works well, as it has been put in the darkest place, the divider in the middle of the title and authors name looke effective and smart, keeping the theme of simplicity again in this cover. The back cover on this design, carrying over the child image linking the two together. The blurb is set in a easy readable way, using quotes from people who have read the book. At the bottom in smaller text there is the copyright for the image along with the barcode, price, and website of the publisher. With the box around this, making it obvious this is a focal point. 

INTERNET RESEARCH OF BOOK COVERS:

(fiction)

http://bookcoverarchive.com/book/the_world_without_us

What caught my attention to this cover online was the text and image connection. I was really drawn to the silhouette of the cityscape and the forest. I think these illustrations connect perfectly to the title. The placement of the text is effective, as if to say this is what the world would still be like without the human existence. The quote at the top of the cover is something I think I will experiment with. Depending on my initial design and if I have an open space like this, I think that it fills the space in an interesting way, making the whole cover look more symmetrical. 

http://bookcoverarchive.com/book/disguise

The cover of Disguise is a clever approach to linking the title to the imagery. The way that the designer has used the image as though it is in a frame makes it all more interesting with that title. The Text has been placed in such a way that the eyes are covered, the main part of anyones identity. The text at the bottom of the cover, in a different font works nicely, using a large font in upper case to match the title.  

http://www.davidpearsondesign.com/popularclassics.html

This cover is a cover in its simplest form. It has just the title, author, price and publisher on it. They have chosen to only use two colours on this. I think that because of how simple the cover is, the first thing you see is the title, because with this story, you know what it is straight away, there is no need for explanation in imagery. The font on this cover is straight to the point, clean and clear, it fits so well with the whole running theme of simple with this cover. 

(non-fiction books)

http://bookcoverarchive.com/book/the_war_on_words

The cover of this book is bold and loud looking. To me I don't think this would  appeal to me as a cover. I think that, although it's quite simple and that is the usual type of cover that I would pick up, I think this seems quite dull. I will blame the newspaper layout, I think that the way the text has been placed like this would put a number of people off, thinking that what is inside is going to portray what is on the inside. 

http://bookcoverarchive.com/book/the_science_of_the_bottom_line

This non-fiction cover is one of the more exciting that I have found. The colour design of the imagery I found really intriguing. Again this one has a look of hand drawn illustrations for the top brain part which I think makes this looks good to me. The font in this one I think works well, apart from the small italics part on the bottom on the page. Obviously it is because this is slightly off topic, but I think this would of worked a lot better if the font was the same as the sentence that it is already in. Other than that, I think that this cover works brilliantly together as a non-fiction book jacket. 

http://christopher-brand.com/#614987/Who-Am-I

The imagery on this cover is what made me look. The head being a thumbprint is not what you would expect to see. The text stands out in this one, as the rest of to cover is quite light, the text being black really makes you look first at it. The serif font that has been used here also looks sophisticated and elegant, matching to the clothing the body is dressed in, also the border around the page, this looks pretty, sweet and quite feminine, but the image inside questions this thought. 

http://www.dhaggar.com/


The bland colour scheme in this cover may seem quite boring and plain but I think that it has its pros. The text stands out, showing the reader exactly what they need to see. The brightness of the text compared to the back ground, which could quite easily be the photograph, like gradually darkened towards the top for this title. The image at the bottom I don't think really shows the title, but is quite abstract and unsure. 


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Here are just a few more book covers I found on the internet through going through blogs and other peoples creative websites that I found interesting and caught my eye. I think that getting as many book covers to look at and go back on when it comes to designing my book jacket would be beneficial for me. 

http://barbaradewilde.com/#874685/jackets-covers

Whilst looking through lots of book jacket designers I found this cover. I really liked the simplicity of the cover and the way that the spine wasn't designed separately and that it just carried on round from the front. as a whole piece it looks slightly uneven but when put around the book it makes a lot more sense visually and if I saw this book I would pick this up to have a look. 

 

Listening to Trees
Author: A.K. Hellum (Dr. Andreas Kåre Hellum)
Designer: Natalie Olsen, Kisscut Design
Publisher: NeWest Press
Genre: Environment & Ecology
Typefaces: FF Seria (serif and sans) with hand drawn lettering
Cover Illustration: Natalie Olsen

http://www.faceoutbooks.com/#514110/Listening-to-Trees




CONCLUSION:

After looking at a number of book covers from the internet and from the library I feel that I have learnt a lot myself just from seeing the smaller details of a book cover. I have looked at both fiction and non-fiction because I feel that one genre may be more exciting and inspirational than the other. I found that the fictional books have a lot more of a story just from the front. The non-fiction books are slightly more real, so therefore show more factual and real imagery. When looking in the business section of the library I found that when I pulled a few books from the shelf, the covers were very boring and were not exciting or would make anyone want to read on. The only thing that I thought was good about these type of book jackets were that the text was well laid out and easily readable.

Brief - Book Jacket

Preamble

In this project you will be designing the covers for a book. You will be expected to complete this work in one session, lasting a college day.

You should undertake a complete design process from analysis of the brief, research, ideas generation and development and realisation. However, you will not need to present a large sketchbook. BUT you will be asked to submit your “workings out” in term of research, ideas development and design decision justification, along with final pieces. These need to be mounted during the final session of the day.

You will be told the name of the book on the morning of each session.

The Brief

Design a cover for a Penguin-type paperback book.

This should include front cover, spine and back cover.

You will be given the wording and blurbs and any other details, on the day of each session.

These will be standard Penguin paperback size so that you may provide yourself with old paperbacks in order to make mock ups of the books at the end of the session. So you will need to take measurements of your mock-up book and make a cover to fit. You are advised to run a test print to check that the format is correct before you begin to design.

You may use your own or found imagery, BUT remember that this is a typographic module and your grades will mainly be dependent on the ways in which you demonstrate your knowledge and application of type. Grades will focus on how and why you have applied typography.

You should evidence research into (non-fiction) book jackets in general, examining application of type and imagery, including presentation of blurbs. This may be worked on before the practical book jacket days.