Equinox Literary Magazine
Journal of Contemporary Literature and Art
The Course
ENGL 4390/RHET 7350 Independent Study: Equinox is a student-run journal of contemporary literature and art at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. Their aim is to discover and nurture the unique and diverse voices of students through compiling an annual selection of visual art, poetry, fiction, and drama representing the Arkansas art community.
Call to Adventure
I was approached by Nickole Brown, the then faculty advisor for the magazine, to work as Art Editor for the 2014 and 2015 editions of Equinox. In addition to creating the design for the magazine and accompanying promotional materials, Nickole also wanted to solidify the Equinox brand by developing a set of style guidelines and templates that were not only modern, but also honored the magazine’s 45-year legacy.
Cue the Montage
Honoring a Legacy
In an effort to have some consistency with the new templates, I tried to utilized many of the same graphic and font elements from the previous edition of the magazine. For example, the staff preferred the cleaner look of the 2013 title, so I reused that element on the cover for the new template. However, I did use the original logo on the back cover and in the front matter (Fig. 1). Additionally, I used the same body font from the 2013 edition for the body font in the new template.
Fig. 1. Copyright and Masthead pages from Equinox, 2014.
The main departure came with the interior page layouts. For example, I wanted to try a more traditional magazine style table of contents (Fig. 2) since Equinox typically features interviews with nationally recognized authors and artists. This type of layout is better suited to highlight these contributors and their work. Additionally, this layout is flexible enough to accommodate the fluctuating number and length of pieces accepted in the magazine annually.
Fig. 2. Table of contents spread from Equinox, 2014.
I wanted to replicate how the 2013 edition differentiated the authors’ names from the main text and headers, but with an element that was less visually dominating than a black box (Fig. 3). I kept the authors’ names in all-caps, but used a thin line between the header and the main text to create separation. Maintaining the uppercase formatting helps the authors’ names to stand out without dominating the page. Additionally, I found line elements to be a good way to create a visual hierarchy throughout the template, especially within the page headers (Fig. 4) and the table of contents (Fig. 2).
Fig. 3. “letter from the managing editor” Written by Spencer Campbell from Equinox, 2013.
Fig. 4. “letter from the editor” written by breana steele, EQuinox, 2014, pp. 6-7.
Automating the Production Process
I used InDesign dynamic toolset to automate the process of creating the magazine. For the sake of simplicity, I created five unique layouts to address the variety of content that would appear in the magazine. The first was a two page spread that could be used for the front matter and excluded the folio information that would appear on the other pages (see Fig. 1 above). This spread included the page guides and would serve as the foundation for all the other pages.
Fig. 5. Front Matter Blank Pages template in Adobe Indesign
The next set of page masters address the header and footer information. While a majority of the pages would be numbered, not all of the pages would include the author header or footer. I created a pagination template that added the page numbers, name and year of publication. This template was then applied to a general text page template that would make up a majority of the content of the magazine. The pagination template was also applied to a header template that could be applied to the first page of the prose and poetry entries (Fig. 6).
Fig. 6. examples of the header template (left) and general page template (right)
Artistic Highlights
The final template was for the art pieces that would be included in the magazine. Because a majority of the spreads would be from individual works from various artists, I wanted to find a clean and consistent way to display those images that didn't make this section feel disconnected from the rest of the magazine. Luckily, the featured contributors section ends with the featured artist (Fig. 7), which allowed for an easier transition between the prose and art pieces (Fig. 8 and 9).
Fig. 7. Example of the interview Template and spread
Fig. 8. transition from interview Template to artwork Template
Because we were limited on the amount of color pages featured in the magazine, I wanted to find a way to make the index page stand out without having to rely on color. I decided to reference the table of contents (see Fig. 2) by reusing that same text style and color block on the edge of the page.
Fig. 9. Transition from the featured artist’s interview and work to the student art showcase
Finally, I liked the way the 2013 edition highlighted the student awards winners with a special badge. Unfortunately, the badges they used for that edition (Fig. 10) were specific to their overall design direction and didn't fit the new template stylistically. I decided a more classical badge design would better suit the new template (Fig. 11).
fig. 10. Equinox 2013 art Pages with William G. Cooper, Jr. Honors Program Art Award badge
fig. 11. Equinox 2014 art Pages with William G. Cooper, Jr. Honors Program Art Award badge
Marketing and Promotion
In addition to the magazine, I also helped with a lot of the promotional design materials including creating launch party posters (Fig. 12), designing social media templates (Fig. 13 and 14), and updating their call for entries fliers.
Fig. 12. launch party poster for the 2013 edition of equinox
Fig. 13. Facebook timeline cover image advertising the 2013 Equinox launch party
Fig. 14. Social media ads created by Jennika Smith (left) and Login Ellis (Middle and Right)
The Reward
This independent study was my second foray into the world of book publishing. Following my experience working on Quills & Pixels the previous year, I was excited to take the reins and design an entire book by myself. While I still had input from my classmates and Nickole, the faculty advisor, this project was my baby. I had a lot of creative freedom with the design of this book and the experience helped me hone skills I developed in the spring.