How to Design a Magazine
Ever dreamed of becoming a magazine designer? It takes an eye for detail, a love of design, and the right tools. Follow these simple steps, and creating a magazine that is easy-to-read and attractive is well within your reach.
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Instructions
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Study the pros. You can find good magazine design on any news-stand or in your local supermarket. Pay close attention to the pages, noticing the way the photos and text are integrated. Every magazine follows a predictable formula from month to month.
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Learn everything you can about the way a magazine is designed. Do you know the difference between a hed and a dek? Where is "the well" located in a magazine? What is usually on the last page? The first? The fifth page? How many ads do you typically find in a magazine? Get books on the subject and peruse tutorials on the web (see resources).
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Gather your tools. The right software is essential. Adobe InDesign (and InCopy for writers) is the best place to start.
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Create your template. Open a new file in InDesign, and create a template for the inside pages. Start with a table of contents, masthead and back of the book piece. You can use the placeholder text tool in InDesign to see how it will look before the articles start coming in.
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Import your text and photos into your existing template. Familiarize yourself with InDesign's Book features and learn how to create an automated table of contents. Save in PDF format and give a copy to your printer (if you have one).
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Post the PDF on your website to allow readers to download a "paperless" copy of your mag.
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