Pan Macmillan Storybook - Evaluation

The drop shadow on the illustrations has made them pop from the page, this was added as an effect to make the illustrations seem like pieces of collagee. Each page also has a varied layout which was something the brief specifically suggested.

I wanted to add subtle points of diversity, such as ‘Mrs and Mrs Grouse’ without making it an aspect of plot or attention. This adds slight layers to the story as the judges recommended. Something that didn’t go so well was the scary ending we had planned, this was meant to cause a deeper sensation of fear at the end of the book which would quickly be resolved. Unfortunately, there wasn’t enough time to work on the page with the shadow ‘moor monster’, which ended up looking cute more than anything else. We also planned to change the colour of the setting to make it more frightening, but again weren't able to within the time. Besides it may not have looked so consistent if we had done that to one page and not any of the others.

Feedback has suggested that the book looks professional and high quality, possibly because of the matte stock we used and the consistency throughout the book. Someone suggested that the typeface used for the cover’s title looked like an afterthought. However this was heavily experimented with in order to create something consistent and bold in the best possible place on the cover. Perhaps a more illustrative title should have been experimented with, although this would have not linked so well with the content of the book.

Finally, the brief only asked for 4 double page spreads of fully illustrated work with the rest being sketched outlines. To make the entire book was a huge amount of work and required a lot of attention and planning. I am incredibly pleased with the end result and have come out with far more skills because of it, but perhaps it would have been better to stick to the requirements to strike a better work balance. Yet by producing the entire book, it shows commitment and passion for the project and by aiming so high it should stand out in the competition. Some advice from a tutor was to always try do more than they ask, which is what we have attempted here.