Table of Contents Research

This week, our class focused on researching and analyzing how magazines—those that correlate to the genre of our final magazine—format their table of contents. I am basing my magazine on the Cooking, Food, and Beverage genre, and therefore, I focused on the Saveur, Delish, and Cooking for Two magazines. We will then use our knowledge and understanding from this assignment (the factors that magazines encompass in their table of contents) to create a table of contents for our magazine.

Table of Contents #1- Saveur Magazine

Number of images: 7 Description of each image: Each of the 7 images above are overhead shots. More specifically, the image to the left is of Flemish Beef and Beer Stew (page 58). The image to the right highlights recipes such as a potato, spinach, and red pepper frittata (page 10), strip steaks with green peppercorn sauce (page 42), and salmon filet topped with a fennel pecan salad (page 71). List of Sections: Breakfast, Appetizers, Soups and Chilis, Pan-Fried Dinners, Braises and Stews, Seafood, Roasts, Veggies and Sides, Baking and Pastry Number of Articles: 15 Highest Page Number: 94 Articles Font Format: The table of contents for this magazine utilizes the sans serif font, both bold and not bold as well as with capitalized letters and title case. Color Palette of Fonts: Black, Red, White Stylistic Features: The header, “Contents,” in the image to the right is red which stands out from the rest of the predominantly black writing, and there are two black rectangles on either side of it. The images are arranged as a gallery, and are evenly spaced. Not only that, but there is a black line at the bottom of this table of contents which separates its sections. Title of Page: (Contents)

Number of Columns Per Page: 3

Table of Contents #2- Delish Magazine

Number of images: 8

Description of each image: The images in the table of contents of this particular Delish magazine are overhead shots of: French Dip Pinwheels (page 14), Philly Cheesesteak Casserole (page 18), Cheesy Baked Meatballs (page 37), Chicken Alfredo Baked Penne (page 42), Cheesesteak Stuffed Peppers (page 54), Perfect Lemon Bars (page 64), Oreogasm Poke Cake (page 82), and Shakshuka (page 93)—respectively.

List of Sections: Apps and Bites, Casseroles and Bakes, One-Pan Dinners, Noodles and Pastas, Healthy Comfort Food, Brownies and Bars, Amazing Cakes, Brunch Favorites

Number of Articles: 53

Highest Page Number: 94

Articles Font Format: The texts in the Delish table of contents are serif fonts, both bolded and not bolded. The texts are fully capitalized as well.

Color Palette of Fonts: Black, White, Red, Orange, Yellow, Light Blue, Dark Blue, Pink

Stylistic Features: The image of the spotlighted recipe from each section is arranged in a whimsical manner. The title of each section is written in a curve and is enclosed in a circle along with the article number. These details add uniqueness and eye-catching details to the magazine.

Title of Page: There is no title.

Number of Columns Per Page: 2-3

Table of Contents #3- Cooking for Two Magazine

Number of images: 5

Description of each image: The images are of dinner-based meals which yield servings for two people. Each image corresponds to its section title on the right, and therefore, the images represent the following:

-Chapter 1, page 4, is of a chicken and vegetable bowl.

-Chapter 2, page 22, is of a pork dish with a side salad.

-Chapter 3, page 40, is of a grain with ground beef, chopped cucumbers and tomatoes, and feta.

-Chapter 4, page 58, is of seafood pasta.

-Chapter 5, page 78, is of a vegetarian-based soup.

List of Sections: Chicken Dinners, Pork Dishes, Beef Meals, Seafood Suppers, Vegetarian Favorites

Number of Articles: 5

Highest Page Number: 78

Articles Font Format: This table of contents utilizes both serif and sans serif fonts, and a few words are italicized. Other than that, the list of the sections are written in all lowercase, and the descriptions are written in title case.

Color Palette of Fonts: Black, Pink, White

Stylistic Features: The articles in this magazine are separated into rows with a horizontal green line. The page number of the specific recipe displayed in the pictures are white, circled with a pink background and white border. The word “chapter” is italicized, and the article number beside it is pink and has a larger font size which emphasizes contrast. Similarly, the word “inside” in the title of the table of contents is pink, italicized, and has a smaller font size. This further adds contrast in comparison to the phrase beside it, “cooking for two,” since it is not black, not italicized, and has a larger font size.

Title of Page: Inside Cooking for Two

Number of Columns Per Page: 1

Comparison of the Sections for Each Magazine's Table of Contents

Comparison of the Photography for Each Magazine's Table of Contents

Comparison of the Fonts for Each Magazine's Table of Contents

Similarities and Differences Between the Covers of the Magazines

Similarities:

All three magazines use a black-colored font for the section descriptions, and the highlighted recipe of each section has a corresponding page number. Both the Saveur and Delish magazines are organized with three columns per table of contents page (except the first page of the Delish table of contents which has two). Not only that, but the Saveur and Delish magazines have more than one table of contents page—two and three pages, respectively. The pictures in the table of contents of the Saveur and Cooking for Two magazines are overhead shots, and their descriptions are written in paragraph format and don’t list each recipe.

Differences:

Nevertheless, each magazine displays different quantities of images; the Saveur magazine has seven pictures, Delish has eight, and Cooking for Two has five. The first page of the Saveur magazine’s table of contents solely displays an image of one of their recipes. Unlike the Saveur and Cooking for Two magazines, the Delish magazine photographed overhead shots and high angles and lists its recipes.

My favorite magazine is the Saveur magazine. For one, I like the gallery of images; it is neat and briefly summarizes the categories of foods presented in the magazine. I also like the contrast of color and how the information fits on one page. These factors make it more effective in grabbing the audience’s attention and allowing them to comprehend the content. I also prefer the paragraph method of describing the sections as I find listing each recipe/article cumbersome, disorganized, and less appealing to the eye. Having a second page in the table of contents dedicated to spotlighting one image of a recipe works well, in my opinion. More specifically, it further grabs the readers’ attention since it is more impactful than words and appeals to those who are more visual. With this in mind, I can gain ideas for my magazine from the strengths of the Saveur magazine. I can make a gallery, create contrast in font color, write my descriptions in paragraph format, or insert an image that takes up a separate page in my table of contents.