We were all given a concept for a project where we were given almost all creative liberties, and mine was Messy Book. I was inspired by a messy school bag full of loose papers, which is why I chose different shades of off-white paper of different textures and weights. It is also why I chose a loose Coptic Stitch binding to symbolize the state of mind of “hanging by a thread.” I chose a New York Times Article, “How to tell the Difference Between Regular Distractions and A.D.H.D.” by Dana G. Smith because I thought that it reflected the concept of messiness
quite well.

I wanted to blend design and hand-drawn elements, which is always tricky. I did this by blending sans-serif text with my own handwriting (which I did on my iPad on Adobe Fresco.) I also photographed different paint, ink, pen, and other textures and applied them to the spread for a hand-made, messy feel. I also made the cover out of kraft paper and added hand-drawn scribbles to the pastedowns. At the end, I added some “Thinking Space.” This is for the reader to note anything down or to doodle: two things that are proven to be helpful for people with A.D.H.D. to focus or get organized.