Typography and layout
Interactive handbook
Introducing the first book released by Bureau Gorbunov Publishing—a practical guide to typography and layout with an emphasis on design for the screen. The interactive handbook is intended for web and user interface designers, software developers, content authors and editors.
Unfortunately, many books about typography and modular grids don’t answer exactly how to create an expressive page with a solid layout. At best, the designer is left with no choice but to search for scattered clues of meaning and copy some decent examples.
‘Typography and layout’ consistently answers the how‑to question. The author introduces the rule of the inner and the outer, the principles of modularity and anchor objects. Then, step by step, he visually explains how to create clean and compact layout for websites, online services, applications or media.
The narrative progresses from the small to the big: from elements to modules and entire pages. Then, readers solidify their knowledge by taking interactive tests.
The book practices the same layout principles it preaches, and is designed to be read on the screen. The innovative format and user interface offer techniques for presentation and illustration that would be impossible to implement in a paper book.
Art director of Bureau Gorbunov, rector of Bureau Gorbunov Intern School, co‑author of ‘Tips’—Russia’s biggest design knowledge base
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Table of contents
Basics
Rule of the inner and the outer
Format, margins and line spacing
Point, line and rectangle
From geometry to typography
Test
Basic elements
Headline
Text
Illustration
User control
Hyperlink
Caption
Test
Modules
Text without illustrations
News feed
Text with illustrations
Test
Text shape and reading flow
Dominant and secondary illustrations
Vertical illustrations
Test
Pages
With a modular grid
Without illustrations
With illustrations
Text page
Home page
Teasers, liftout quotes, factoids, sidebars
Test
Conclusion
Escaping rectangle
Cultural traditions
Test
We have radically reconsidered the format of a digital book
Before
Existing e‑books stand far from high standards of paper book publishing. Typography is poor, navigation and search is inconvenient. The layout and fonts are not controlled by authors and publishers. E‑books like these are randomly divided into screen pages: each time you open them, the same illustration may appear at the top, bottom, or even on the next page. On tablets, the pages get mixed up because of an accidental device rotation.
After
The bureau’s interactive book combines the convenience of scrolling and visuality of a paper book. It is divided into spreads that you can scroll through from beginning to end. The text on the spread may be scrolled when necessary, while the illustrations retain their position on the screen. The reader can easily remember the location of an idea in the book and return to it later. Spread is a semantic unit rather than the result of mathematical division of the book into “screens”.
The book on the screen
An interactive scrolling‑driven user interface creates a reading experience impossible with a paper book. The reader intuitively controls the change of illustrations or even a gradual redesign of given layout examples, going back or skipping steps as they like.
Bureau Gorbunov Publishing has established in‑house typographic standards for interactive books similar to or even more stringent than those in conventional print publishing. The book itself demonstrates approaches, techniques and principles it preaches.
Test your knowledge
In paper books, “end‑of‑chapter questions” cause bewilderment and irritation. Interactive tests, on the contrary, encourage readers to apply their knowledge to illustrated examples and find out the result instantly.
Everyday handbook
“Typography and layout” is an everyday book for a layout designer. Use it both as a study book and for reference during work:
Eye candy
Authors have filled the spreads with examples and illustrations:
‘The interactive book is real magic’
Other books about typography and layout that I’ve read can help improve the resolution, but they do not provide an answer to the how‑to‑do‑it question. On the one hand, this is alright, because you can do it many different ways. On the other hand, it is extremely difficult to learn typographic design using such books.
Artem’s book gives a clear set of rules. Throes of authorship are replaced with a process that is challenging but surely leading to the result. Rules can be violated—but only afterwards.
All the e‑books I’ve read before were merely an adaptation of paper books to the screen. Bookmarks, search and other functions were just add‑ons to plain text with pictures. ‘Typography and layout’ is a truly interactive book that uses technology not for decoration purposes but as an integral part of narration.
That is real magic when you read “let’s increase spacing between letters”, and letters on the illustration smoothly split.
Must read for all designers.
“Typography and layout” is a truly interactive book that uses technology not for decoration purposes but as an integral part of narration.
‘Must read for all editors’
Layout is the only possible form of written text. A good editor must understand layout. With its help, the editor puts accents, reverses reading directions, draws attention to important things and hides all that is secondary. If editor doesn’t do that, a designer must. And the last one doesn't always study the material meticulously enough to do everything perfectly.
The book is a required reading for editors.
A good editor must understand layout
‘No more doubt how to make a good layout’
The power of the bureau’s method lays within the systematization of collected knowledge. Instead of giving vague arguments about how to make something beautiful, the book formulates airtight rules: how to assemble a good composition, to work with text and illustrations, to place headings and captions. The book does not give a recipe for all occasions. It teaches to see the structure behind letters and pictures, to form this structure and avoid errors.
The book will be useful for everyone who works with text.
Instead of giving vague arguments about how to make something beautiful, the book formulates airtight rules
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About the book
Artem Gorbunov
Vadim Frolenko
Sergey Frolov
Alexander Kan
Vladimir Kolpakov
Rustam Kulmatov
Vasiliy Polovnyov
Contact us: books@artgorbunov.ru