My time reading books about editing greatly informed this project. I couldn’t help but think, “Man, I wish people would just take the time to read these books!” This lead to my idea for a Recommended Reading Poster.

I drew my inspiration from the simple, construction-paper posters found in your local library or school. The simple bookmark icon visually clues people in to what they’re looking at, and the goofy subtitle helps maintain brand identity.

Apostrophe marks serve as anchor points in the corners, and the thick border hints at old-fashioned book covers.

In a past senior show, one graphic designer had an interactive aspect and I really liked that. I wanted to use that in my show to educate and excite. These are super simple, just a blue banner with instructions and then three options for answers

As I was gathering research, I kept coming up with funny puns in my head. I kept track of these and came up with so many that I decided to use them as marketing gold. The puns or catchphrases appear as the headline, followed by explanatory subtitles and a CTA. 

The style uses overlays and transparencies to help with contrast while mantaining brand integrity. At first, I wanted to draw heavily from Dr. Seuss cartoons and outlined all my graphics. This just didn’t look right, however, hence the transparencies.

At the beginning of the summer, I began noticing Instagram story ads. I took mental notes on how they were designed to capture attention and clicks. 

I thought this would be a great way to reach my target audience, since Instagram is one of the biggest social media apps for highschoolers. I envisioned them clicking through stories, then stumbling on a bright, bold graphic with a leading question and a link to learn more.

This would most likely lead to one of our animated videos, which are equally as captivating and something anyone can use to learn on the go.

These cards feature specific punctuation marks, as well as witty quotations about the specific mark by famous authors. These use the overlays as seen in the posters. 

I always loved getting my textbooks, but I’m an anomaly. I wanted to bring that experience to “the masses” by designing an exciting box for a grammar book to come in. 

I designed the dieline; it’s just a bit bigger than a typical textbook. The bottom has a pattern and the top features bold typography. The sides have a witty question-and-answer. I’d ideally flesh this concept out and also design the inside of the box, because that must also excite!

When planning this concept, I was inspired by colorful, bold patterns of the ‘50s and ‘60s. I also liked the idea of “going back to the basics,” which led me to developing an almost entirely primary palette. The extra blue and the orange help provide contrast and differentiation.

Once I chose the main typeface, Beastly, the brand identity began to take shape. Beastly has the groovy vibes I was looking for, but it’s also sharp and has motion. The letterforms themselves are beautiful. The whole brand is very conversational, quirky, and funny. I think of it as Willy Wonka and Dr. Seuss combined into a colorful, wacky conglomeration that surprises and entertains the viewer. My idea is that English Matters could be an offshoot of Chegg, hence the branding and reference to the concept as an idea of its own.