Also, I knew that it wasn't actually necessary for me to have a "logo" - I could just write the title of the book - but I still loved the idea of having a gang stamp/logo across a newspaper article, as if it had been defaced. In this way I can actually make a point out of the title and use it to strengthen a message.
I went back to the "drawing board".
Firstly, I drew some initial sketches with my graphics tablet onto Illustrator. I like doing this, as I can work with the design straight away and quickly experiment with colours. These are my initial drawings.
Once I had sketched these, I was drawn towards numbers 2 and 3, so started to experiment and develop them properly. Here are some screenshots documenting how I experimented and came to the final logo design.
1 2
With the first design on the left, I wasn't happy with how uneven the words on either side of the knife were - how the word "outsiders" is so much longer than "the" and how in order to position "s.e hinton" centrally, it meant the H of 'hinton" lined up with the edge of the knife. I think it looks awkward. Also, I didn't like the size of no. 2. I spreads out too much, and is too unlike a stamp. With "the outsiders" spread onto 2 lines compared to just 1 for the author name, it again looks awkward and does nothing to lead your eye or cause any interest.
3
I preferred this to the previous 2. The text works better along the length of the blade.
4
The positioning of the text is better in this one. It's stacked widest to smallest, and this pattern is continued to the bottom of the knife. It still doesn't resembled a stamp. Stamps are usually solid shapes - squares, circles or triangles. This is where I started to steer towards that.
5 6
First experiments with circles. I liked both - especially the sharp edges of the circle. They match the slight uneven-ness of the knife. For this I used the "roughen" tool in illustrator. No.5 is supposed to represent a blood pool, but I didn't think this worked as strong as I'd have liked it to.
7 8
Bringing in text. I chose this font as I thought it matched the rugged/uneven-ness of circle and knife, and tried positioning it within the circle. My main problem was trying to make it look even, but still readable. I used a previous idea of putting the text within the knife to "fill the gap", but then I thought it took too much away from the knife, and, specifically No.7, you couldn't tell as easily it was a knife. I decided to remove the author name, and see if I could fit in later, or elsewhere in my book cover design.
Flipping the knife upside seemed to work stronger. It comes across as more aggressive and dangerous.
9
Changing the font strengthened the design. Its similar to an actually stamp. The boldness and all caps meant it was very easy to read, and I thought that what was restricting me from creating an even logo was the very uneven, slightly random font. Also, tilting the knife seemed to give off more of "edgy" "dangerous" vibe. As if it's sliced across the circle, kind of as if it's being used.
10
This is the current final logo. I'm not totally sold on the positioning of the authors name. "S.E" is very short word compared to "Hinton" but it made most sense to me to put them either side of the blade as if they have been cut through.
My colour choices are based on what red connotes - danger, blood etc - and what I want to be read first. The red is the brightest colour on the page, as I am keeping everything else on the cover rather muted, so the viewers eye shall naturally be drawn to the knife. I decided to keep the book title in plain dark grey/black as it's positioning through the middle of the knife and through the sides of the circle means it is easily seen.
The black is not a pure black. It has a slight hint of white in it, to very slightly tone it down. The same goes for the red. This will help me create a vintage/retro feel on my cover, which is an idea I am definitely sticking to and considering when designing.
