Carissa Wodehouse

When I came on a Celilo Group Media, the books had been in print for 7 years, with much of the same information presented in bullet points and tables. It was dry. They wanted to create a new, fresh voice and jazz up the design, while still giving readers the information (recycling hotlines and other local resources) they had come to depend on. What a fun project! Here’s how we did it.

First, we looked at the layout, and divided each page into chunks, or content wells, of varying sizes. A small inset would have a picture and quote or fact. A picture representing the content would appear every other page. Then, we would put interactive pieces, such as a home energy analyzer, on the righthand side where it’s easier to write on the books.

To create a friendly, personal voice, I introduced a “we” and “you” and injected some opinion (”we find this blog useful”). Chapter headings standardized to include verbs. Information went from bullet points into paragraphs, with sentences structured to include urls and phone numbers in parentheses, and with business or blog names in bold. Narrative paragraphs were actually the original style of the books, except without referencing websites or phone numbers for more information, so the slide back to a chatty style wasn’t too much of a leap for readers. Example:

In 2007: Header: Energy Saving Products. Table with headings: Product/Look For/Incentives. Product: Lighting. Look For: Compact fluorsescent lightbubs (CFL) and spot lighting for specific area. Incentives: Receive free CFLs with a Home Energy Review

In 2009: Header: Save Energy. 1 paragraph. Sub-heading: CFLs, better and brighter. Text: Some of the early compact fluorescents emitted a light that some perceived as weak or unflattering for living spaces. CFLs are now availabe in a variety of models with varying qualities of light. Use the interactive (and cool) Choose A Light Guide at Energy Star (energystar.gov) to determine what shape, voltage, and quality of light you need.