Eureka!

Hello World.

Joomag is pretty great! I started using it to layout my project  and I've found all its features to be easily accessible. Now that I have everything laid out it feels great to have a visual on what my final product is going to look like. Okay, time for the weekly progress report:

I played around with the images for my cover page and decided I didn't like how it looked. It came out okay but I didn't feel confident in the final look. So, it was back to brainstorming visuals for my cover page.
Eureka! 
I may have finally come across my best idea for the cover image! (Cue excited yelling and erratic dancing) My idea is to have a mid-shot of a girl, looking at the camera, dressed in a pink tank top. Written on her body will be different words describing the concept of inner beauty; such as: confidence, intelligence, and strength. I really like this idea because it is a combination of my previous ideas I came up with.

 Also, magazines in my genre typically have a cover image that are mid-shots of one model or a graphic design. I'm not the best with graphics so I decided to go with the photo option.

                      



I have also come up with what I believe may be my final idea for my TOC double-page spread! (Continues happy dance) The left side of my double-page spread is going to be my TOC and the right page will be an advertisement. The left side will be a picture of a shopping list with the information listed. I like the idea of the list headed "In the market for a new body," however, I also really like that title for my story. We'll see though because I haven't finished writing my story yet.




Goodbye World.

Bust Aug.-Sept. 2013. Print.
Kulinica, Gita. Shopping list template. Dreams Time. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Apr. 2016.<http://www.dreamstime.com>. 
Ms. Magazine Spring 2013. Print.
Ms. Magazine Summer 2014. Print. 


Shameless Fall 2013. Shameless. Web. 1 Apr. 2016. <http://shamelessmag.com>

Putting Pen to Paper!

Hello World.

It's been crazy! The good news is I have started writing my story, the bad news is, despite my love for my topic, it's been challenging. I bought an online edition of a Ms. Magazine in order to get a better understanding of how to stylistically write my story, which has been helping. Taking Newspaper this year and writing for my school's newspaper has definitely helped me on writing. I'm still just trying to make sure I'm not going too broad and trying to put too much information into one story.

I wasn't sure what platform to use to create my magazine, however, thanks to the resources my teacher has provided us with I've decided to use Joomag. At first I wasn't sure if I should just buy Indesign because I have used it in the past and I know it's a great program, however, I was hesitant because it is expensive and I will only really be using it for a limited amount of time. After checking out some reviews on Joomag, I decided to use this program to create my magazine.

I'm so excited to continue my project and learn how to use these unfamiliar new tools! It'll be great learning how to navigate Joomag and I'm sure some new tutorials will help me out. This project is coming along so nicely I can't wait to move farther along in this process.

Goodbye World.

Granger, Lauren. "Want to start a digital magazine? Here are 9 of the best publishing options."Memeburn. N.p., 1 July 2014. Web. 1 Apr. 2016. <http://memeburn.com/2014/07/want-to-start-a-digital-magazine-here-are-9-of-the-best-publishing-options/>. 

Note to Self

Hello World.

I have come to a decision for my main image on my double page spread! I want to do something that incorporates the multiple cultures that I'm going to be mentioning in my story. Since I don't want to make my story too broad, I've decided to use examples/evidence from three countries: the United States, South Korea, and Brazil. So for my image I thought I could do a landscape picture of a three girl's stomach's with an image of "their" country's flag somewhere on their stomach. That part I haven't decided yet. I'm not entirely sure how I'm going to differentiate them yet, but that's a problem for later!

More news concerning images! (How exciting, right?) So, for my TOC I've come up with some ideas. What I could do is correlate it with the idea I have for my cover image that I mentioned in my "Picture Perfect!" post. I will make the background image look like a bulletin board with "pins" or sticky-notes on it. They will have the title of the story, blurb of information under it and the page number. So the notes might look like that-->



I'm not positive on the layout yet. I'm forming another idea as well, however, I haven't quite finished figuring it out yet. No worries, hopefully by my next post about images my decisions will be concrete.

Goodbye World.

Radkov, Ivelin. "Blank yellow sticky note pined on a cork bulletin board." 123RF. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Apr. 2016. <http://www.123rf.com>. 

A Needle In a Haystack

Hello World.

I've got some good news! I've decided on how I'm going to focus my story on the subject of cosmetic surgery. I want to my story to be on how society's perspective has changed about cosmetic surgery. In recent years, society has begun viewing it as okay that girls are going 'under the knife.' I want to add that it's not just in the United States that cosmetic surgery has become extremely prevalent among women of all ages. I'm going to add information on other countries in my story because I found a lot of interesting cases that supplement the idea I have in mind for my story.

Brazil has passed the United States as the world capital of plastic surgery. In Brazil getting plastic surgery is the equivalent of buying new makeup for many women. Society there encourages women to get plastic surgery and as a result, many women ignore the dangers until it's too late. This spoke out to me and encouraged me to realize society's views cosmetic surgery in my own country.

In the United States a teenage girl getting a nose job is so common. People are adopting this "if you don't like how you look, change it" mentality and I want to address it. I'm glad to say I've managed to find what I want to write about and can't wait to continue my research and writing.

Goodbye World.

Conley, Mikaela. "Nip/Tuck Nations: 7 Countries With Most Cosmetic Surgery." ABC News. Abc News, 25 Apr. 2012. Web. 26 Mar. 2016. <http://abcnews.go.com/Health/niptuck-nations-countries-cosmetic-surgery/story?id=16205231>.

Garcia-Navarro, Lourdes. "In Brazil, Nips And Tucks Don't Raise An Eyebrow." Npr. N.p., 7 Oct. 2014.Web. 26 Mar. 2016. <http://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2014/10/07/353270270/an-uplifting-story-brazils-obsession-with-plastic-surgery>. 

Picture Perfect!

Hello World.

I'm back! It's been a hectic week because spring break just started. However, I have plenty of new ideas and dilemmas to share.

Okay, so I mentioned in  my last post how I wanted to change my cover page to match my overarching theme. I've decided to make my cover image a photo of a bunch of post-it notes lined up in a grid-like formation with words that represent beauty. For example: strength, intelligence, and confidence.

Speaking of photos, I've decided on the layout of my double-page spread! Is that progress you see? Why, yes it is. So, I'm going to make my layout look like this-->

I haven't completely decided on the main image yet, however, I've finalized the other two. The two other images are going to be close up images of each side of her face. So, the bottom left picture will be the left side of the girl's face with the cosmetic surgery lines drawn on her, and vice versa.

As you can probably infer from my choice of gender for my model, I am focusing my cosmetic surgery story on females. Seeing as this is a feminist magazine, I decided to do my story focused on women. I'm excited to get started on the research for my story!

Goodbye World.

"Magazine Project week 6." Daniellesdoodles. N.p., 15 Oct. 2012. Web. 1 Apr. 2016. 

     <https://daniellesdooodles.wordpress.com/2012/10/15/magazine-project-week-6/>. 

A Picture Is Worth a Thousand Words

Hello World.

We had another group meeting this week! During our meeting, my peers helped me come up with an idea for an advertisement. This issue of my magazine is all about women feeling beautiful without outside help (example:magazine,surgery, etc.) So I thought that I could create an advertisement for a face wash that promotes being "all natural, all the time."

Another idea I brainstormed is for my table of contents (TOC). Since it has to be a double-page spread and I don't think I will need two pages for my TOC, I could make the second page a photo advertising a campaign. For example, it could possibly be a photo for a program that promotes girls accepting themselves and improving their self-confidence.  Then I could also add on the photo to follow the company/organization on Twitter and to use their # for a campaign they're promoting.

I have gained some inspiration from this photo I found while researching. From this image I got the idea for a photo I can put in my double-page spread. I want to do a photo similar to this or an extreme close up shot of a girl's face from her eyebrows to her upper cheekbones.

I have decided that I am not going to make my double-page spread my cover story because I want the theme for my magazine to be the unrealistic beauty standard.  Cosmetic surgery relates because a lot of women go "under the knife" as a result from the pressures they face from society and the media. However, I still am not 100% sure on what perspective I will write from for that story.

Goodbye World.

Yune, Dr. Marc. "Top 10 Doctor insights on: Is It Possible To Reduce My Hip Size Through Cosmetic Surgery." Health Tap. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Apr. 2016. <https://www.healthtap.com/topics/is-it-possible-to-reduce-my-hip-size-through-cosmetic-surgery>. 

Just a nip and tuck!

Hello World.

I'm back! It's been a while since I last checked in, but no worries! Okay so time for the progress report.

The good news is I have decided on what story I'm going to do for my double-page spread. *Drumroll Please* And the winner is... the cosmetic surgery story! Now that I know what I want, it's time to start researching for the content of my story. I had a good talk with my teacher today and she reminded me that the general subject of cosmetic surgery is very broad, so I have to make sure I narrow it down. New problem please meet world. I'm not sure what perspective I want to write for my spread and I'm tossing around the idea of interviewing a doctor as well. Which brings me to my next point, I've decided to get as much as possible done over spring break and if I have the time I may do another spread featuring an interview and maybe an advertisement.

Moving to my next topic of this blog post, advertisements! I know I have to have a minimum of four original images for my magazine, which I anticipated would be the hardest part. As a result of my group meeting on Tuesday and my own research, I have an idea:

 Goodbye World.

Decisions, Decisions

Hello World.

I am having a dilemma. I've decided to do only one double-page spread because I don't want to spread myself to thin. However, while I was trying to choose which idea I remembered I can only use original photos in my magazine. Now, I'm not positive if either idea is going to work out at all, which is stressful to say the least. The good news is it is still the first week and I have little bit of time before I really need to panic.

There are two different stories I want to write: the Barbie story and the Cosmetic Surgery story. Both of them fall under my overarching theme, the unrealistic Beauty Standard.

Mattel recently came out with a new line, Barbie Fashionistas. With this line they are presenting a new, body-positive Barbie. The new bodies are curvy, tall, and petite and consequently, more representative of women's bodies in general. This is a very controversial topic because for a long time the Barbie brand has been of a slim, long-legged, white, blonde-haired, blue-eyed doll. In addition to new bodies, Mattel has come out with new hair styles, hair colors, eye colors and skin colors.

With this story I can  also write about a mother's perspective and concerns about the new Barbie or Barbie's impact on how kids view their own bodies. In the past, Barbie has been criticized for being an unrealistic image of beauty that is impossible for women to aspire to. I would write about those implications and what this new line could mean.


 Last year in my AICE Global Perspectives class, I did some research on the topic for the presentation portion of my exam. This led me to the subject of how women feeling inadequate about their bodies can prompt them to go "under the knife".

My other story would be about cosmetic surgery and essentially the reasons why people get it. I could write about cosmetic surgery being a result of low self-esteem and insecurities as well as mental disorders that it can cause. I would be writing from a psychological perspective about the causes and effects of cosmetic surgery. Additionally, there are TV shows, for example, Botched, that center on people getting cosmetic surgery.

Amidst my struggle to decide the content of my double-page spread I have decided on a name for my magazine: ESS. I chose ESS for the title of my magazine because I thought about how the suffix "-ess" is appended to words to make them distinctly feminine. My magazine is about focusing on social issues from a feminist perspective and focusing on social issues that pertain specifically to women. I thought this title would be a perfect representative of what my magazine embodies. I got my inspiration from Ms. magazine because Ms. is a term used to classify independent women, an audience this magazine can appeal to.

Goodbye World.

"Barbie Fashionistas." Mattel Shop. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Apr. 2016. <http://shop.mattel.com/family/index.jsp?categoryId=45063936>.

Botched. Television. 
Dittmann, Melissa. "Plastic surgery: Beauty or beast?" American Psychological Association. N.p., Sept. 2005. Web. 10 Mar. 2016. <http://www.apa.org/monitor/sep05/surgery.aspx>. 



Ms. Magazine Winter 2015. Print.

Pesce, Nicole Lyn. "Mattel remakes Barbie dolls to include a curvy body type." New York Daily News.N.p., 28 Jan. 2016. Web. 10 Mar. 2016. <http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/fashion/mattel-remakes-barbie-dolls-include-curvy-body-type-article-1.2512210>.

Siegel, Lucas. "Barbie Gets Three New Body Types with Biggest Change in 60 Years." Comic Book. N.p.,28 Jan. 2016. Web. 1 Apr. 2016. <http://comicbook.com/2016/01/28/barbie-gets-three-new-body-types-with-biggest-change-in-60-years/>. 

Too Many Possibilities

Hello World.

I'm back for my second post during my first week of my project. Thanks to my teacher's Pinterest page, I have access to a lot of great resources. One of the resources I found had a chart on the Psychology of Color which helped me decide on the color scheme of my double page spread. It forced me to be more analytical and aware of the magazine choices I was making.

I already have a vision of what I want my product to be. The target audience I'm aiming for is consisted mainly of women ages 16+. I want my product to reflect womanhood and femininity yet at the same time be serious and about serious issues. I don't want my magazine to be like the stereotypical women magazines about homes, cooking, fashion, makeup, losing weight, or sex.

Examples of what I DON'T want:

In AICE Media, I have studied representation in media. I've learned that women are represented with stereotypical tropes in the media and are often told that they need to meet society's standard of beauty. I am attempting to deviate from this pattern and create a magazine that is visually very feminine and girly but in actuality, has content that is relevant concerning issues ongoing in today's society.

As a result of my own research I found some great magazines that are all similar to the type I aim to create. I found this post about women's magazines on Autostraddle that led me to magazines that are very feminist and that are centered on issues that specifically effect women.

Examples of what I DO want:

                        

Now, I've run into a dilemma concerning what to do for my cover image. Of course determining a cover image also means deciding on a cover story so the two correlate; which, I have yet to do as well. I gained some insight while looking at these two magazines (Shameless and Ms.). I realized that the type of magazine I am looking to create has more options (pertaining to the cover image) than I first thought. 

My progress in brainstorming a title and planning my front page, Table of Content (TOC), and double-page spread. 

Now that I've started brainstorming I have come up with so many ideas that I want to put in my issue. I have created two broad categories for the issue itself that I have managed to choose between. However now I can't decide what story I want to focus on and use as my cover story. I am aware that I can do more than one double page spread, however, I'm worried that if try to do more than one I'll spread myself too thin. I'd rather have one double-page spread that's a 10 rather than, two double-page spreads that are both 7s. I know I won't be able to choose between the two. Now the decision-to-make is:  I take the choice out of my hands by allowing my peers to decide for me or I choose to do more than one double-page spread. No worries, I will have my answer by my next post.

Goodbye World.

• Better Homes and Gardens Feb. 2016. Print. 

• Cosmopolitan Sept. 2015. Print.

Ms. Magazine. Ms.Magazine Blog. Web. 1 Apr. 2016. <http://msmagazine.com/blog/>. 

Ms. Magazine Spring-Summer 2012. Ms. Magazine. Web. 1 Apr. 2016. <http://www.msmagazine.com>.



Riese. "15 Women’s Magazines That Don’t Suck, Are Awesome." Autostraddle. N.p., 11 Apr. 2012. Web. 1 Apr. 2016. <http://www.autostraddle.com/14-good-womens-magazines-stuff-thats-worth-your-time-money-136118/>. 




Shameless Fall 2013. Shameless. Web. 1 Apr. 2016. <http://shamelessmag.com>



Shameless. Web. 1 Apr. 2016. <http://shamelessmag.com>. 




"The Psychology of Color in Fonts and Design." Doodle Dog. N.p., 17 Apr. 2013. Web. 1 Apr. 2016.<http://doodledog.com/the-psychology-of-color-and-fonts-in-design/>. 

A World of Possibilities

Hello World.

I'm in the process of creating a magazine, from scratch might I add, for my AICE Media Studies final project.

Welcome to my first post.

Alright, so it's technically Day 2 of the project that will determine life or death in this class. I've got to admit I'm nervous, anxious, excited, and scared. I desperately want to get a high grade on my project for the AICE Exam, not only because I want good grades, but because it will mean that I've succeeded. My hope is to get that, "I've made it" feeling, the one you get after all your hard work has paid off. Although, another reason is that a high grade from the graders at Cambridge will give me validation that I am good at this and I have the potential to really make it in whatever part of the media industry I choose to enter. Essentially, I'm searching for confidence, hope, and reassurance in the  skills I've developed over the course of this class.

Goodbye World.