Chapter 19: Creating Special Text Formatting

Overview

Once you learn the basics of typefaces , character formats, and paragraph formats, you can achieve just about any look with text. The trick is combining and applying the skills you've learned to produce special effects that not only look professional but also enhance the meaning of the text.

Glance at any professional publication ‚ a national magazine, direct-mail catalog, cookbook, or product brochure ‚ and you'll notice typographic techniques that set the publication apart from anything that can be easily produced in a word processor. (Even when word processors do offer a feature, they often lack the control necessary to really fine-tune an effect.) And skilled designers use these effects with a purpose ‚ special bullet characters emphasize a theme, drop caps draw readers in, and pull quotes tantalize.

Throughout this chapter, you'll learn how standard InDesign features can produce typographic special effects, and more important, when to use them.