Document Design: More Design Principles

Although contrast, repetition, alignment, and proximity form the foundation for all good designs, there are other principles you should be aware of. Color, typography, white space, chunking, and lists all help make your documents clean and user-friendly.

Color

Color can be a good thing in design, but in technical writing documents, generally the less, the better.

Used wisely, color can provide a focal point to draw the eye. Additionally, because it possesses personality, it can (and should) be used to convey or enhance the overall message of the document.

When you add color to your design, consider some essential facts about it:

• Less is more. You don’t have to select numerous colors; you can, in fact, use a monochromatic color scheme (shades or tints of a single color), which can be very dramatic.
• Black, gray, and white are colors, too. Very often, the constraints of printing require black and white.
• Warm colors stimulate the viewer and in a design appear more active or have more pop. Such colors include reds, oranges, and yellows.
• Cool colors calm or relax the viewer and in a design appear to recede. Such colors include blues, greens, and violets.
• Neutral or near-neutral colors very often serve as the backgrounds in designs. Such colors are black, grays, and white (neutral) and browns and tans (near-neutrals).

When you use color, remember that two of the most essential design rules also come into play:

• Contrast: light on dark or dark on light; colors that stand out from each other to provide focal points
• Repetition: repeated colors (or variations of a single color) unify a design

Typography

Just as with color, the right typography can convey meaning or enhance the message of a document, primarily because fonts, too, possess personality. Your fonts should be readable and appropriate for the situation.

In general, you need to know just about the two main font styles: serif and sans-serif.

Notice how the serif font has strokes or "feet" at the bottoms and tops of the letters (circled in red). Serif fonts are considered more conservative and elegant. Sans-serif (literally, without serif) fonts are more clean and modern.

In The Non-Designer's Design Book, Williams tells us that there are three types of font matches:

• Concordant: This match happens when you use just one font throughout your document, but you vary its style and size accordingly. This is a good match.
• Contrasting: This match describes your use of two fonts in a document, like Arial for all headings and Times New Roman for all blocks of text. If you select contrasting fonts, you should use sans-serif fonts for headings and serif ones for blocks of text. This is a good match.
• Conflicting: This match occurs when you mix two serif or two sans-serif or two decorative fonts together. This is a bad match that you should avoid.

Here are some general rules:

• In general, in a print document, blocks of text should be set up using serif fonts, like Times New Roman and Cambria. Studies have proven that serif fonts improve readability. You can use sans-serif fonts for headings.
• For online documents, use sans-serif fonts. Studies have shown they are easier to read online.
• In a single document, stick to a single font for everything or to use a maximum of two.

White Space

White space—basically, areas of a document that are free of text and images—is not a mistake but rather a technique for improving usability.

A document that provides ample white space at the margins, around headings, between paragraphs, and in other places will be easier for your reader to digest. The technique might even help convince your reader to read what you have written.

When you create your documents, consider how white space impacts these factors:

• Margins: Unless otherwise instructed, plan on 1" margins for your documents. Don't try to cram more text onto a page—like your resume, for example—by reducing margin sizes dramatically (ex: .75 or .5). The white space created by healthy margins increases readability.
• Headings: The principle of proximity says that you should group things closer together if they belong together. By the same token, things that don't belong together should be a bit farther apart. If you can, create an additional blank line above headings, a trick that separates them a bit more from the preceding section while keeping them closer to the section to which they belong.
• Paragraphs: Since technical writing documents are traditionally single spaced, you can either (a) indent paragraphs or (b) double space between them. The latter is preferred because it leaves a blank line between paragraphs, literally a visual break. (Note: Never indent and double space between paragraphs.)
• Text and Images: If you wrap text around figures or tables in your document, make sure to leave space between the sides of the object and your text. Text should not bump up against the sides of images.
• Indenting Lists and Subsections: Have you ever wondered why, when you create a list in Microsoft Word, the program automatically indents it a few spaces? That's because a list should be set off visually from the surrounding text, with indenting and blank lines above and below it. Indenting tells the reader, "Hey, this is something different that you need to pay attention to." Indenting lists and subsections of a larger section visually draw the reader's attention.

Chunking

Chunking is the technique of breaking up long paragraphs into shorter ones. It fools the reader's eye into thinking there is less material to digest and therefore makes the job of reading easier.

Here's a visual example:

Which of these two examples would you prefer to the read: the one at left or at right? Although they say the same thing, due to chunking, the one at right should look easier to read, a fact that makes reading it more likely.

When you prepare a proposal, report, or even a longer letter, shorter paragraphs are recommended. Breaking down complex material into smaller chunks simplifies the process of reading and comprehension.

Lists

We are conditioned to write in paragraphs, but in technical writing, you should list some material rather than paragraph it. Lists not only improve the visual aesthetics of a document, but also increase readability. In user documents, for example, they are vital.

Here is a set of instructions set up in paragraph form:

Apply a thin bead of wood glue to side piece B, as shown in Figure 3. Connect side piece B to back piece A by inserting four screws in the pre-drilled holes, shown in  Figure 4. You might need assistance with this step. Tighten the screws, but do not over tighten them. Apply a thin bead of wood glue to side piece C, as shown in Figure 3. Connect side piece C to back piece A by inserting four screws in the pre-drilled holes, as shown in Figure 4. Set this part of the desk aside to dry completely (at least 6 hours).

Did you find it difficult to distinguish one direction from the next? If so, then you can understand why lists are important, particularly to such technical writing documents as instructions. Here is that set of instructions broken down into a list:

1. Apply a thin bead of wood glue to side piece B, as shown in Figure 3.
2. Connect side piece B to back piece A by inserting four screws in the pre-drilled holes, shown in  Figure 4. You might need assistance with this step.
3. Tighten the screws, but do not over tighten them.
4. Apply a thin bead of wood glue to side piece C, as shown in Figure 3.
5. Connect side piece C to back piece A by inserting four screws in the pre-drilled holes, as shown in Figure 4.
6. Set this part of the desk aside to dry completely (at least 6 hours).

Remember that not all lists are numbered. Number them if sequence is crucial. Otherwise, use bullets.

Hopefully, these pages have given you some insight into how design impacts the technical writing documents you will produce in this course. Apply the principles to ensure that your products will be reader centered and easy to use.