Zombie Comics

The semester is coming to an end.This week we were assigned to find a design that caught our eye. I wanted to find something that covered the integration of WORDS & IMAGES. For the past couple of years I have been obsessed with zombie media. Zombies have played a major role in entertainment, especially cult films, since the 1930s. Over the decades they have branched out to other forms of media such as television and comic books.

One of the most popular zombie comics is Robert Kirkman's  The Walking Dead.  The comic was created in 2003 by writer Robert Kirkman and artist Tony Moore. It comes in trade paperbacks as well as hardcovers.

In comic books the artist must tackle the task of bringing simple quotes to life through illustration. I am sure this process includes a lot of talk and shared vision between the artist and the writer. Comics are made of storyboards. In The Walking Dead comics there are usually up to 7-8 storyboards on one page. The writer and artist must find a way to fit all the text and the illustrations on the page in a way that the reader can easily follow.

I love that this comic occasionally puts one scene on an entire page. It really pulls the reader into the setting and is a good visual break between the other crowded pages.

The cover on each of the hardcover books shows a group of zombies in black and white. In a bright color, among the zombies, is the main character. This is a very good use of color and contrast. The entire comic is black and white so this splash of color is memorable and eye-catching.

Another zombie comic written by Robert Kirkman is Marvel Zombies. This comic takes your favorite Marvel super heroes and turns them into flesh-eating monsters. It is a bit disturbing and has definitely received some backlash, but overall I think it was a very creative concept. Artist, Sean Phillips, had the challenge of making these beloved super heroes disgusting, decaying, and hot headed villains.

Celebs & Word Usage

Chapter 7 of William Zinsser's book discusses word usage. While reading, I highlighted some points that really caught my attention.

"usage has no fixed boundaries." 

"The other half of the job is to help the language grow by welcoming any immigrant that will bring strength or color."

"the laws of usage are relative, bending with the taste if the lawmaker."

"spoken language is looser than the written language."

"Jargon is flooding our daily life and language."

After reading the chapter I immediately thought about gossip/tabloid language that people use when talking about celebrities. There seems to be no fixed boundaries and authors often use phrases and words that do not exist to make a point. Tabloids and gossip blogs have a very conversational tone that draws in readers. Readers know what they are getting and they expect colorful and quirky language. Just as many companies use acronyms, tabloids use uni-names. 

Brad and Angelina - Bradgelina

Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez - Bennifer

Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner - BenJen and Garfleck

Tom Cruise and Katie Homes - TomKat

Bill and Hilary Clinton - Billary

Jake Gyllenhaal and Reese Witherspoon - Gyllenspoon

Vince Vaughn and Jennifer Aniston - Vinnifer

Britney Spears and Kevin Federline - Spederline

These names are convenient and fun. 

"The only trouble with accepting words that entered the language overnight is that they often leave just as abruptly."

It is not uncommon for current words adapt new meanings. For example, we all know a wolf is a member of the dog family but in the world of teenagers and entertainment it can carry an additional meaning. A wolf can be a way to describe a roughneck teenager and a wolfpack is a group of troublemaking teenagers. These phrases were made widely popular again by the movie The Hangover. 

"Nouns now turn overnight into verbs."

I'm sure we can think of a million examples where nouns have been made into verbs. However, i found some fun ones where celebrity names have been turned into fun verbs. 

Thunderlutz_Blog

Another example:

"In a single work day, we might head a task force, eye an opportunity, nose around for good ideas,mouth a greeting, elbow an opponent, strong-arm a colleague, shoulder the blame, stomach a loss, and finally hand in our resignation. What we're doing with all those body parts is called verbing--using nouns (or occasionally other parts of speech) as verbs"

Call to Action- Wow Factor

This week we were assigned to find a design that wows us. I began thinking of things I had seen recently that had a strong impact on me. Last month the youtube video "Kony 2012" went viral. The film maker's goal was to make the world aware of an issue in Uganda. Children were being kidnapped and turned into kid soldiers under the leadership of Joseph Kony.

Like millions of other people I was motivated to do my part and support the cause. I purchased the Kony action kit. What I love about the campaign is that it takes a different approach on the typical call to action. Instead of sending money to simply help soldiers catch Kony, they want to make Kony "visible". The goal is to bring Kony and the evil things he has done to the light. The organization, Invisible Children, has put a face to the issue.

The action kit includes bumper stickers, a t-shirt, a pin, 2 bracelets, posters, and more. On April 20th people hit the streets and use these posters and stickers to plaster Kony's name all across the world. Everyone will know his name.

Cover The Night Video

Make Joseph Kony famous. Not to celebrate him, but to raise support for his arrest and set a precedent for international justice.

Invisibile Children Store

The posters are a very bright red. Definitely a "call to action" color. The t-shirt and booklet have an image of the republican and democratic symbols merged together with a plant that symbolizes peace. No matter what our beliefs and political views are we can fight for what is right. It is very youthful and begs for your attention

"Cowboy" College

Deep Springs College is located in the very rural Inyo County, California. The college is connected to a ranch/farm.

It is safe to say this place does not attract your typical college student. The school is a 2 year private college that only accepts men (for now). Just last year, the board of trustees has voted to admit women. The campus is very isolated. The near

est town is about an hour away. However the college thrives on that isolation. They have created a very close knit community where their 26 students mix academics and labor. The average class size is only 8. It is not uncommon for a professor to hold a class session in his/her home.

Since the class sizes are so small they all have a seminar style setting. The college strongly believes in self-governance. There are only 2 required courses, composition and public speaking. Everything else is up to the student.

Their website states:

"Courses at Deep Springs are intensive and interactive seminars. The average class size is eight, so every member must come prepared to contribute to the discussion. As a result, students devote a great deal of time and energy to their assignments, and discussions often achieve a depth uncommon at the undergraduate level."

Professors cannot hold tenure. There are only 8-9 of them and they hold 3 year long term professorships. Students have very strong relationships with their professors.

"Professors, both long- and short-term, are encouraged to take an active role in the community. Professors labor with students, teach them practical skills like bread making and knitting, hold impromptu poetry readings and stargazing sessions, and organize chess and Ping-Pong tournaments. Education is a reciprocal relationship at Deep Springs."

The typical students that go to this college are very career minded and independent. Just like Eugene Lang students, they do not need an advisor to tell them what to take. These students are also hard workers. At Deep Springs their required labor includes jobs such as cook, irrigator, butcher, groundskeeper, cowboy, etc. In addition to academics and labor, each student is required stand on one of the college's committees. The students have faculty have created a self-sufficient community. The college supports itself with food and energy.

Student dorms do not have cable or television. There are no sports or fraternities. I guess it can be said that the college is a fraternity itself. Each dorm has a "boneyard" of previous student clothing and supplies for free use.

There is no real tuition at Deep Springs. Students only pay for things such as books. Every student that is accepted is on a scholarship that covers about $50,000. For this reason, the application process is rigorous.

"Applicants must submit ACT or SAT scores as well as a number of essays in stage one. In stage two, their initial application is reviewed and voted on by a number of readers. If applicants pass the first stage, they are invited for a three to four day stay on campus to observe the life, write further essays, and interview. Final decisions are then made in the spring."

What I found most interesting about these college is what their students do when they leave. There is the option of getting an Associates Degree but most students do not take it. They go on to larger universities. 2/3 of their students get graduate degrees and over half of their students eventually get a doctorate.

The website is extremely plain. There is not much design to it. It seems to be there simply to supply information. Not visually appealing at all.

http://www.deepsprings.edu/home

Unity in Writing

It's almost that time again. Baseball season. Orioles fans all across the state are getting ready to celebrate the return of America's classic sport. Ofcourse the Baltimore Sun has many articles about people getting ready for Opening Day but I came across one that was more so focused on Camden Yards itself. The title was "Orioles: Camden Yards, the stadium that changed baseball and Baltimore, turns 20." In William Zinsser's book he states "All writing is ultimately a question of solving a problem."

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/orioles/bs-sp-orioles-camden-yards-0401-20120330,0,5511811,full.story

I tried to imagine some of the problems or decisions the writer of this article had to consider.

1) What to put in the article. There is tons of information on the history, memories, construction, and architects when thinking about Camden Yards. The author had to think about what to include and what to leave out.

2) Organization. Once the author chose what he wanted to include he had to figure out how to organize the article so that it would flow nicely and keep the reader's attention. I often struggle with this. Sometimes a constant flow of ideas does not come naturally.

3) Tone. The author had to decide what tone of voice to use when writing the article. The tone could have easily been very serious as he talks about the importance of Camden Yards to Baltimore, its economy, and the stability of the Orioles. However, he chose a more conversational tone that I think works very well. It is like he is talking to you about Oriole Park. He lets you know the facts and hear what others have to say.

I think the quotes within the article definitely add to its unity. They function as transitions from one thought to the next but they also give the reader a chance to hear about Oriole Park from people that know the most about it such as the baseball commissioner, former Orioles president, and the chairman of the Maryland Stadium Authority. Even though the tone is conversational the quotes add validity to the things the author is saying.

Zinsser says " every piece of nonfiction should leave the reader with one provocative thought that he or she didn't have before." After reading this article I have learned how important Camden Yards is to Baltimore.

In addition to the unity within the article, the Baltimore Sun webpage has created unity surrounding the article. To the left there are slideshows containing pictures of Orioles fans and the stadium. There is also a google maps link that shows exactly where the stadium is located.

Unique Calendar

The Human Calendar

This calendar is definitely unique. It is fun, interactive, and cool. Each day is represented by a different person. These people are your average, every day, normal people. The person who hold today's date looks forward and every other person looks at him or her. It is very Brady Bunch-like. The original calendar contained friends of the creator. He says they are "various friends of mine who happened to find themselves near my garage between April-July 2007, and later on during the Summer of 2011. Granted, most were lured with beer, food, lodging, or in one case...meat. "

http://www.humancalendar.com/

Today, you are able to pick a day and upload your own photo so you can appear on the calendar.

Student Calendars

Last semester one of our class assignments was to create a calendar for a different typeface. Here is a link to a wordpress page that contains everyone's work.

http://maxboam.wordpress.com/2011/11/02/assignment-9-calendar-pages/

Good Packaging

While browsing Max Boam's blog I came across a post about packaging. Many packages that we see in stores are so crowded with pictures and 10 + different typefaces that everything blends together and the meaning never gets across. Here is a design that is very simple. I think that is what makes it appealing and effective.

It has one main color and one typeface. Max states "you don't need thousands of typefaces to create good typograpy."

Creative Packaging

Our assignment for this week was to go to a store and look for packaging that we found attractive. When I go to the market i tend to buy what I know. The same brands my family has been using for years. These items may not stand out but its all about brand loyalty. Therefore this assignment was very interesting for me. Among an endless sea of products I tried to find one that stood out to me. What stood out to me was a product that was actually staring at me. It was bright,yellow, and fun.

I thought it was very clever to use Spongebob's face as the entire package. Soap can be a very boring product especially to children. I can see a child their mom for this soap only because Spongebob is on the bottle. It gives soap a face and makes it fun for kids.

Journalese

The idea of journalese was difficult for me to wrap my mind around. Zinnser describes it as "a quilt of instant words patched together out of other parts of speech." The easiest description for me to understand was to think of it as "a mixture of cheap words, made-up words, and cliches that have become so persuasive that a writer can hardly help using them."
Journalese is most commonly seen in popular news media. One of the top gossip sights is TMZ. After looking through a couple of their top stories I think I was able to come up with some examples of journalese.

The first article is about an incident with singer Chris Brown. After the controversial release if his new song with Rihanna, media outlets are watching his every move. This short article puts him in the spotlight for stealing a phone. The article is very direct and hows his in a negative light. It simply ends with the case is under criminal investigation".
Examples:
"asked squarely for the first time"
"Brown ... was mum on the subject"
"freelance photog had some choice words"
"moments before the alleged phone jacking"

Another article highlights the show "Dancing with the Stars". It was people to get excited for the new season and the dramatic lives of possible contestants.
Examples:
"celeb contestants revealed"
"Jack and Heather got into an epic fight"
"upcoming season ... which kicks off next month"
"that deal fell through"

http://www.tmz.com/

New Words

After looking through a Thesaurus I began to find words that were not only useful but also pretty fun.

Aglet
Bumf
Flummery
Tizzy
Vicarious
Finagle
Juxtapose
Erudite
Diphthong
Maniacle

Tagline

Many taglines are 5 or less words that describe what a company/product does or what they believe in. My favorite is Disneyland's:

The happiest place on earth

This definitely promises a lot, but it also delivers. Disney has spent many years developing their brand and making their parks a dream come true for children.

Logotype

The covergirl logo is one that I see all the time on commercials and in stores. I would normally pay no attention to it. At first glance it seems very plain and almost uninteresting. Yet, I think it works effectively for the company. They used a modern sans-serif type with very distinct thick and thin lines. Some companies that target women use scripty type, but many also use this modern sans serif style.

Examples:

The typeface is elegant but also adds a strength to the brand. Its not too fluffy, like its trying to grab your attention. The focus of the brand is their cosmetics. The lipsticks and eyeshadows already come in beautiful little packages. The colors, packaging, and celebrity endorsements are what the customers remember. The simple logotype is almost a breath of fresh air!

Vision versus Mission Statement

As we develop our "good cause" we should not only think about what our organizations do, but also how we will communicate that to our audience. One of the most common ways to do this is by developing a vision and a mission statement. Many people get these two confused.

I found an article that does a great job of differentiating the two.
http://www.inc.com/resources/startup/articles/20050201/missionstatement.html

VISION
"A vision statement for a new or small firm spells out goals at a high level and should coincide with the founder's goals for the business. Simply put, the vision should state what the founder ultimately envisions the business to be, in terms of growth, values, employees, contributions to society, and the like; therefore, self-reflection by the founder is a vital activity if a meaningful vision is to be developed. "

MISSION
"The mission statement should be a concise statement of business strategy and developed from the customer's perspective and it should fit with the vision for the business. The mission should answer three questions:
What do we do?
How do we do it?
For whom do we do it? "

Coca-Cola has a great mission statement and vision on there site.
http://www.thecoca-colacompany.com/ourcompany/mission_vision_values.html

"Good Cause" TWLOHA

One of my favorite good cause organizations is the "To Write Love On Her Arms" movement. Their mission is:

Presenting hope and finding help for people struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury and suicide. TWLOHA exists to encourage, inform, inspire and also to invest directly into treatment and recovery.

I first encountered this movement on Facebook. Friends of mine were writing "Love" on their arms, taking a pic, and posting it to their wall. The number of participants grew exponentially. Some of these people had no clue why they were writing love on their arms, but they wanted to be a part of the movement.

Their vision is to spread love. Simple as that. Their site is very interactive. Very busy and modern. It definitely appeals to young people, especially teens. They have plenty of events and are very active is social media.

Here is the link : http://www.twloha.com/index.php

The Happy Book...

I bought this book while in Vegas with friends a few years ago. I initially bought it as entertainment for the airport and flight but it turned out to be one of my favorite little activity books. The book is full of little exercises geared toward making you happy. This book requires a lot thinking, writing, and drawing....Just like Words & Images. The book helps you celebrate what makes you happy by helping you remember all the small things in life that you enjoy. Simple things such as fluffy clouds and ice cream with sprinkles. It is very quirky and definitely acts as "your own personal pick-me-up". Great at getting your creative juices flowing.

Writer's Block

Over the summer I had a discussion with my friends about writing college papers. Of course the topic of writer's block came up. Most of us said we had several periods of writer's block when attempting to finish a paper. However, one friend believed that writer's block is simply a figment of our imaginations. His rationale-"When you don't know what to say, it means you really have nothing to say. You need to start back at square one." I don't know if I believe this entirely but we all need to know how to get over that hump. I found an article by Ryan Duggan with some tips on how to overcome writer's block. The tips are current (he mentions social networking distractions), informative, comical, and pretty easy.

Here is the link:
http://www.dailynebraskan.com/opinion/duggan-columnist-presents-ten-ways-to-overcome-writer-s-block-1.2691729


He also provides a link to another site www.webook.com/911writersblock, which contains different scenarios to get your min back on track.

My favorite tip that Duggan offers is to get away from your paper and work on something else for a while. I do this often. You are still being productive but you are also giving your mind a much needed break. 90% of the time I come up with new ideas for the paper while I am working on something else.