The document discusses the work of a magazine editor in writing headlines ("heds") and subheadings ("deks") for various articles in Cottage Life magazine. It provides examples of heds and deks the editor wrote for articles on topics like composting toilets, construction near the beach, saying goodbye to summer at the cottage, and more casual weekend activities at cottages. The editor aims to craft heds and deks that grab readers' attention, set the right tone for the article, and effectively summarize the topic and key benefits to the reader.

1. engaging heds and deks
for Cottage Life
MARTIN ZIBAUER
10

2. Are You Sitting Down?
The hed and dek I wrote for
Ray Ford’s guide to composting
and incinerating toilets has a
tone—hushed, conspiratorial,
even a little embarrassed. It’s
how many people feel about
toilets and their contents.
For readers of Cottage Life,
this gentility is an inside joke.
The magazine and its
subscribers are known for
forthright, pragmatic talk
about waste management.
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3. Builders & the Beach
Jay Teitel’s feature contrasts the buzz of construction activity on the backlots
of this community with the serenity of its expansive beach. I wrote a rhythmic
hed that simply balances those two.
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4. Farewell, Dear Plumbing
There’s always a hidden emotional core to a service story; even draining the
plumbing is, in fact, a melancholy goodbye at the end of the cottage season.
Writing this display—hed, dek, and comic-book captions—required close
collaboration with the art department.
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5. Cowboy Cottager
When I developed this editorial
package with Michelle Kelly,
we started by asking, “How can
cottagers have more fun than
ever this summer?”
The hed riffs on a quick-fix
package we also co-edited,
“Captain Cottager,” which
helped cottage heroes deal
with urgent problems. To
telegraph playful, enthusiastic
risk-taking in the dek and
subheds for this story, I used
Wild West language—not what
you’d hear in the real West,
but the lingo of Hollywood
Westerns and Yosemite Sam.
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6. You Don’t Know Lumberjack
This is unconventional display—a mashed hed-’n’-dek that buries a service
story’s benefit (learning about log-cabin construction). The opening spread
dares readers to turn the page and prove it wrong. It’s aggressive and flagrant,
and it reads like clickbait, but it works—and the story delivers.
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7. The Seven Year Pitch
This lifestyle piece profiles several families who, instead of constructing
traditional cottages, have built simple stand-alone decks and pitched tents on
top. It’s a trend.
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8. Dash & Dine
Your reward for surviving the
Friday drive to the cottage…
dinner that’s a cinch to prepare
and a pleasure to serve
Pie Society
Trustworthy pastry. Irresistible
fillings. How to win friends and
influence cottagers
Two recipe features with
display that quietly sells the
benefit to readers.
October 2013 cottagelife.com 79
PIE
SOCIETY
By Jill Snider Photography Jim Norton
Dutch apple pie
Pork apple pie
October 201378 cottagelife.com
Trustworthy pastry. Irresistible fillings. How to win friends and influence cottagers
Fresh raspberry pie
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9. The Winter Picnic
Recognize the cadence in the dek? Film titles rarely work as magazine display,
but here I played with The Cook, the Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover. This profile of
food stylist Ruth Gangbar follows the prep for a photo shoot and includes her
recipes at the end. Hence the dual-meaning kicker, “Lunch to follow.”
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10. Working on Sunshine
A straightforward guide to solar-power systems gets a lift with a pun hed.
Puns on song titles are powerful; readers hear the melody, but insert the words
on the page. Instant earworm.
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11. Escape to Barbecue Island
Why build this portable barbecue work centre? Because you’ll escape all the
other chores. A dek’s benefit statement can break Display Rule No. 1 and make
an outlandish promise as long as the surrounding language says clearly,
“Smile. It’s a joke.” (Shame, that.)
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