I had my final critiques for my Drive book today, where I had to write down questions and we went round and looked at each others books and answered the questions they had asked. I got some really useful and reassuring feedback from my questions.
My questions:
1 - Can you read the title? If not, does it matter that you can't?
2 - Would a different coloured front cover from my test prints work better? For aesthetics and legibility.
3 - What do you think about the stock?
4 - Would it of been better to make the centre spread on blue stock to contrast against the pink thread, or doesn't it really matter?
5 - Is the binding and thread appropriate for the thickness of the book? Would you suggest a different binding method?
6 - Should I of stuck to the original looking watercolour pattern instead of image tracing it to look more digital?
7 - How would you improve it?
8 - Further comments
My feedback:
The majority of the people who gave me feedback said that the subtitle wasn't that clear, and could maybe of been a bit clearer, but that the design and colour combinations I had chosen was the best one from my test prints. It was suggested that I could of tried pastel colours or a different typeface. It was also said that it was important to read the subtitle as this explains what the book is about, which I do agree with. They also said that the pattern I have chosen works well as it is, and most people said they preferred the digital version of the pattern, as the bold colours work better with the stock choices I made, although one person said the textured paper for the front cover could of been interesting, creating a unique textured feeling.
All of my feedback-ers thought the stock choices I had made was really effective, the colours relating well to the film, and the texture being interesting and nice to feel. They all also thought making the centre pages blue to contrast with the pink thread would of been nice, however it doesn't really matter that it doesn't, as it's only a small aspect of the book.
They all also thought the binding was neat, and that the thread colour was interesting, in fitting with the film and the colour scheme of my book, however quite a few people thought a thicker thread may be better, as after a bit of reading it may break, which I agree with and was slightly concerned about. Coptic binding was also suggested I could try, which thinking about it I think this could of been a really nice binding method with the different coloured stock being visible through the spine. If I had time I would experiment with this binding, as I think it would be quite effective, and my book is thick enough for it to work as well. In a lot of the examples of coptic binding though quite a thick stock for the front and back cover has been used to hold everything in place, so I would have to think about an alternative stock for the front cover, one that would stand up to the pull on the thread.
It was also suggested that I could of made the pagination a lot smaller in size than I have done, which I think would of been a good idea so they didn't dominate the bottom part of the book. The main suggestions for improvement were just to make the title more legible and clear, which I was also worried about, but in the end decided it didn't matter as you can read it, but just not from far away. Someone also suggested I could experiment with the shape of the book, however I disagree with this as I chose the shape specifically for the shape of the film and the angle of the shots in the film as well.
Overall I am quite pleased with the feedback I have received as there doesn't seem to be any major problems except for the legibility of the subtitle which I was aware of anyway and dismissed as something that can't be read from a distance but you can from up close. I also think that the pattern on the book will be enough to attract readers, so they will come close enough to be able to read the book.
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