Decisions regarding letterform submissions

 Deciding what to do with the submissions

Because we have received quite a lot of submissions of the same letter, we need to decide whether to use all of them or select one submission per letter. This is a conflicting decision as if we don't use everyones submissions it kind of goes against the idea of collaborating and peoples responses to emotion. That being said, there is also the limitation that if we use all of the submissions in the publication, it might be a bit confusing if we have more than one of a certain letter and then only one of another letter. Also it might be hard to split up mine and Spencers' workload if there is an awkward amount of letters. We need to kind of make this decision asap as it is getter closer to the actual designing section of the project.

Colour theories in emotion

 Colour theories in emotion

In response to peer feedback, I decided to do some quick research into colour theories. This will help us inform the use of colour within the project, which will help the colour schemes align with the different letters people have submitted. This could either be printing in colour, or possibly using a coloured paper stock. I have also spoken to James at digital print, and he has said that the facilities are still open for students to use; hopefully this means that we will be able to print the final publication/ stickers at uni which will make our budget lower. 

It will be quite nice to have a colourful publication, as I think the black and white colour scheme doesn't have a strong conceptual link to emotion. It would be interesting to possibly use gradients for the publication/ instagram posts, as it would reflect the mixture of moods we have received from the submissions. In regards to this, would could possibly try creating a gradient map of all of the emotions, which would provide a overview of the emotions featured in the type; this could be quite fitting for posters or maybe a front cover? The main focus however, would be balancing minimal design with gradients, as we don't want to distract from the type too much. We'll discuss how we will go about this once we have received all of the submissions on Friday.

Post submission admin

 Post submission admin

After receiving submissions for MoodGlyph, we have found that we have more than one submission for a few letters; so far this consists of B, E, R, and S. The main issue with this is that we cannot make a typeface with multiple designs for each letters; this means there will have to be some selection on mine and Spencers' part in regards to which letters we will choose. Also, with it being two days before the submission deadline, I thought I'd post this update on our story:

As well as this, because there is an element of selection within the project, it would be fair to upload an instagram post that discloses this information. After the deadline on Friday night, we have decided to create some kind of thank-you post that explains that we will now be selecting the final letters to be featured in the alphabet. Also, I have just spoken to Spencer and in reflection of the peer feedback i have received, we are going to start posting in colour on our instagram. This will create a nice separation between the pre and post submission branding of the project. Also, I think using colour will definitely push the project to consider the element of emotions better, as we could look into colour theories and their meanings in regards to emotions. This would tie in nicely with out publication, as we could create a new, more exiting visual language for the final outcome. Despite this, the concept to keep the design minimal still stands, as we still want to place more emphasis on the typeface itself. 

The next steps

After creating my list in preparation for when I next meet Spencer, we need to have a discussion on who is going to do what in order to make the projects' workload to be fairly split between us both. I think Spencer is going to create the last black and white thank-you instagram post, and then we need to decide on what colour palette to use in order to make it more consistent. As well as this, I'm going to gather some visual research to further inform the designing of the publication. 

Things we need to begin to plan for MoodGlyph

 Pt.2 of MoodGlyph planning (the designing part)

After we have received all of the letter submissions for the MoodGlyph alphabet, we need to plan ahead in terms of what we want to create withe the typeface itself. I'm going to have a meeting with Spencer to talk through these topics:

The actual type specimen

• How are we going to lay out the specimen?
• Is it going to be a printed zine?
• Are we sticking to the black and white colour scheme?
• We could include some illustrative elements alongside the typefaces; maybe illustrated emotions for each letter? 
• Can we personify every letter we have received? 
• Paper stock, binding and size
• Should we create some kind of grid with all of the letters (similar to Anna Mills) 
• Could it be in a posterzine format? 
• We need to contact Village Books to see if they would sell it 
• How are we going to package the publication?
• What price point would we set?
• We could include a credits page at the back/ back cover 
• How are we going to show what emotion each letter is? 
• Are all of the letters we have received the best quality - e.g if they are pixilated we need to ask for a higher quality submission 
• We could create some kind of collage typeface by printing out all the letters and combining them 
• We could create little postcard sized prints 
• Make characters out of play dough 
• The back page could be corresponding photos and images that go with each letter; so you know who is credited for what

Merchandising 

• Stickers
• Tees/ clothing 
• Iron on patches
• We need to research where we can source all of these 
• What price points we could sell the tees at; could it be a made to order thing, or should we order a batch? 
• What actual content will we print on them? 
• We could create some kind of logo 
• Badges 
• Creating some sort of pack that includes merch with the zines; we could possibly sell them ourselves first 
• Business cards; they could have an about on the back? Or they could be interactive and ask the person to draw a letter based on an emotion/ prompt 
• Posters? 
• Prints?

Promotional stuff

• We need to create a submission closed instagram post after Friday; decide who is going to make this 
• What are we going to post on our instagram once we have received all of the submissions?
• We could create a story reel of each individual letter and tag each artist
• We could outsource somebody to animate the typeface and create some kind of moving logo/ alphabet
• The letters could move in a way that expresses their emotion 
• We need to promote the tees successfully to get people to buy them 
• How are we going to promote the final publication 

Deadlines

We need to plan our time effectively to have a final publication and products by the end of the submission deadline. This has to be no later than the 16th of Feb. Also, due to village books being closed due to lockdown, we need to reconsider how we approach them and how we can sell our products. We could potentially sell MoodGlyph after the actual uni submission, as it would allow us to finalise the design. In a way, this could work out that for the uni submission, we just have the finalised products ready for print?

Peer feedback 

• Maybe don't do a tee design for the project, as it isn't massively justified to the project; posters and prints would be better?
• Package the the publication in a tote bag; sell tote bags instead of tees
• Look at colour theories based on mood; print the publication on coloured paper or have it printed in coloured ink 
• Start posting on instagram in colour; this will reflect that once we have received submissions, the emotions are revealed 
• Make custom prints where we make collages of the emotions; people could request for an emotion and we could make a collage

The first 10 years as a graphic designer (Alex MacPherson)

 

Graphic design: the first 10 years (Angus MacPherson)

• After graduating; more creative freedom
• Don’t get too comfortable I’m not making design decisions yourselves 
• It’s dangerous getting too comfortable getting directed; there’s a safety in if you get something wrong you don’t get the blame 
• It’s not fulfilling creating stuff for other people/ their ideas 
• Make sure you’re making decisions yourself 
• The reality is that people do design that is less exciting; what people post on Instagram isn’t the reality 
• It’s important to move around and test out a few agencies 
• Make room for self initiated projects 
• Work with recruiters 
• My question: do you think it’s more important to have a specific style as a designer or is it better to be more versatile/ adaptable within the industry? 
• Answer: there isn’t a right designer as those are two different career paths. Sawdust studio had a really distinct look. Being more flexible as a designer has a bit more longevity as you’re more flexible, but if you have a clear vision stick to your style.

Personal branding notes

 

Personal branding 

• The conscious and intentional effort to create and influence public perception within your industry 
• Helps you be known within your field and land work consistently 
• Can you be known for a specific topic?(thought leader) 
• What do you want people to associate you with? 
• Do you bring a pre-existing audience with you? 
• What career options might you want in the future? 
• Why to you want a personal brand? 
• Meet your audience where they are; where do they spend time online? 
• Post consistently and create content that people will share e.g your niche

Improving my own letter submission

 Developing my letter 'f'

I wanted to develop/ improve my letter submission, as I want it to be a good example for the kind of stuff to submit to MoodGlyph. I feel like the initial design I created could be improved further, as there are certain areas of the glyph/ serifs that are slightly unmatched and seem out of place. 

The emotion I decided to inspire the letterform on was 'excited', as I wanted to create a positive response to the brief. Due to this, the serifs are directed in an upward motion; almost personifying the letterform to look like it is jumping in excitement. I wanted to keep the forms used within the letter smooth and rounded, as this created a friendly tone of voice, as well as further exploring the mood of excited. In order to improve the letter, I made some subtle changes by making the shapes thicker in order to emote the idea of growing with excitement; having more of a rounded and thicker glyph contributes further in relating to the emotion of excitement. 

In order to provide some more examples, I think Spencer is also going to create a letterform for MoodGlyph. After he has done so, we discussed creating another step by step guide using his letter. 

Creating more content for the MoodGlyph instagram

 Alphabet grid

After speaking to Spencer about making the guidelines for the submission clearer, I decided to create an alphabet that showcased what letters had already been submitted; this would help people know which letters were left to submit. 

I wanted to keep the same consistency as the instagram account (black and white), so I stuck to using a grid with a black and white visual language. I think this also helped the audience understand that the submissions needed to be in black and white, which would help confusion in regards to what people need to submit. 

I like how this story post contextualises the typeface more, as it brings together peoples' submissions. Spencer and I also decided to keep posting this regularly in order to update our followers on what letters we need; hopefully this will engage people more and help the submission requirements seem clearer. 

Updated version; adding in other submissions 

In regards to posting these in our story, it would be quite fun to alternative between black and white backgrounds; this would link to the current Instagram feed, and relate to the visual language of MoodGlyphs' identity/ branding. I think if we were to develop these further, it would be nice to create some sort of gif of the letters once people have submitted them; for example going through the alphabet. This would push the instagram content to be more engaging and playful, which is essential in spreading the word to gain more of a following. 

Instagram feed 

As shown in this screenshot of the account, we have stuck to a black and white Instagram feed in order to keep a consistent visual identity; I think it is simple but effective in ensuring that all of our content stays on brand. As well as this, the simple square/ monochrome colour scheme means that it is easier for Spencer and I to create posts that fit together, despite working on them separately; the black and white also places more emphasis on the submission requirements/ call out posts, thus making it clearer to the audience. 

Creating story highlights

Spencer and I have spoke about creating a story highlight for the alphabet updates to let our followers know what letters we have submitted. One design component that we need to create is a cover for these highlights on the story; I might quickly create one using the black and white theme to further develop a sense of brand image. 

Story highlight cover designs

In order to maintain the same branding/ tone, I created these story highlight covers using black and white and Times New Roman; using the same typeface as the rest of the Instagram feed was super important in providing consistency. I'm going to mess around and see which cover works best on the Instagram page. 

After messing around with the story highlight covers, I decided to use this one as it fit with the Instagram theme the best; we have received some more letter submissions so I'm going to post an update today.

Issues with the call out/ submissions

 Issues with submissions

One of the main issues we have discovered when receiving submissions is that people are misinterpreting the brief, and submitting letters that aren't suitable to be used in a typeface. For example, the design above is great, but it is way too complicated and uses colour. I think this is mainly a result of poor communication on our part, as we made the call out quite open. Due to this, we wanted to give some more constructive feedback for the submission in order to get a more suitable letter for the project. Here is the email we sent:

Showing what letters we have received so far

Another issue we have realised is that at this moment, there isn't any way that people know what letters have been submitted. Due to this, there is a risk that people could submit the same letter as somebody. Some ideas to overcoming this issue would be:

• Posting the letters people have submitted 
• Creating some sort of document that has a table checking off each letter (we could put this in our instagram bio)
• Creating a document with the submitted letters (like a shared google doc)
• We could make a 24 square table with the submitted letters and post it filled in with the letters we have

I'm going to have a chat with Spencer regarding this, as it is an issue in making sure we receive the right submissions. Also, we were thinking of creating some letters ourselves. For example, I might improve the 'F' I created.

Promoting MoodGlyph online/ messaging type designers

 Messaging designers to take part in MoodGlyph (responses so far)

In our feedback session, it was suggested by peers that we need to reach out to external designers to have a wider range of submissions; due to this, I messaged a few type designers and asked if they wanted to participate. Of course, the majority didn't reply, but I have actually had some replies from some amazing type designers (shown bellow). 

Promotion from external accounts

We have also received some promotion from external instagram accounts which has helped spread the word more; even though its still early days, it is very important that we gain this support in the first place in order to get as many submissions as possible and to gain a larger following. 

Responding to feedback: creating a step by step guide

 Step by step guide for MoodGlyph

Based on peer feedback, it was suggested that we need to create some kind of step by step guide for our instagram in order to make it clearer to the audience what they need to do in order to submit. Also, I received some feedback that we need to disclose a deadline. I spoke to Spencer and we've decided on the 15th of Jan so far, as this will give us plenty of time to develop a final outcome and contact Village Books. 

Sketches

Another suggestion in my crit was to actually try and test out the submission myself. These are illustrations for the step by step guide that follow the same illustrative elements that I made previously (keeping a consistent brand image). I decided to create the letter f inspired by the emotion excited; this is mainly because a lot of our submissions so far were of negative emotions - thats not an issue but I wanted to contribute with something positive.

Instagram formats

The step by step guide uses the same black and white effect, and focuses on a minimal design in order to create a clear guide and avoid confusion. I think hopefully this will encourage more people to submit as if they have an example to follow then there won't be a fear to be the first one to submit; this was an issue raised in our crit.