One or two further hints may be useful. It is never advisable to put two upright strokes too closely together. Also in the case of round letters, such as O, C, G, etc., these should project slightly over the line, otherwise they will appear smaller than the other letters. This should, however, be very slight, as it is easy to overdo this kind of thing.
When lettering a diagram, if possible keep all the lettering the same way, so that there is no need to turn the page round to read it. This is, of course, not always possible, but if it is at all practicable it is quite the best thing to do.
It is never wise to jumble a number of different styles of lettering together in one inscription, as is sometimes done. The practice of this kind of thing tends to make the lettering less readable, besides making it look somewhat freakish. Sometimes the use of two styles of lettering together, such as an upright form of Roman lettering and an italic, helps to emphasize certain words; but when a variety of different forms is used the only result is to make the lettering look confused.
For the greater part of commercial work a form of Roman lettering is used. The student who intends to practise this kind of work should study some of the best modern work. He will have no difficulty in getting plenty of examples.
When designing a cover for a magazine, one of the first things to be taken into consideration is how to make it stand out in a striking manner so that it will be noticed on the bookstall.
A Design for a Music-cover.
Designs for magazine covers may be roughly divided into two classes, viz., those which occupy the whole of the cover, and those where the design is in the form of a heading. In any case, however, it is best that the title should be prominently arranged at the top of the cover, so that it can readily be seen when the magazine is placed on the bookstall, and is generally in that position partly covered through other magazines and books overlapping it. The great thing to remember is that the object of each design for a magazine cover should be to make it stand out distinct from all the other magazines on the stall, so that it can be recognised in an instant.
A Design for a Bookplate.