Project 1 Initial Roughs

[NalaniN]

Here are my initial rough layouts for Project 1. While I admire a lot of visual artists' work, much of the fuel for my imagination comes from reading, and Brandon Sanderson is one of my favorite authors. I appreciate any feedback!

Thank you,

Nalani

[itsdrrlcarden]

I like the color scheme and they way it makes the whole series and author feel. I have never read these or heard of them bur from the colors I can get a sense on how to book(s) may feel when reading it. The fonts are working well together.

I like the layout of the novels as well, maybe add amazon links or a book store link to purchase them?!

I think in the first set you don't need the title of the page in the corner, or maybe make it smaller. It seems to just be a space filler. I think for all of them they seem slightly crowded, like they just need slight breathing room but that could also just be my preference.

Cant wait to see the finished product!

[lewlewland]

I really like the colors in the first set of layouts with the darker blue however I like the font used in the second set more. It would be cool to see these combined! The layouts themselves look very professional and are easy to navigate

[emilyduke:3]

Hi!

I agree with the others that the first designs with the darker blue color creates a really nice mood and feeling. The contrasting gold/yellow that is seen in the artwork makes for a great secondary color, like you have shown! But I think I prefer the second designs layout, it feels a little more open to me with the nav across the top, instead of top and side.

[Instructor]

Oh this one's sooooo close. We almost had a "two equally good designs" here, but I ever so slightly prefer the second one to the first. I think it's the blue-ier blue of your framing header and footer and the way they work with the tan and orange paintings in the middle. "Copyright blah-blah etc. and so forth" Lol!

Man, those paintings really sell this thing! They are so evocative of Brandon Sanderson's work and I love the way you have them as almost "1a" to the site's content. They say more than any text ever really could, put me in his worlds, and do a good job leading my eye to the content. The sword is pointing at Brandon, the lady is looking at the book covers, etc. A super strong choice. Nice job framing them with your header and footer too. They almost make picture frames. Really good color choices as well. The blue, brown, and tan work well together on their own and give the whole thing a great fantasy feel. They also compliment the images which provide like 90% of the color. They type works well too. It's artistic and legible and the serif type warms everything a little bit. Your navigation is easy to see and use and the hamburger is easy to find on the mobile version.. The page layout is clean and purposefully moves they eye around from element to element efficiently and subtly enough that people will think it's natural. There is a strong through line with the design from the computer version to the mobile version without it loosing anything in the scaledown. I like how the books collapse into series on the mobile version.

Given how evocative they are in the rest of the design, I'd highly recommend keeping a painting in the background of your inner page. Maybe just fade it back a bunch and make it duper transparent so the tan shows through and we can read the text. But that visual texture is so powerful, I'd love to see it continued there. Also, tighten the text drop shadows a little bit throughout the composition. I think they're a little far away and make your type look floaty. I'd also widen the title area on your mobile book list page a little so that you minimize word wrap. The social media links should be toward the bottom of the computer layout, similar to your mobile layout. That's a good place for them.

Great work! I like what I see.

[wilson_iii]

I love the use of full screen art. I think it really draws the eye, and makes me want to explore the site further. I love the sidebar menu, it reminds me of the inside cover flap that hardcover books will have, with the author bio and whatnot. Really that's what this site feels like, the cover of a book, and i dig it! Wonderful idea, I think you should continue down the path with all the things you've implemented. I would play around with shadows on the button, and maybe on the menu text as well. I'm sure you plan to add hover properties, that'll really make those stand out as option rather than static text. All in all, seriously, nice work!