→ Character design & product identity

Reedsy's Character Name Generator

Redesigning the graphic elements for Reedsy's name generator, one of the company's celebrated resources for writers and creatives.

The context

As the original generator expanded into new subcategories, Reedsy needed new assets that were representative of them. Since the previous graphic style was being updated across the company's ecosystem, we decided to remake all the elements from scratch, keeping the same web design and assets dimensions to minimize the impact on the development team.

Original assets (vector-based images, exported as very light JPGs)

The goal(s)

The first goal was to maintain visual consistency between all the assets in the generator after this major update.
The second one was to bring the images closer to Reedsy's global illustration language.
And last but not least, to make the generator a more exciting and familiar place for fantasy and fiction fans. And potentially have a positive impact on conversion and brand perception.

Production | Stage 1: Sketching

I decided to use closer shots of the characters, so that even on small screens and mobile devices, we could better appreciate the details of the illustrations and their representative characters. In order to maintain a consistent scale, they were all drawn at the same time on the same layout using Joe Lillington's pencil for Procreate:

Production | Stage 2: Palette and colouring process

The coloring process was carried out by choosing a slightly wider palette than usual at Reedsy, adding additional nuances to its main colours (blue, green, yellow, slate), that would help us with the diversity of the characters, always maintaining similar values.

Basic palette + additional colours

File structure on Procreate

The entire coloring process was carried out in Procreate, using one of my favorite brushes: Max Ulichney's Grainstorm Detail. One of the challenges of the project was achieving the right level of finish.

It's easy to get lost in the details and end up creating a collection of images that, as a whole, is perceived as overly baroque, which would go against Reedsy's overall identity. My goal was to strike a good balance between simplicity and richness.

Selection of characters for the Fantasy category

Selection of characters for the Deities category

Production | Stage 3: Cards design

The design is as basic as it was, but on this occasion we decided to:

Simplify the frames around the characters.
Use a typeface present in the Reedsy ecosystem (Lora).
Add a small badge to differentiate the category of each image, a detail that is not completely necessary, given that the characters are presented in blocks, but that helps establish a small identity for the project.

Main design elements

Design + sketch + frame

Final result

Final thoughts

A small project that could address a particular challenge: creating an individual identity through images that also forms part of the company's overall framework. Something achieved only to a certain extent and that would merit review in the future.

The most rewarding part has been being able to project not only my love of fantasy and character design into this tool, but also my interest in working processes. A tailor-made and lovingly crafted solution that strives to show respect for the people involved in creating the tool and the writers who will enjoy and benefit from it.