Infographics are the latest trend to hit the social media world. These graphical data representations can be used for anything from simple facts and figures to complex statistical information. They come in all shapes and sizes but share some common features: they are often visually appealing, easy to read, and designed with efficiency in mind (they should contain no unnecessary information).
Infographic templates, on the other hand, can be particularly useful when it comes to writing novels — especially if your story contains a lot of facts and figures! After all, it’s not always easy to develop a creative and original design for large pieces of data. Here are some tips on how to use infographics and infographic templates in your novel:
Infographic Templates can be used to create effective, visually appealing “factual” graphics
Infographic templates can be great tools for describing complex scientific phenomena – especially if you’re writing sci-fi or fantasy novels! However, remember that not every important information piece should be converted into an infographic. The most important facts and figures should always remain as words; paired with the visuals, these words become even more powerful. Only use infographics for those things that require a more visual explanation. For example, if you want to provide a list of symptoms for each disease your character contracts, use an infographic template. It can be as simple as a few bullet points on a basic “tree diagram” with a color-coded background.
Be mindful of where you place your infographics.
When going through the editing process, check for redundancies and unnecessary information in your story. For example, if several paragraphs of text describe how something works or what it is, consider using an infographic template instead. You can place this graphic at the beginning of the section where it will be most effective. This technique also helps break up large chunks of text and makes it easier to read by providing lots of white space between sections.
Remember that readers usually skim the first few pages of your novel, typing up a quick review on the web before moving on to the next book. So if an infographic is placed in an area where it interrupts the flow of the text or can’t be easily seen, editing it out may be a better option.
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Infographic Templates are also useful for character descriptions.
Instead of using lengthy physical descriptions to detail what makes each character unique, why not use an infographic? For example, you can include information about height, build, skin tone, eye color, hair color and style, facial features (i.e., large nose), voice quality/volume/rhythm/tone of speech, etc. There are so many things about a character that can be effectively communicated with an infographic and don’t require readers to sift through paragraphs of text (where they will likely get bored and skip ahead).
Using infographics for characters has another benefit: it helps you maintain consistency throughout the story! If there’s one thing we know about human beings, we’re very good at forgetting. A simple typo here and there isn’t such a big deal (and often doesn’t even register as a mistake); however, if something happens later on in the story – perhaps several chapters down the road – that contradicts what was included in an earlier chapter, then someone’s bound to notice. It’s your responsibility as a writer to make sure that this doesn’t happen, and infographics can help!
For example, readers will notice if you mention in an earlier chapter that your character has blue eyes, but they are brown when describing them later on in the book. This is why using different words to describe people is so important.
Infographics are also useful for world-building.
This is especially helpful if you want your readers to see the world from a character’s perspective. As an author, you’re bound to be guilty of leaving out details that readers should know about now and then – even if those details seem insignificant. It might not impact the story or hinder their understanding of what’s going on; however, with infographics that don’t require much (if any) text, these tiny pieces of information suddenly become relevant!
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Infographic Templates are also helpful for explaining terms.
If you want to avoid using long-winded explanations within your writing, go for an infographic. If you know readers will use other sources to figure out what your infographics mean, keeping them short and straightforward is even more important. This is a good way to avoid cluttering your book with excess information.
Remember: infographics are only helpful when they’re easy to read and understand.
Make sure that colors aren’t so bright they hurt the eyes; fonts are easy to read (bold or italicized letters for emphasis work well for certain words or phrases). Graphics aren’t so complicated that it takes readers forever to figure out what’s happening in them – especially if you expect readers to look at your infographics more than once.
Easy infographic designing
Just a thing to remember: having infographics in your book doesn’t mean there isn’t room for text – you’re using a different method to communicate information. For easier infographic building, try using an infographic maker, and together with all of these tips, you should be able to create effective infographic templates!
Visit Venngage infographics now and try an array of infographic template designs for all your needs!
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