314: Designing Reading Experiences for Children with Caroline Versteeg of Owl Kids
- Diana Varma
- 3 hours ago
- 2 min read
It’s magazine time!
I’m currently teaching a magazine production and publishing course, as well as a digital publishing course, and it’s always a delight to connect students with magazine makers of all kinds at this time of year.
Welcome to conversations with magazine-makers— big and small, new and seasoned, independent and commercial—from all over the world sharing what they do and how they do it. This year’s line up includes folks making magazines for kids, art and culture, as well as luxury lifestyle magazines, and a massive global publisher who covers all of this and more. There’s something for everyone in the next 4 episodes.
This first episode features Caroline Versteeg, a Toronto based Art Director, Designer and Artist who brings content to life at Chickadee Magazine at Owl Kids.
Chickadee is 1 of 3 magazines for kids that are 100% Canadian.
Chirp is “The See and Do, Laugh and Learn Magazine for Children Ages 3 to 6.”
Chickadee is “The Full-of-Fun, Hands-On Magazine for Children Ages 6 to 9.”
Owl is “The Entertaining, Informative, Challenging, and Inspiring Magazine for Preteens.”
In this conversation you’ll hear the typical process from start to finish for Chickadee magazine, as well as specific design decisions Caroline considers for their audience of children and how the approach is different from designing magazines for adults. Caroline explains the very specific and very intentional typographic choices that are necessary for early readers (this is a no ligatures or ampersand zone!), and why print is still so relevant and important for kids who are immersed in a digital world. Caroline also shares how the publication’s print design has been influenced by the digital world. You’ll hear how the team at Owl Kids finds new contributors for their publications and Caroline shares great advice for students wanting to work in the world of children’s publishing.
Let's listen in...
About Our Guest:
Caroline Versteeg is a Toronto based Art Director, Designer and Artist who brings content to life. When not busy at her design desk at Owl Kids, Caroline is likely painting or designing for clients on a contract basis.
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Music:
Bubbles ( Lofi , Bright , Relaxed ) by HoliznaCC0 is licensed under a CC0 1.0 Universal License.
Talk Paper Scissors Theme Music: Retro Quirky Upbeat Funk by Lewis Sound Production via Audio Jungle
