Design Phase

Prior to the actual creation of the document is the design phase. This is an on-going process but initially it involves determining the basic form of the desktop publishing document. Some of the sub-tasks involved in the design phase will overlap with other stages of the desktop publishing process. Although presented step-by-step, desktop publishing is not an entirely linear progression. You'll find yourself going back and forth many times between tasks and between each phase.

Do the following tasks, as required. You'll find corresponding tutorials, exercises, or resources for further study, as available. Items marked with an * are not yet in lesson or tutorials format but do provide informational resources. Document format decisions
Identifying the form and function of your document
What are you going to design? Conceptualization/Layout Options
This is where you develop ideas for layouts, try out themes, brainstorm on how to best present information.
Thumbnail Sketches
Visual Signposts Color selection
Color Basics for Print and Web
* Color Symbolism
* Color Palettes
Extend Color Use with Spot Colors
Easy Ways to Get Color Without a Color Printer Font selection
Number of Fonts
Fonts for All Caps
Headlines
Body Text Image selection
Amount of Clip Art
* Graphic Images Types
Rights Controlled/Custom Artwork
Frames, Boxes, Borders
How to Use Pictures of People

The desktop publishing really gets underway in the next phase as you set up your document based on the decisions made during the design phase.

Next Phase > Document Setup

The Desktop Document > Design Phase

View the original article here