The Journal of Cardiac Failure asked us to design a style guide for its contributors who routinely submit charts, graphs and tables for publication. The guide provides standards for preferred colors, fonts, and graphics style in order to improve the consistency and professionalism of the graphics.

• Subdued, gem-like colors were chosen for an expanded color palette, based on JFC’s branded colors. A change in color makes a huge difference in how a chart or graph is viewed by readers.
• The typestyle Franklin Gothic was chosen for its readability and – just as importantly – its wide availability on the multiple computer operating systems contributors use.
• We included examples of how to style necessary elements like arrows, boxes, labels, axis lines and numbers, as well as a notice to ‘add white space’ in order to avoid clutter.
• To help contributors visualize how to adapt their materials, the guide showcases ‘before’ and ‘after’ treatments of sample charts and tables. The contrast between the two can be eye-opening.