Guest blogger: Justin Knupp on Website Magic

Website Magic

I asked the ladies of Magical Musings for some direction on what to blog about today, and Liz, I believe it was, asked an interesting question. She wants to know how I take vague input from an author and turn it into a website that conveys so well what that author writes. She called it magic, which makes it all the more appropriate to talk about here at Magical Musings.

Unfortunately, the first thing I have to do is debunk the myth that I’m working any type of magic over here. I know, there goes my reputation.

Just about every author who hires us has an idea what he or she wants, even though most say they don’t. A lot of times they just don’t realize it. I’ll tell you a little about how we work, thus revealing my non-magic methods for coming up with sites that convey our clients’ styles of writing and/or personalities.

Once a client hires us, the first thing they do is fill out an online form that gives us a better idea of their thoughts, ideas and preferences regarding websites. One of the first questions asks you to list three words that describe the tone you want for your website. This response is usually most helpful. Mystical, magical, spooky, romantic — those are words we frequently see. (One side note: about half our clients use “professional.” We like to think all of our finished sites look professional. We’ll fight tooth and nail to make them that way. So when you use “professional” as one of your three words … well, let’s just say there are others that could tell us a lot more. )

Look at the examples I’ve used above; they all have something in common. They convey emotion. That’s what we’re after. That’s the number one thing I need to know when I sit down with a blank Photoshop document, more than colors, more than font styles, I want to know what kind of emotions you convey in your stories. Obviously your list could be long, as emotion is what makes a story, from heartache, to fear, to love and romance. But I want to know the underlying, recurring feelings in your work.

The next step isn’t nearly as romantic-sounding as “magic,” I’m afraid. It’s merely translation. As writers, your medium is the written word. You think in descriptive phrases, telling actions, revealing introspection. As a visual artist, my goals are the same — conveying emotions. But I think in terms of color combinations, type styles, flowing lines and photographic images. Purple is a great color for showing “magic.” Cool colors are perfect for showing “mystical,” although sometimes an orange or yellow thrown in gives a site high impact. “Spooky” obviously calls for darker, bolder colors, including black. And so on. While creating artistic websites is definitely an art, there’s a lot of science thrown into the mix.

So much of the process is simply trial and error. When I start a site, I’ll read over the information the author has given us and begin with a pencil and paper. I’ll do a few sketches to try and develop a general idea for the site. I’ll also think about colors and try to match those with the feelings the author wants to convey.

Next comes the great art hunt. Finding the right art is critical to a good site. Good art can make a mediocre site better, and bad art can make a good design ugly. So, quite a bit of time is spent putting together a catalog of potential art for the site. It’s a random and subjective process. There are times I’ll put a piece of art into a lightbox for a site and have no idea why. But later in the process a small part of that image might work its way into a design as a small detail.

Once I get a few ideas on paper and a bunch of art collected, I’ll go to Photoshop. I’ve heard many authors have a fear of a blank page. Well, it’s no different for me. That blank white document looking at me can be really frightening. However, I like to remember the Nora Roberts quote that says something like, “I can fix a bad page, I can’t fix a blank page.” I like that a lot.

From here, it’s all about keeping the emotions in mind and trying to work up a design that conveys them. Mist and shadows, soft moonlight or harsh street lights, straight lines or sweeping curves. They all have something to “say” about the feeling of a site.

Very rarely does a site just “come together.” It’s often a process of trying something, getting input from different people, and going back and fixing things. As most of the public just sees your finished books, where you make it look easy, the same goes for my designs. Lots of editing behind each finished website on our portfolio.

The more communication that flows from the client, the better the end result will be. If we have to drag information out of you by asking the right questions, that’s okay. It’s part of the process — a vital one.

So, in the end, I guess the magic is really just communication and understanding emotions. The deeper and more developed an author’s notion of the emotions they are conveying in their stories, the better chance I have of portraying it in a site.

Justin Knupp