Creativity & Genre

    Creativity and creative process is key when embarking upon a new endeavor in a field ripe with choices. In the magazine industry there are all kinds of different magazines, some that go along the same idea as another. In order to make a new and eye-catching magazine you have to be creative and make bold choices. The Ted Talk we watched in class really opened my eyes to the fact that I haven’t been very creative lately, and that there’s a great importance in being creative. During the Ted Talk the speaker asked us to draw a house and when we did it, he showed us the house he knew we’d all draw which was the basic square with a roof and door. He then encouraged us to be more creative and thing of new innovative ways to do things. The Ted Talk just made me think of how to be more creative and not just stick to what’s typical.  

    An activity we did in class really got me thinking about how to do things different from the norm. The New Introductions activity made me realize that there are new ways to introduce yourself besides the typical “Hello, where do you go to school.” Instead, we came up with 10 new things to talk about based on a subject that isn’t usually typical in introducing yourself. This just made me think outside the box a little about how to do things different. According to Ron Beghetto, “self-efficacy is developed by taking creative action.” Self-efficacy is specific type of self-confidence that helps shape more global beliefs about our creative abilities and identity. Based on this, it is important to be creative because can help us form an identity.  

    To figure out what I wanted my magazine to be based on I looked at Sports Illustrated and Health magazine. These two ideas interested me the most and use many techniques specific to their target such as a main image, coverlines, and typography/font. Sports Illustrated always has a main image that is an athlete that fills most of the cover. I want to emulate this technique into my magazine because it lures the reader in. Also, I like the font that health magazine uses because it’s background to the main image. Other aspects I want to include in my magazine are a drop cap for my cover article because it engages the reader.  

    My vision for the portfolio is to combine sports and health to connect how the two go hand in hand in athlete’s journeys. The magazine will discuss college athletes’ journeys trying to go pro and how health effects that journey. There will be interviews with college athletes and other articles about health in relation to athletics.