1. Leaves
SHANE MITCHELL

2. Introduction
Good morrow.
I am Shane Mitchell and I stand before you
today to present a concept. An idea. My pitch
proposal is a potential magazine called
„Leaves‟. I hope my endeavors today can
seduce you into believing that my prospect will
be beneficial not only for your brief, but – also –
for the needs of your organisation, of which I
shall essay to ensure I meet.
Here‟
s
what
my
maga
zine
shall
entail
…

3. - My client is, of course, The Northern
Echo.
- I have been asked to create a magazine
with a specific genre – that being „literary‟
in my case.
- Though I do need to be selffinanced through advertising.
- Also have a very specific
age range for my TA – 16 –
25.

4. Brief
“You have been commissioned by
The Northern Echo to produce a
new magazine or newspaper. Your
product could be in any style or
genre but it must be self-financed
through sales or advertising. You
must also produce your magazine
for a specified audience segment

5. I have met these
aims by Creating a magazine with a genre that has
never been done before as a free product
will, in itself, be a contributing factor to the
high readership I am expected to gain.
I have created many opportunities for potential
advertisers – therefore the
advertising revenue will be at an increase.

6. Do you have a problem?
The age range presented a problem because I
needed to be very specific with language choice
in order to cater to such a young TA.
In addition to this, actually
knowing where to start with
my genre was also difficult
because of how there are
few writing magazines on
the market -

7. A simple
masthead
that‟s easy
to read
Blue, red &
yellow
complement
too
Comp
etition,
used
to
entice
Blue and pink
complement one
another
Writers‟ Forum
Writing Magazine
Button stickers show
interesting
Main story
emphasised with
large font size
Easy to see

8. they are the two main writing magazine
That‟s why I have decided to follow the central layout, for a start.
That is also why I have chosen to work with a colour scheme that aptly fits
together. For example – Black and orange/purple and silver:

9. My magazine will perhaps have other people in the
household who may read.
Because The Northern Echo has a strong
relationship with the community, I must also ensure
that my magazine contains no offensive material
such as taboo language; mild or strong.
The Northern Echo feels a great amount of respect
to the locals and refrains from ever publishing
anything that could ever sully their reputation.
The Northern Echo champion stories that represent
local heroes or great events or achievements in the
local area.
Client Constraints

10. I have chosen a literary
genre and was inspired to
do this by my insatiable
thirst for words and
exploration of learning.
I knew that I could learn more about this particular
field by choosing this genre.
My interest meant that I knew what I wanting to do, but
doing genre research only made me more sure because I
knew which side my bread was buttered on.

11. However, these books on language by Mark Forsyth also gave me inspiration to
write my articles. Not only that, but I was able to learn a large amount of
information and insight regarding grammar that I would be otherwise blind to.

12. AUDIENCE
RESEARCH
My audience is for those
from 16-25.
In the “Creatives” tribe.
Mixed gender.
Socioeconomi
cs: C2, C1, B.
Education: A-Level
– degree level.
Fairly low income
given many readers
will be students.
(But research has shown
that males dominate the
literary world with more
men writing books worldwide.
Therefore, a more specific
male to female ratio would
be 70:30)

13. How will my audience
be catered to?
Colloquial use of language
Variety in DPS content
Equal image – text
ratio

14. WHY „ eaves
L
?
‟ is
Well, the name
a another word for
pages of a book,
and so it fits aptly
Plus, few people
with my genre.
actually know this,
therefore, confusion of
the name choice will
create a mysterious

15. Pr int
Publicat ions
Books
H ist or ic Lit er at ur e
at A re The W rite
Wh
Rules?
Wu y u- if y uc u - d c vr th ru so g ma
o ld o
o o ld iso e e le f ra mr?
Inth so a ley u ll b ta e o aq ic q et to
is h rt rtic , o ’
e k n n u k us
uc vr we e o n t threrellya ru s
no e hthr r o e a re le!
Ea c h a n d e v e r y o n e
of s ha s ha d our
g r a mma r s l a t e d b y
o n e s ma r t a r s e o r
a n o t h e r , b u t wh a t
wo u l d y o u s a y i f I
t ol d you t ha t you
c oul d dr a g t he m of f
t he i r hi gh hor s e ?
Gr a mma r . W h e a r t h e
e
wo r d a t l e a s t o n c e
p e r we e k , e s p e c i a l l y
i n a n a c a d e mi c wo r k p l a c e , b u t wh a t a c t u a l l y i s g r a mma r ?
To wh a t e x t e n t d o e s
i t ma t t e r ? I h a v e
f l o wn a c r o s s t h e
gr e a t pl a i ns of t he
di c t i ona r y t o f i nd
t h e a n s we r s t o t h e
que s t i ons bur ni ng a
wh o l e i n y o u r b r a i n
a nd pe r ha ps on your
pa pe r !
W l l be gi n our
e
j our ne y by s uppos i ng
t ha t t he r e a r e no
r u l e s t o g r a mma r . I n
f a c t , t e c hni c a l l y,
t he r e a r e no r ul e s ,
j us t s t a nda r d a nd
non- s t a nda r d. W e t h h
e r or not a n a ut hor of
a pi e c e c hoos e s t o f ol l ow t he s e r ul e s i s e n t i r e l y u p t o t h e m, b u t
t h e y wi l l b e t h e o n e s
wh o a r e g o i n g t o h a v e
t o d e a l wi t h t h e r e p e r c u s s i o n s a n d c r i t i c i s m.
Bu t wi t h t h i s s a i d ,
wh a t s t h e a c t u a l p o i n t
i n b o t h e r i n g wi t h s t a n d a r d g r a mma r ? Su r e l y i t
t he r e f or e onl y s e r ve s
a s s o me t h i n g t h a t a l l o ws u s t o r e a d t e x t i n
a n e a s y , f l o wi n g ma n n e r . Fo r e x a mp l e , h e r e s
a p i e c e o f t e x t wi t h out punc t ua t i on
he l l o
f r i e n d t o d a y I ma n a g e d
t o f i n d my s e l f a r e a l l y ni c e l e t t uc e l e a f
i t wa s r e a l l y g o o d wi t h
a ba l l a f t e r I l e t i t
h a v e a k i c k - a b o u t wi t h
my n i k e o n e t h a t I g o t t e d.
No w, n o t o n l y i s p u n c t ua t i on s c a r c e on t hi s
f i e l d of l e xi s , but t he
mo r p h o l o g y a t t h e v e r y
e nd of t ha t c a r c r a s h
of a s ynt a x i s t ha t
of a t hr e e - ye a r - ol d.
Th e s u f f i x
- ed
i s a n i nf l e c t i on t ha t
c oul d be us e d t o c r e a t e a pa s t pa r t i c i pl e
o f a wo r d , a n d t o h a v e
a pr oc l i vi t y of pl a c i ng
t hi s s uf f i x a t t he e nd
o f wo r d s t h a t a l r e a d y
a r e pa s t pa r t i c i pl e s
l i ke got
t he n t ha t
i ndi vi dua l ne e ds t o be
h i t i n t h e f a c e wi t h a
d i c t i o n a r y . Twi c e
no
t h r e e t i me s .
( Ev e n t h a t l a s t s e n t e n c e c o u l d b e d e e me d
a s non- s t a nda r d, but I
k n o w h o w I wa n t t o b e
u s i n g my p u n c t u a t i o n
wi t h my s y n t a x ; I v e
us e d t he hyphe n a s a n
i ndi c a t i on of s e l f - i n t e r r upt i on, a nd I us e d
t he e l l i ps i s a s a br i e f
pa us e . )
I e ve n us e d pa r e nt he s i s f or a n e nt i r e pa r a gr a ph ! I m r e a l l y pus hi ng t he boa t out t oda y.
An d a s f o r my p a r a g r a p h s we l l , we c o u l d
e a s i l y c o mp a r e t h e i r
l a yout t o t ha t of a
r o a d wi t h p o t h o l e s a n d
Pens
b a d r o a d wo r k s .
No w i f we mo v e o n t o
l e x i c a l i t e ms t h e ms e l v e s , we mi g h t f i n d
t h a t we r e i n a r i v e r
o f wo r d s wi t h o u t a r a f t
t o wi t h h o l d o u r c o n f u s e d mi n d s . Ah e a d , we
s e e a be a r , s t ood up r i ght i n t he r i ve r t ha t
we t o o a r e d r i f t i n g
t hr ough. I n or de r t o
p a s s t h e b e a r u n h a r me d ,
we mu s t d i f f e r e n t i a t e
b e t we e n t h e wo r d b e a r
a nd ba r e . M ki ng a
a
d i s t i n c t i o n b e t we e n t wo
v e r y s i mi l a r l y - l o o k i n g wo r d s , b u t t h e Ox f o r d En g l i s h Di c t i o n a r y
de f i ne s be a r a s
to
s uppor t or hol d up/
t o br i ng or c onve y/ t o
t a k e , a c c e p t o r a s s u me
t he r e s pons i bi l i t y of /
t o t ol e r a t e or e ndur e .
On t h e o t h e r h a n d ,
ba r e i s de f i ne d a s
unc l ot he d, e xpr e s s e d/
e mb e l l i s h e d / s i mp l e
j us t s uf f i c i e nt .
Ah a ! W d i d i t ! Th e
e
b e a r g r o a n s a s we r e
c a r r i e d a wa y t o s a f e t y ! Bu t wh a t s t h e e f f e c t on us a f t e r t hi s
DPS - 1
Com et it ions
p
s t r a n g e s i t u a t i o n . Bu t
how c oul d a nybody know
wh e n we c a n t ma k e h e a d
n o r t a i l o f t h e wo r d
e f f e c t . W l l , t he bi g,
e
wi s e OED s a y s t h a t
ef f ect
me a n s s o me t h i n g
pr oduc e d by c a us e or
a ge nt , a nd a f f e c t
is
t o a c t upon i nf l ue nc e .
Th e s e a r e t h e b i g f e l l a s
t h a t we s t r u g g l e t o g e t
our he a d a r ound, c l e a r l y . No w we v e p a s t e d
c onf us i on a nd a n unc on t r ol l a bl e s ur ge of f or c e
t ha t t he r i ve r bor e ha s
s pur t e d us out i nt o t he
o p e n s e a . Th e s e a b e i n g
a v a s t e x p a n s e o f g r a mma t i c a l , mo r p h o l o g i c a l
a nd phonol ogi c a l c onf u s i o n . Bu t I c a n t c o v e r a l l t h i s , c a n I ?! I m
gue s s i ng you r e f a i r l y
c o mp e t e n t a n d k n o w wh a t
you r e s uppos e d t o do
wi t h g r a mma r t o a c e r t a i n e xt e nt , s o e xpl or e
by your s e l f ! I m not
Ch r i s t o p h e r Co l u mb u s I
ha ve ot he r t hi ngs t o do
t ha n t o gui de you r e a d e r s t hr ough a j ungl e of
l a ngua ge .
An y wa y , t h e b o t t o m l i n e
i s t ha t you s houl d ne v e r f e e l l i k e a mo r o n i f
your t e a c he r or a s s e s s or t e l l s you t ha t your
g r a mma r i s i n c o r r e c t
i f y o u k n o w wh a t y o u r e
d o i n g . Gi v e e m wh a t
f o r a n d t e l l t h e m wh y
t h e y r e wr o n g a n d y o u r e
n o t ! Or r e f e r t o t h e m t o
t h i s a r t i c l e ! Or d o n t
I
g e t p a i d e i t h e r wa y .
Gr a mma r a n d wr i t i n g
s t y l e i s p a r t o f wh o y o u
a r e , a nd i t s your hor s e
t o br e a k i n how e ve r you
see f i t .
Poet r y
“ T ech n i ca l l y, t h ere a re
n o ru l es”

16. H isto Lite
ric rature
P e
ns
P rint
P ub ns
licatio
What arethewr i t e
rules?
"
br e a k t he
r ope , br e a k
t he r ul e s
o
h av
e
u
yo
D
r
s
le
u
"
?
d
boun
B ok
os
Co pe ns
m titio
(Gram atical)
m
G
rammar is a term that we hear
almost on a daily basis, but the
term itself is indef nite. By this,
I mean that while there is a specif c
def nition to the term, there is not necessarily a specif c way to use grammar.
A true writer will understand this and
would do well when writing to remember that they should not be tailoring
their piece to f t the needs and wants
of their audience. Essentially, a true
writer would disregard the conventions
of true ‘grammar’ and veer of , doing
as they will, breaking the rules if they
please.
On the other hand, the wiser writers
will deter themselves from going so
overboard that their piece could potentially be rendered as indecipherable.
With modern audiences, there always
appears to be fault in someone else’s
grammar, and to another there would
be a f aw in that person’s grammar and
so forth. We have all experienced such
an onslaught ‘constructive criticism’
in our lives and the frustration can be
the cause of confusion. However, the
bottom line is that there are no specif c
rules to grammar. T us, writers are
technically entitled to do exactly as
they please with their writing.
As a matter of fact, breaking the rules
to f t our piece could personalise the
piece.
DPS - 2
P otry
e
On the contrary, breaking too many
rules of grammar could potentially
diminish the quality of the piece, as I’ve
previously said in my f rst paragraph.
T ere is a f ne line between changing the rules and blatantly disregard
conventions so that it’s verging on the
audience being led to believe that the
author is completely uneducated and
slightly ambitious with what they want
to do. T ere are cunning words in the
English Language that seem to think
that they can get away with making us
of the English tongue look likes fools.
T e plural form of ‘sheep’ for example
is a problem for those who take little
interest in the English language; some
individuals of en utter ‘sheeps’, but of
course, ‘sheep’ is the plural form of
‘sheep’.
In addition to this, there is some confusion with the possessive apostrophe
on names. For example, ‘Jameses’ is
completely ridiculous and doesn’t even
use the possessive. But there is debate
as to whether or not ‘James’ should be
written as ‘James’s’ or as ‘James’’. In all
honesty, both are standard, especially
since there is debate.
So essentially, there is nothing that
suggests that any one writer can’t ‘write’
properly because there is no correct
way to write. Although ‘sheeps’ is rare
in writing, it’s not necessarily wrong…
just bad. So long as the writer knows
precisely what they’re doing with their
grammar, then everything should be
perfectly f ne.
T e formation of true art in writing
depends on the ability of the writer to
create worlds that the reader can immerse themselves in; one that can net
the reader, and keep matches between
their eyelids with a brace holding their
head in place towards the book. T at
is what really matters in writing, not
perfect grammar. Remember the rules,
but dare to break them. Although, if
the rules have you bound in rope, break
the rope, break the rules.
Tipsfo w
r riting
On a side note, if ever in
doubt
Ask a
p sion
rofes al
a ys
ot to a lw
B ut try n ma y d iscovyou
listen a s d on’t a lw a ys
tha t they y’re ta lker
a t the
know w h
bout!
ing a
An d r em
ember gr ammar
par t of
th e ar t
th at is w is
in g.
r it-
An d a l wa y s c h o s e
t h e wr i t i n g
s t yl e t ha t s ui t s
you!
W ri t i n g
is
I dios ync r a t ic

17. The DPS mock-up process was
stressful and challenging, however, I
still managed to create what I believe
to be an effective set of DPSs.
I must now think
very carefully
about font
choice.
Quotes
from
focus
“The text is difficult to read
group but I like the layout.”
“Maybe change the font on
the first one but I like the
colour schemes. It looks
really old too.”
The amount of fonts on DPS 2 is difficult to
navigate and looks awfully messy

18. My magazine‟s income is through
advertising!
My magazine has 16 pages,
though I have my DPSs and
preliminary pages to
accompany the DPSs.
I do have a
net loss of
£1,159, but
this is
because of
my printing
costs of -
But, why was it that I opted for an advertising only
income?

19. Personnel Costs
Hours needed
Journalists
Photographers
6h
£15
£30
£17
Models
£25
£10
£10
£15
£20
4h
Subeditors 14h
9h
Researchers
Lighting Assistant
Make-up
Assistant
Total Expenditure: £1116
3h
2h
2h
14h

20. Equipment Costs
Hours needed
£20
£25
£1
0
Studio Space3h
Rental
Flash Lighting
3h
£28 Studio Kit
Camera
3h
Additional
Lens Hire
Travel 2h
£5
£20
Total Expenditure: £314
Props 3h
3h

21. Distribution!
My product will be distributed to all
the places that The Northern Echo
distributes their paper.
But where do they distribute?
The size of the product will be 210x297mm, much like
many other products.
The print quality will also be a stich-bound silk paper type
that offers a tolerable quality, though may not feel as good
as gloss and will not be as aesthetically pleasing either. But
the reason I have done this is to save costs.
ESPECIALLY SINCE MY
ONLY INCOME IS THROUGH
ADVERTISING!

22. Constraints
From researching the PCC, I
have learned that there is much
to consider.
For example:
I must be
accurate with
what I say in
my articles.
I must also
be careful
about
revealing
information
that could
expose
individuals
to any
harm.
Code no.
1, 3 & 4
must be
taken into
consideratio
n

23. Schedule!
The major problem I have
with my schedule is…
getting a
good
And ensuring my
model is on time (my
prospective model is
notorious for being
unreliable at times)
For
photoshoots
However, I have
a back-up
model to fill the
space if the
situation arises

25. Was it my research that led
me to deciding what genre I
should use?
Not particularly –
however, my genre
research only encouraged
me further to use a literary
genre.

26. Front cover
Symbolic
imagery –
Mask, quill
Font
- Simplistic
and bold
Masthead
choicemeaning of
leaves
Main DPSs in
a bigger font
to attract

27. Of
course,
article
names
are
presente
d with
page
numbers
Contents
„…….‟
means
that my
article
doesn‟t
look
bare
Polaroid pictures of literature –
relevance to genre and a way
of getting my audience into the
„literary mode‟.

28. Masthead –
wordplay, cre
ates a more
relaxing tone
because of
the pun
DPS 1
Interrogative Kicker –
“Do rules have you
bound?” Evokes
curiosity in the reader
Image – the rope is
symbolic of
grammatical rules
and represents
how grammar can
paralyse writing as
a true art form
Article –
more of
a
colloquia
l, lighthearted
article
Colour scheme – light blue/blood red – grey – emphasises the
dramatic colour (light blue/blood red)

29. Masthead –
Not wordplay, but does
use alliteration
which is a
technique that
people enjoy
reading
(though noone knows
why).
Imagery –
more literal, but
expresses the
joy that many
multitudes of
books can
bring
DPS 2
Offers
variety
Kicker – rhyme to
lure the reader in.
Again, readers love
rhythm.
Article – brief
article that
mentions the
books listed.
Article
accompanime
nt – list of
recommended
reads
Colour schemes – green and biege – more
academic connotations

30. Masthead
DPS 3 Offer
Article – another
Imagery –
–
s
shorter article that
again, literal
wordplay
variet
revolves around
imagery.
– a penty
the pens
But is also
house is
again
a direct
exclusive
opposite
to those
from a
that
window to
deserve
futureto be
self/ideal
there; this
imagery –
article is
urges the
very
reader to
much the
think
same, onl
carefully
y it also
about a
revolves
better pen
around
pens.
Article Accompaniment - A
table with potential pens for
Colour scheme – purple & gold – connotations of
the reader
luxuriousness

31. Comparison – Leaves vs Writers‟ Forum
Language –
The language in Writers‟ Forum is never
really challenging which is surprising since
a common philosophy that writers hold is
that it isn‟t what we say, but how we say it.
The language isn‟t adventurous and
doesn‟t excite the reader. There are no
jokes and the tenor seems very formal.
My language shall
break conventions
of grammar as
demonstration, usin
g many literary and
language
techniques to
excite the reader
(tricolon, synaesthe
sia, diacope etc.)
The language will
have colloquialisms
(markers of
sympathetic
circularity).

32. Comparison – Leaves vs Writers‟
Forum
Colours will be bolder
and brighter, giving it a
better aesthetical
quality. Also, I will use
a variety of colours that
collocate with one
another (slide 8).
Colour – colours here are generally
rather boring and not adventurous at
all.

33. Comparison – Leaves
vs Writers‟ Forum
My product will
have imagery
that is symbolic
and
representative of
writing.
Imagery –
Again, boring, literal imagery
that doesn‟t really express
anything at all.

34. Comparison – Leaves vs
Writers‟ Forum
My product will
have fonts that are
different in places
and are relevant to
the genre
(handwriting
fonts, typewriter
fonts). This will
give the magazine
a literary feel.
Font – Doesn‟t really
seem very fun nor of
any artistic/aesthetic
quality. No variety.

35. Comparison – Leaves vs Writers‟
Forum
The only thing Leaves and
Writers‟ Forum will have in
common is the general
layout. Though I will offer
more variety in mine –
central layouts and
different article positives
are good examples of
what I mean
Writers‟ Forum is
seemingly very boring! I
only buy it for its
knowledge, not because
of how wonderfully
designed it is!

36. With my
product, I
wanted to
enhance the
technical
writing skills of
beginner
writers.
But how do I cater to my client’s
needs?
USP – my USP is
my list of reading
recommendations
and table of pens.
The pen-table isn‟t
seen in competing