Evaluation

1. EVALUATION
HANNAH FLOWERS

2. RESEARCH
• At the start of this project, I researched three existing fanzines on subjects which I might want to recreate,
these were Feminism, Coffee and Fashion. The coffee fanzine was focusing on the different types of
coffee, throughout the fanzine there are coffee facts in illustrations- this is a factor which I liked about this
fanzine I wanted to include something like this into my fanzine as it was a good way of producing
information for the audience. The feminism fanzine which I had researched explored the type of interests
which I was interested in. This was the biggest influence on my fanzine as the subjects were similar. The
colour theme also really appealed to me. The feminism fanzine which I looked at was very relevant to the
day and age which we live in as there are still some aspects of life which go against feminist ideals. This
was really inspiring to me, this fanzine brought the aspects which aren't right into the light- this is what I
wanted to achieve. The last example which I researched was a fashion fanzine, it explores the issue of
waste and mass consumption in the fashion industry- this is not a typical magazine which you see this is
why I chose it as it was very different and I wanted to create something different and effective which
might influence people. However, the only thing which I would have liked to be improved would be to
research more examples. The effect of this might have been drastic as I might have changed my subject of
my fanzine. This was very substantial for the week after when I had to create an idea generation
PowerPoint. I wanted to research the colour themes, design elements and the context of the existing
fanzines. The fanzine which really appealed to me was the Girl Gang Fanzine promoting Feminism. The
writing style, colour themes and the layout of this fanzine really appealed to me. However, I would use
some of the techniques from the other fanzines which I have researched- an example would be producing
illustrations in my fanzine, this is something which I had never done before and it was a little experiment.
• Throughout the whole process of this product I had to conduct research for each of my articles. The
article which I researched the most about was ‘Feminism in the 1900’s’. This 3 page spread was filled with
facts about the different influences and movements which have changed the world for the good.

3. RESEARCH
• I researched the campaigners like Fawcett and Elizabeth Anderson. I also researched the
difference between the Suffragettes and Suffragists as well as the laws which granted women
the freedom which they used to not get. I knew a bit of the feminism in the 1900’s with the
suffragettes and suffragists with some of the leaders but I didn't know anything about Fawcett
and Anderson. This was one of my strengths in my research- I knew what I wanted to research
and what would appeal to my audience. I think my research was vital in the production of my
fanzine, it would mean that everything was factual and the truth. It wouldn't be very
professional if my work turned out to be untrue because I didn't do any research and instead I
could have just guessed. I don’t think I could have improved this part of the research as I tried
my best to absorb all the information.
• Another research technique which was vital in my production was conducting interviews for my
fanzine. I had to research what feminist clubs there were around York which I could contact to
see if they would do an interview with me. I also researched feminist Instagram accounts and
contacted them to see if they could produce an interview for me. This was one of my strengths
in the research section.
• In my idea development I researched a few different magazines which I could get inspiration
for- these were MS. ,BUST, The F word and Girl Gang. Some of these were webzines and some
were magazines- this meant I could get more inspiration because of the different platforms
which they are posted on. I also researched the different movements for my fanzine. This was
very helpful because I wanted to know more about feminism and the way it is portrayed in the
media to plan my fanzine. Some of the research was from the 20th century and some was from
the 21st century. I research different feminist articles from big newspapers. This was really
helpful because it gave me a sense what people would want to see and it gave me impression
of what I could add to my fanzine to make it more relevant to the audience.

4. PLANNING
• I think the planning stage of my product was the most important stage. I started to brainstorm 3 initial
ideas for my fanzine. The first idea was a musical theatre fanzine- this would include musical theatre
reviews, recent topics and controversial articles. This was a really good plan with some interesting
interview thoughts. The colour theme would be bright and cheerful to symbolise the theme of theatre.
I really liked this first idea as it is something which I am incredibly interested in , however I felt as
though this was a very limited subject and I couldn't explore the subject like I could with other ideas.
My second idea was a feminism fanzine (this is the idea which I chose). I loved this subject, I think
there is so much to explore and the history behind feminism is so interesting. I planned to create a few
article topics- Suffragettes, Modern VS Traditional feminism, Me too Campaign etc, Feminism in the
1900’s and Musical Theatre and Feminism. The last article would match my interests and it would also
be very interesting article. I considered adding my own photographs and illustrations throughout this
fanzine- This bit of planning was crucial in my fanzine project as I had a clear plan of what I was going
to create. The third idea which I was thinking of producing was a photography fanzine. However, I
decided against this as the writing side would be non existent and this is something which I need to
improve on, I realised it wouldn't have been beneficial. The only section of writing would have been an
interview and the rest would have been photographs. This stage of planning was very useful, it gave
me a clear plan of what I could create and the type of layout I would like to make.
• For my idea development, I started to develop my feminism fanzine. I started off with choosing my
colour themes, I wanted to create a pastelized colour theme which would attract the audience, there
would be no permeant colour it would always change on each background- this would keep the fanzine
more colourful and more attractive. I think the only weakness with this technique is half way through
production I had to keep going back and changing my colours because some were very similar to each
other. To improve this, I should have kept record of what colours I would be using or even plan the
colours which I would use in my pagination. On this mood board, I also included some quotes which I
liked which I thought could be included somewhere in my fanzine. I chose some fonts from
dafont.com which could have come in use for headlines or my front page title.

5. PLANNING
• I think the Pagination section of this PowerPoint was extremely useful
especially when it came to my production. I had a clear plan for the layout
of my fanzine. I think the only problem which I faced when doing my
pagination was making sure that all the pages were in the right order and
looked good. I think I should have planned the colour themes when doing
the pagination as it would have been easier in the production stages. For
my FMP I will keep this in mind and plan out my pagination more carefully
so its much easier in the later stages. However, when it came to the
production stage I kept referring back to my pagination booklet to make
sure everything was in the right layout.
• The last section of planning which I completed was my copy PowerPoint.
This was crucial in a production like mine as most of my features were
articles. In my research week I had already conducted some of the
interviews but I needed to write them up. This was incredibly useful when
it came to my production, it meant that I could easily copy and paste the
text into my InDesign document. This PowerPoint was a strength in my
planning, I think the only thing which I could improve next time is after I
have written all my articles to reread them and add any improvements so I
am creating the best article of my ability.

6. TIME MANAGEMENT
• Throughout the whole project, I felt as though I was ahead of
schedule. I think I managed my time perfectly, I kept to the
schedule which I created in my idea development PowerPoint.
The first week of my production was spent creating all my
design elements, I created the front cover and started on two
of my articles. The main focus for the first two weeks of my
production was to design all my illustrations as well as my
article layouts. I think if I had more time to produce my work I
would have added little details into my work. In the final design
of my fanzine, I noticed that all the articles were different sizes-
this is something which I could have improved. I think the
amount of pages which I completed in the time limit was very
impressive. Overall I completed 36 pages. Also, I think the
article which I would have liked to improve is the ’Influential
women’ article. This is mainly because it was very rushed at the
time, I feel as though it is crammed with information. I would
have liked to do an edit on some of the photographs which I
used. If I had time I would like to draw each woman- this would
mean it would go with my illustration theme but it would also
look really clean and tidy. Overall, I felt even with the time I
had I spent it wisely and formed a professional fanzine with
varied topics which would appeal to anyone who read it.

7. TECHNICAL QUALITIES
Differences: The layout is completely different, the existing product is very simple. Whereas mine looks very busy with the different
colours.
Similarities: Both of these front covers have one image. I think this is more effective than having many different images on a front
cover- it can make it look messy and confusing. The main similarities between this front cover and my front cover is the colour
themes- they both have pastel colours involved in them somewhere. The illustrations also tie into the same theme, the drawings are
different but they have a similar theme. The two pale backgrounds are also very similar as with a pale background I believe that
everything stands out a bit more. This works really well in both of the front covers.

8. AESTHETIC QUALITIES
• I think my project as a whole looks good, it is a topic which is very interesting to me so
I was automatically enticed into making this fanzine good. I think the main feature
which stands out to me is the illustrations. This is something which at the start of the
project I couldn't do but as time went on I managed to get the hang of it and they
have turned out to look really good. They go with the colour theme which is
something which I really wanted to aim for but they will also entice the audience
which I am targeting. As I have previously discussed I would have wanted some extra
time just to add some small details on, I would have liked to make all of the articles
the same size as then it would have been a running theme throughout. I would have
also liked to improve the colours which I used for the backgrounds, some are
incredibly similar and I feel like I should have been more experimental with the pastel
colours. To do this I would research the different pastel colours and decide which page
would be which- an interesting idea which I could have done is do a rainbow effect
with the colours but have the colours pastel. I think what I have created looks very
professional and top standard- I think it is the best project which I have conducted
since I started college. I think I have enough context throughout my fanzine which is a
strength as initially I was worried about not having enough features to make a good
fanzine.

9. AUDIENCE APPEAL
• My audience was any gender and any age. However, I feel as though I had
directed my fanzine towards a younger age with the colour themes and the
illustrations but with the written work I feel as though that was directed at
an older age group. Throughout the fanzine I haven't used one main colour
I've used different types of colour- someone picked up on this in my
feedback. This is something which I wanted to achieve from the start as I
didn't want a dominate colour because I didn't have a dominate gender. I
felt as though I collected up to date information which would appeal to any
age group. Feminism is becoming increasingly popular with the younger
generation than the old. When looking back at my product I noticed that all
my opinions which were in the articles would appeal to anyone- they are
quite positive opinions about feminism which is how most people see this
topic. I think the article about feminism in the 1900’s would appeal to an
older generation than a younger generation and I think the feminist
movements would appeal to a younger generation as it is something which
is going on in this day and age which they might have connections with.
• Overall, I believe that my fanzine appeals to my audience really well as
there is a complete mix of articles and illustrations which would appeal to
the different age groups.

10. PEER FEEDBACK

11. FEEDBACK 1
• What did you like about the product?
• I really like the amount of text you have included as it is really interesting to read, a lot of facts and I learnt a
lot. It is also fun with the graphics/drawings and the design element, I like the little feminism slogans they’re
funny and clever. The product also is very informative so you go away having more knowledge on the subject
which I like.
• Does this subject appeal to you?
• Yes, I think its really relatable especially for women obviously, and I like the fact you talk about the films from a
feminist perspective such as grease and legally blonde, as I have never thought to think of them that way.
• Any improvements?
• Maybe switch up the page design a tiny bit when it comes to the pages with a lot of text, but other than that it
looks really professional and it’s very interesting.

12. FEEDBACK 2
• What did you like about the product?
• I liked that each page was different from one another, as they all were laid out differently from one another,
with a different colour scheme used for most of the pages. I also liked that you had lots of information about
the history of Feminism and who were the key women who fought for rights. I also like that the fanzine is issue
3, as it is if you have already created other fanzine issues and that this fanzine is now a mini franchise. I also like
the custom art that you have created for your fanzine, it fits the fanzine well.
• Does this subject appeal to you?
• Yes as even though I am male, I still think that women should have the same opportunities as men and that
there shouldn’t be a divide, or a glass ceiling. I think that feminism is good, especially for countries where
women still don’t have rights such as working a certain job because they are female, in countries such as Saudi
Arabia.
• Any improvements?
• Add some dividers in the text, like lines that split the text up, and maybe even change the colour of some parts
of the text to make it stand out. You could do that for key information like a date when women got the right to
vote for example. This would make it stand out against the other text, giving the reader and idea that it must
be an important bit of information.

13. FEEDBACK 3
• What did you like about the product?
• I think that some of the content in the fanzine is very good and some of it is powerful, I also like the use of the
distressed paper to help emphasize the fact that the content is about the past and this helps with that. I also
like the use of both colour that are typically assigned to boys and girls and not using just the one, this helps to
solidify the content of the fanzine.
• Does this subject appeal to you?
• The subject of this fanzine really doesn’t appeal to me at all as there is a lot of evidence and proof out there
that debunks a lot of the theories in the fanzine such as the gender pay gap, which takes a total average and
does look at it from job to job. I think that this fanzine will appeal to others but just isn’t for me
• Any improvements?
• I think that one of the main things that needs to be changed is the layout, some of the pages that are meant to
be double page spreads are split between pages, this is very noticeable on the interview pages and some of
the layout such as the influential women pages where the text runs over and you have to turn the page doesn’t
work well and I think that you should try to get it onto one page. Other stuff like the feminism in theatre pages
being landscape instead of portrait is more confusing as the rest of the fanzine is portrait and the swap in the
middle just confused me.

14. FEEDBACK SUMMARY
• What do you agree with from your peer feedback?
• I agree with most of my feedback, I think I could have chose different way to show the text- it does look like a
lot of information in a few of the articles, this was mentioned quite a lot in my feedback. This is something
which I will thinking about when doing my FMP- I like the fact that one of my peers commented on the
different page colours as I wanted to do it purposely.
• What do you disagree with from your peer feedback?
• I only disagree with one of the feedback comments which was saying how the musical theatre article was
confusing because of the different orientation. I did this so it would mix up the format- it was almost as though
the musicals are pretty modern so I chose a modern way of laying it out.
• What changes would you make to your product based upon your peer feedback and why?
• I think if I did this project again I would add line dividers, different articles and more facts for everyone jnot just
women but for male supporters as well.