Cover 2 Cover Magazine feels like a first-born child. It was birthed out of a need to create and it has grown into something I am so proud of. This fall, we produced our third issue and it was a project that started before school began. 

After learning  a lot of lessons last year about deadlines, planning and seeing the bigger picture. Our Editor In Chief, Essence Wiley, and I decided to begin preparing for this issue in late July. This way, when the semester picked up our growing creative team was already well-connected and functioning as a team. Out of the other two issues we produced, this one went the smoothest by far. Our preparation and dedication to improvement has carried us to new heights. 

We printed 500 copies of our magazine and after a day we couldn’t find any copies left on campus. Our followers on Instagram grew by nearly two hundred people when we started our two-week long magazine rollout and our engagement is the highest it has ever been. 

For me, I came into this new semester thinking about how I could do better as Chief Creative Officer. 

As a leader, I wanted to coordinate meetings for our team better and ensure that everyone felt involved in the creative process. In addition, I wanted to streamline processes and organize our internal communication. So, the first thing I did was organize our Google Drive system to include resources, a guidebook, and meeting notes for our teams. This semester I wanted to make sure that internal communication ran smoothly and that team members had clear expectations and deliverables. Last year, I made a lot of assumptions about what people knew and decided that this year I would rather over communicate than to leave things unsaid.   

Creatively, I wanted to develop C2C’s brand. Establishing fonts, style guides, and any other visual elements. I wanted our website, social media platforms, and printed work to look cohesive. For C2C to be recognizable beyond our logo. In addition, I wanted our printed magazine to be professional. That meant exposing my team to works like Essence, Dazed, ID, and New York Magazine. I believe that as a result of this, our magazine looked better than it ever has.

Last spring, with our first printed issue, our cover was a little grainy. This year, I learned about photo editing in Photoshop and the importance of ensuring the PPI was never below 200. I emphasized readability and spacing for our printed designs. Overall, I learned that as a creative leader for our magazine every decision had to be done with intention. It isn’t just art for art’s sake but art that enhances written communication. 

As I look to the future of my final semester at Howard University, I think about the work I will leave behind. I want to make sure that there is a clean transfer of power and principle at C2C. So, my final semester will be spent ensuring that my successor is prepared to lead our teams even better than I did. I can’t wait to see what we accomplish in 2024!