Design Tips: Getting the most out of Type

Typographers would like you to believe that type is one of life's great mysteries. They say things like, "You can't use it correctly without years of experience," or "It's complicated and if you do it wrong you'll look like an idiot."

Type doesn't have to be intimidating if you think about it like this: You've been looking at type for years. You've been reading it since you were a kid. You know what it looks like. It's obvious when it's hard to read.

Well, at least 80% of typography is common sense. There are a few things you learned in school that you need to unlearn, but overall, the basics of good type are just that, basic.

We'll start with the rules. These are really short, simple rules - no dates, no capital cities, just a few simple things to remember. You don't even have to remember them if you don't want to, just put them up on the wall and check them once in a while.

And remember, these rules work with virtually every kind of document you are likely to need.

1. Body text should be between 10 and 12 point, with 11 point best for printing to 300 dot-per-inch printers. Use the same typeface, typesize, and leading for all your body copy.
2. Use enough leading (or line-spacing). Always add at least 1 or 2 points to the type size. Example: If you're using 10 point type, use 12 point leading. Automatic line height will do this for you. Never use less than this or your text will be cramped and hard to read.
3. Don't make your lines too short or too long. Optimum size: Over 30 characters and under 70 characters.
4. Make paragraph beginnings clear. Use either an indent or block style for paragraphs. Don't use both. Don't use “neither”, either.
5. Use only one space after a period, not two. Most word processers do a good job of this.
6. Don't justify text unless you have to. If you justify text you must use hyphenation.
7. Don't underline anything, especially not headlines or subheads since lines separate them from the text with which they belong.
8. Use italics instead of underlines.
9. Don't set long blocks of text in italics, bold, or all caps because they're harder to read.
10. Leave more space above headlines and subheads than below them, and avoid setting them in all caps. Use subheads liberally to help readers find what they're looking for.

If you have any problems, let us help you.