Why layout is part of the writer's job
Layout affects whether people notice a document, choose to read it and find its information. Writers make design choices whenever they arrange words, and understanding layout helps them produce usable documents, work with designers and convey an organisation's intended image.
Layout and the reading task
Page layout can draw readers into printed text or repel them before they begin reading. Its purpose is to arrange text and graphics so that they work together and support the flow of reading. Language, graphics and design should form a whole that people can use effectively and with ease. Layout and typography give writers additional means of communicating a message and arousing interest. Good design can distinguish a text from others competing for attention. Good design can also make a message memorable. For reading done as part of work, good design can make a chore more enjoyable.
Good design matters even in a simple letter, though it has a higher priority in posters and websites intended to attract attention quickly. A design concept should not overwhelm the message: a clever advertisement can leave its audience unsure what it advertises, and a colourful website can leave visitors unable to find the information they want. Excellent content and well-written text can still go unused when a document is painful to look at or poorly organised.
A 2007 systematic review of written medicines information found that most people did not value the information they received and had concerns about complex language and poor visual presentation. Writers should make information easy to find as well as easy to understand.
Writing as design
Placing words on a page is already designing it, whether or not their arrangement has received conscious attention. Even words scattered at random form an arrangement that different viewers may find pleasing or unpleasant, meaningful or meaningless. Numbered instructions create a hierarchy of actions, and grouping similar agenda items creates units of content. Indenting paragraphs, capitalising words, placing commas, underlining phrases, styling titles and italicising quotations are also design choices.
The arrangement of words affects legibility and readability, while their placement, typeface, colour and size also affect whether a page attracts a reader. These choices apply to digital as well as printed pages, including word-processor documents, spreadsheets, tablet screens, emails, e-books and professional-network posts. Writers can use the same basic design principles as experienced designers. Graphic design and typography deserve study and practice, but learning to use even one or two principles well can transform a layout. Existing examples of effective design can provide ideas for layouts that serve meaning.
The typesetter's tasks on the writer's desk
Desktop technology gives writers many tasks once performed by trained compositors, without their years of formal training. Writers should understand the key concepts of layout and typography to improve the appearance of their templates and documents and evaluate graphic designers' work critically. The aim is an understanding of how design works with content, rather than training every writer as a graphic designer. A page designer should read and understand the text before choosing styles and arranging the page to support the writer's message.
An organisation's visual image
Visual communication can shape first impressions, and an organisation should use it to convey its intended image. Corporate documents such as letterhead and fact sheets can convey its brand and reputation to internal and external stakeholders. In a medical research hospital's 2008 letterhead project, the desired image combined innovation and modernity with the clean, orderly appearance of its existing corporate documents.