When Design Can’t See What a Word’s Shape Needs
The Dyslexic Eye Knows Something’s Off
Can you see it?
You know that feeling when something just feels off? For me, it’s often about how the shape of words, their placement or the space around them becomes more than a just a speed bump when reading them. It hits me like a wall and I can’t move on. If I can’t quickly figure out what’s off, I can force myself to move on–to get over it. But pushing that feeling down only keeps pulling me back.
I’ve wondered about this throughout my career — until recently. I’ve learned that if something seems off for me, there’s an excellent chance others in the world experience the same thing.
It turns out there are words for it. Visual rhythm, font tension, word silhouettes, micro-rhythms . . . all the things my dyslexic brain silently insists is off while everyone else says, “It looks fine.”
This is the story of finding the words to explain what I’ve always seen — and why these words about how words are treated in design are making are letting non-design marketers let out an exhale in relief. Read More →