Editorial Design: How to Make a Magazine
A course by Lars HarmsenCreative Director and Editor
A course by Lars Harmsen, Creative Director and Editor
Discover how magazines are designed alongside the founder and editor of Slanted Publishers, and learn to tell stories through layout, color, and typography
A magazine is like an open door that allows you to discover the world and break new ground. Transforming and rendering fragments of reality through the subtle magic of color, typography, and layout is the specialty of Lars Harmsen, cofounder and editor of Slanted Publishers. In this online course, explore the possibilities of editorial design using Slanted Magazine as a case study.
Together with your teacher, learn how to develop a magazine and all the aspects it entails. Lars shows you the different possible options for designing a magazine, from the idea, research, and layout, to production and marketing. By the end of the course, you'll have the tools to find the right format for your publication. Take a fragment of reality, analyze it, and reassemble it in magazine form.
What will you learn in this online course?
16 lessons & 28 downloads
Organizational Tools
6 minutes, 50 seconds
Graphic Elements: Illustration, Typography, and Graphics
11 minutes, 52 seconds
Photography: The Power of the Image
14 minutes, 22 seconds
The Storytelling
14 minutes, 27 seconds
The Rhythm
14 minutes, 53 seconds
The Experimentation
15 minutes, 43 seconds
What's included in this course?
Begin the course by getting to know your teacher, Lars Harmsen, who tells you about his career and experience in editorial design. He also shows you some influences that have impacted and inspired his work.
Next, look at how to develop the concept of what a magazine can represent. Before you start manipulating pixels and warming up the graphics card, explore the importance of the planning, research, and organization phases.
Continue with an introduction to the tools of the trade in editorial design—illustration, typography, graphic design, and photography—and analyze how you can combine these elements in your storytelling.
Now it's time to start experimenting! What happens when you think of a magazine not as a collection of information, but as a piece of music or poetry? Discover how to step out of your comfort zone in terms of graphic design, then tackle the photo for your cover.
Lars shows you what to consider for the printing phase and the choice of materials for your magazine, how to find distributors, and how to market your publication. To wrap things up, he covers different options for designing special editions.
What is this course's project?
Using Slanted Magazine as a case study, learn about all the steps involved in creating a magazine.
Projects by course students
Who is this online course for?
Design professionals who want to explore the possibilities and tools of editorial design, as well as beginners who want to learn how a magazine is planned and designed.
Requirements and materials
No prior knowledge of layout or editorial design is required, although a basic knowledge of Adobe InDesign may be helpful.
As for materials, you need a computer with layout and text editing software, as well as a cutter, a pencil, and paper.
Reviews
- 24 days ago
Muy buen curso, la experiencia del maestro y de la comunidad hace que sea muy interesante e inspirador
- 9 months ago
Excelente
- 9 months ago
Inspiring and insightful
- 11 months ago
Insightful and reflective
- 11 months ago
Excelente curso y profesor.
His work, recognized at home and abroad, focuses on typography as well as corporate and editorial design. He is also chief curator of the artist's book series 100for10 and designer of Makers Bible. He is the author and designer of many photography, typography, and design books, including Yearbook of Type, Typodarium, Photodarium, and numerous photo books.
Content
- U1
Introduction
- About Me
- Influences
- U2
The Planning
- What Is a Magazine and How Does It Work?
- How Do You Plan a Magazine?
- Research
- Organizational Tools
- U3
Editorial Design
- Graphic Elements: Illustration, Typography, and Graphics
- Photography: The Power of the Image
- The Storytelling
- U4
Other Editorial Design Elements
- The Rhythm
- The Experimentation
- The Design of the Cover
- U5
Further Thoughts
- Material and Processing
- The Printing
- Special Editions
- Distribution and Marketing
- FP
Final project
- Editorial Design: How to Make a Magazine
What to expect from a Domestika course
Learn at your own pace
Enjoy learning from home without a set schedule and with an easy-to-follow method. You set your own pace.
Learn from the best professionals
Learn valuable methods and techniques explained by top experts in the creative sector.
Meet expert teachers
Each expert teaches what they do best, with clear guidelines, true passion, and professional insight in every lesson.
Certificates
PLUSIf you're a Plus member, get a custom certificate signed by your teacher for every course. Share it on your portfolio, social media, or wherever you like.
Get front-row seats
Videos of the highest quality, so you don't miss a single detail. With unlimited access, you can watch them as many times as you need to perfect your technique.
Share knowledge and ideas
Ask questions, request feedback, or offer solutions. Share your learning experience with other students in the community who are as passionate about creativity as you are.
Connect with a global creative community
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FAQs
This course is aimed at advanced beginners and designers with some editorial design experience who want to deepen their knowledge of magazine layout, typography, photography, and production processes.
Basic knowledge of design, typography, or layout software is helpful but not required. An openness to creative experimentation and an interest in magazines and visual design are recommended.
You’ll learn how to plan, design, and produce innovative magazines—from typography concepts and layouts to photography, storytelling, printing, distribution, and audience analysis.
The course covers screen printing, typography, layout techniques, magazine concept development, photography, storytelling, printing methods, material selection, cover design, research, interviewing, production planning, and marketing.
Yes, the course also explores analog layout and design methods as well as alternatives to InDesign, so you can work practically without expensive software.
The course is very hands-on: it includes real magazine projects, competitions, practical layout exercises, as well as creating your own photo spreads and cover designs.
You’ll learn layering, grid layouts, expressive typography, paper and color management, handmade lettering, collage, photo storytelling, and using experimental design tools.