Original Flatplans for my Music Magazine

This is my final completed flatplan indicating how I want my music magazine's front cover to be presented. I opted to have only one main image placed into the centre of the page as after careful browsing and research of mainstream music products I found that they generally incorporated only one central image to their covers (this photo related back to their most popular feature in the issue) so I felt like copying this design would be an excellent marketing strategy for my magazine. The barcode and issue number will be placed in the right hand corner of the cover - out of the way yet still clearly visible so the reader will be able to recognise which issue it is of the particular month etc. Accompnying the main image will be essential information about other articles my product has to offer down both the left and right hand sides of the page, this helps the magazine look less barren - if the reader can identify their is many areas of interest for them to view and that the product doesnt focus just on one particular thing - then they will be more inclined to purchase it. The writing of this info will be in large bold fonts so they easily stand out on the page and wont be overlooked. The masthead will be placed above the main article image - this is the first thing I want the audience to see, i need them to instantly be familiar with which music magazine they are reading so by placing it at the highest point of the page the masthead cannot be bypassed. The magazine logo will also accompny the masthead to the left hand side of it.

Here is a preview of what I would like my finished contents page for my music magazine 'Fleet' to come across like to the general public. For repetition and consistency within the product I am duplicating the focus so that the main image on this page will be related to the central feature on the front cover - this is to emphasise to the reader that that article is the most important aspect of the magazine and it cannot be missed. A different image of the music artist of the headline feature will be used in the centre of the page, by displaying another photo of them it relays the impression to the reader the writers took care on how they presented this article and made it intriguing as possible by getting the music artist to pose in a variety of locations and costumes to keep interest. In the bottom right hand corner of the contents I would like to have a subscriptions advert for readers to subscribe to the magazine - by doing so they will earn special rewards and I'd hope this would be enough to interest them - after all it would allow the publishers more income and profit whilst also providing a large fan base of the magazine to the public. Like the front cover the essential information will be placed either side of the main image to provide details of the other features in the product - the sizing of the font will be moderate so as not to be overlooked. The masthead will be repeated at the very top of the page as a re-emphasis of the magazine the audience is currently reading - that it is my product and not another companies. Below the central image I'm including another box of essential information on other features - this is an effort of enticing the reader as the more articles I provide the wider range of customers I may attract. Two other slightly smaller photographs will be incorporated into the final design at the top of the page - this portrays not only a preview of another feature but provides colour to the magazine also.

This is my final flat plan to post to my blog, which was the hardest to create yet I believe to be the most important aspect of my magazine - the double page spread. In the top corner of the left page and bottom corner of the right I am going to display two images of the artist in question who upon the article is focusing on. Both photos will be different from each other - the costume and location of the model will be unique relaying the idea my product provides variety unlike most other music based media. There will be an intoductory paragraph below the left page image to set the interview off, followed by the main feature placed directly below it which will continue onto the remaining page. I dont want the article to be excessively long as I feel this may deter the audience from potentially reading it if they find there is a lot of information. A pull quote will be used in the centre of the page to gauge interest and essential details about the artists album will be placed at the bottom of the right page to indicate the article has ended.

First Draft of my Double Page Spread Article

Here is the initial primary composition of my article for the double page spread feature, this post originally was suited for my older piece of coursework which was submitted last year, however I had to make a few alterations and completely revamp the content as my resubmission involved the use of a male artist rather then a female so the storyline had to be manipulated. Yet the same question and answer style format was recycled for the new copy of the article.

FIRST DRAFT

'Screw men female power all the way baby!’

When we first arrive at the studio shoot we are all feeling fairly apprehensive to say the least. No one knows what to expect from this interview we’ve received no guidelines, no warnings, no essential information what so ever- literally we have all been thrust into the impending darkness. The reason why we feel this way? Luna Rays -  the newest , upcoming female artist on the alternative scene. This is her first public interview since the release of her smash hit single ‘Beams’ and Fleet has had the genuine honour of publishing her and her beautiful music to the nation for the very first time. We enter the studio and are greeted warmly by her manager who escorts us to a small waiting room accompanied adjacent to the shoot, on our way past we glimpse our newcomer for the first time – posing for the photographer with such dextrocity and power – you wouldn’t believe she’s been in the eyes of the country for less then two weeks – such confidence! After a half an hour wait it is done and Luna enters the room escorted by her manager. She approaches me warmly and shakes my hand with an incredible amount of vigor and brightness – nothing compared to the moody, sophisticated persona she delivers in the eyes of the camera

First of all Luna I’d like to say what a privladge it is to have you here today we are very grateful for your time

Its no bother at all darling its about time I let the world know who I am as an individual I can’t keep hiding in the shadows anymore – I need to promote my image, get my message across and shine!

This must have been quite a rollercoaster ride for you the past few weeks with the instant success of your single - you’ve been pushed into the limelight so quickly- everything has been a blur!

A blur is not how I would describe it more like a hurricane of madness (she laughs) things have progressed so violently I mean one minute I’m in my flat writing songs and strumming away at my baby – the next I’m hearing my voice on all the major radio stations as I drive to the shops I’m like ‘really is this actually happening? Holy sh!t’

So tell us how does it feel to have a consecutive three weeks at the top of the charts?

Honestly I just couldn’t put my happiness into context hun to me this is all a dream – a fairytale I experienced as a child which I just haven’t woke up from yet and faced reality. Sometimes I get up in the morning and have to pinch myself as I’m reminded I’m working in the studio all day  - to me this is an illusion and I’ll follow my normal routine – make breakfast, go to work, come home, eat crap, watch tv, make a little music, go to bed – its actually hard to accept but I’m just so very grateful for all those who have gave a little of their time to listen to me – now that means a lot.

I take it music has always had a huge influence on your life?

For me just having a few glasses sitting in the dark and playing my guitar was the only thing I wanted to do from the moment I woke up. Since I was a little girl all I wanted to do was get myself and my feelings across to people and to do that I sang – it’s the only thing I knew how to do. I used to go to my deadbeat job in Sainsbury’s, sit behind a till and put some unhappy families shopping through the electronics and think to myself ‘Hun you can be doing so much better with your life, look at their faces they aint happy and neither are you – stop wearing that mask and face the facts nothings ever gonna change unless you make the difference’ And I’m glad I listened to that little bastard nagging away in my head all this time.

Were you nervous of being accepted into the public eye – after all we had no way of expecting what you were about to deliver to everyone.

Its come to the point in my life now that I’ve stopped caring what others think, that sounds pretty selfish but its about time I listened to what I want from myself and not allowing others controlling every vector of my existence. Its fair to expect not everyone is going to like my music – after all humans would be pretty boring if we marched in herds like sheep – I just wanted to go out there and deliver as best I could, for people to think ‘Yeah that girl isn’t full of sh!t’ for them to see me who I am and if they can’t accept that, then that’s their problem.

You’ve took the music industry by storm but tell me Luna do you still have time for a social life?

Its surprising but hell yeah baby! My friends are my stars in the night sky, they will always be the absolute world to me and I would never trade their outstanding levels of support they have blessed me with all these years for the instant fame I have just so recently obtained. Fitting time around working in the studio and promoting the up coming release of my album is tough I’ll admit but we always manage to work around it.  Me and my closest friend Alannah – we’ve been buds since infant school yeah – are down the town this weekend so feel free to come and join us (laughs to herself)

Thank you for the invitation I’ll gladly consider it! A little birdy tells me you’ve made some A List friends Miss Rays…?

Its weird but I don’t see them as ‘celebs’  - now that I am in the national media to me all these mainstream artists from whatever genre they operate in are just human beings – we are all the same and a status just doesn’t define us as individuals. Like last week for example I met my idol for the first time (Lana Del Rey) I’ve admired her and her music for as long as I can remember, she has had such a positive influence on my life and was one of the major reasons I Just said to myself ‘Fxck it go out there and show everyone what your made of!’. I walked into her press shoot as she was seeing our label (Stranger) with my heart just pounding man I thought to myself ‘what is she going to see in this no body’ I felt like such a twat but she just approached me with a million cameras flashing in her eyes like some Roman goddess and said ‘Bitch you have what it takes’ I literally sh!t myself.

That must have been quite an experience. How has your family took the fame?

To be honest they have delivered such amazing responses to me I honestly couldn’t asked to have been blessed into such a loving family network. My mum called me up the other day after I had had a massive studio session and she said ‘Laura I honestly could not say how proud I am to have you as my daughter’ God bless that woman I spent rest of my night crying after that! But yeah they are so supportive and are happy to see me succeeding and doing what I love’

So care to tell us about your album, what can we expect?

(Laughs) well that’s for me to know and you’s to all find out. Watch this space you got it?

As you can see above this is the first draft for my article on the upcoming female artist who is to be featured as the main interview in my music magazine 'Fleet'. I included a variety of questions ranging from personal life to what inspired her to acheive what she has to this day. Although I was overall extremely impressed with what i had produced I felt the feature was too long and that the audience would become bored and be distracted from finishing the entire thing. Not only that was a concern but when I proceeded to type up the article to the double page spread I was alarmed to find I did not have enough room to arrange the entire thing on. I attempted to cover this problem by doing a lot of resizing transformations to the text itself, unfortunately this made it too small and I felt as if the reader wouldnt be able to see the text as effectively unlike if it were larger, therefore discouraging them from reading the feature. To my dismay I had to cut a number of the questions out of the final production so that the article would fit comfortably on the page.