{"id":1145582,"date":"2021-02-20T07:43:09","date_gmt":"2021-02-20T15:43:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/?post_type=blog&p=1145582"},"modified":"2026-03-13T08:21:57","modified_gmt":"2026-03-13T15:21:57","slug":"the-quick-brown-foxmaking-smart-type-choices-for-storymaps","status":"publish","type":"blog","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/story-maps\/constituent-engagement\/the-quick-brown-foxmaking-smart-type-choices-for-storymaps","title":{"rendered":"Making smart type choices for ArcGIS StoryMaps"},"author":7221,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_searchwp_excluded":""},"categories":[37131,22941],"tags":[28911,706371,758812,503442,706381],"industry":[],"product":[36611],"class_list":["post-1145582","blog","type-blog","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-constituent-engagement","category-mapping","tag-accessibility","tag-storymaps","tag-type","tag-typography","tag-web-accessibility","product-story-maps"],"acf":{"short_description":"A guide to making wise font choices for your ArcGIS StoryMaps","flexible_content":[{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

As you may know, a recent enhancement<\/a> to ArcGIS StoryMaps has made it easy for authors to choose from a long list of typefaces made available by Google. The addition of Google Fonts to the ArcGIS StoryMaps theme builder<\/a> gives you much more flexibility to express your own aesthetic predilections, to evoke a mood or style appropriate to your story, and to more closely match the branding guidelines of your organization\u2014especially when you customize color treatments as well as font choices.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":1145852,"id":1145852,"title":"small theme builder","filename":"small-theme-builder.jpg","filesize":20021,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/small-theme-builder.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/story-maps\/constituent-engagement\/the-quick-brown-foxmaking-smart-type-choices-for-storymaps\/small-theme-builder","alt":"","author":"7221","description":"","caption":"","name":"small-theme-builder","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":1145582,"date":"2021-02-19 21:53:00","modified":"2021-02-21 14:29:16","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":606,"height":566,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/small-theme-builder-213x200.jpg","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/small-theme-builder.jpg","medium-width":279,"medium-height":261,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/small-theme-builder.jpg","medium_large-width":606,"medium_large-height":566,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/small-theme-builder.jpg","large-width":606,"large-height":566,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/small-theme-builder.jpg","1536x1536-width":606,"1536x1536-height":566,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/small-theme-builder.jpg","2048x2048-width":606,"2048x2048-height":566,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/small-theme-builder-498x465.jpg","card_image-width":498,"card_image-height":465,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/small-theme-builder.jpg","wide_image-width":606,"wide_image-height":566}},"image_position":"left","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

I\u2019ve been a designer for close to a half-century, so my eye is perhaps typographically attuned to a greater extent than most. (Poor type choices can actually offend<\/em>\u00a0me\u2014the Souvenir font, don\u2019t get me started!) But many of us are only vaguely aware of typography. When we see different type styles, they might only elicit a subliminal reaction. But the subconscious and subliminal are important to storytelling, especially<\/em> multimedia storytelling, where images, text, maps, color, type, and even sound can all work together to create an immersive little world. The importance of pairing the right type with the right narrative is exactly why we expanded the options in theme builder so dramatically.<\/p>\n

As usual, though, with freedom comes responsibility\u2014you need to choose your typography wisely. Inappropriate fonts can confuse or contradict your story\u2019s purpose. A frivolous-looking typeface within a serious, issue-driven story can weaken your message and trivialize your narrative. Conversely, a heavy, stern-looking font within a light-hearted tale can send its own kind of mixed messages. And, perhaps more importantly,\u00a0all of us as storytellers should feel ethically obligated to make our narratives as accessible as possible, including to people with visual impairments.\u00a0Poor font choices can compromise your story\u2019s readability\u2014even to people with 20-20 eyesight.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

Typography for beginners<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Before looking at specific examples, and without diving too deeply into the obscure parlance of typography, let\u2019s start with a few font basics. With rare exceptions, fonts are either serif<\/em> or sans serif<\/em>, serifs being those little extensions at the tops and bottoms of letterforms.<\/p>\n

Fonts often come in sets or families<\/em>, with visual weights<\/em> ranging from spindly (light<\/em>) to normal (medium or regular<\/em>) to fat (bold and heavy<\/em>). Fonts can be squished (condensed<\/em>) or stretched (extended<\/em>); they can be upright (roman<\/em>) or slanted and script-like (italic<\/em>). And, of course, there are capitals (caps<\/em>) and lower case (lc<\/em>). (The latter term is a remnant of the type drawers that printers used back in the analog age.)<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":1145792,"id":1145792,"title":"Typography basics","filename":"Typography-basics.jpg","filesize":50311,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Typography-basics.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/story-maps\/constituent-engagement\/the-quick-brown-foxmaking-smart-type-choices-for-storymaps\/typography-basics","alt":"","author":"7221","description":"","caption":"","name":"typography-basics","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":1145582,"date":"2021-02-19 21:38:58","modified":"2021-02-19 21:38:58","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":1920,"height":566,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Typography-basics-213x200.jpg","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Typography-basics.jpg","medium-width":464,"medium-height":137,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Typography-basics.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":226,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Typography-basics.jpg","large-width":1920,"large-height":566,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Typography-basics-1536x453.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":453,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Typography-basics.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":566,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Typography-basics-826x243.jpg","card_image-width":826,"card_image-height":243,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Typography-basics.jpg","wide_image-width":1920,"wide_image-height":566}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

A subtle but important detail to consider in type choices is the proportion of x-height<\/em> vs. ascenders<\/em> and descenders<\/em>. As you\u2019ll soon see, some fonts have ascenders and descenders that are quite tall relative to the \u201cmain\u201d part of the letterforms where most of the action occurs. Older serif fonts tend to have taller ascenders and descenders than more modern versions.<\/p>\n

How do all of these different variables come in to play when choosing the right font for your story? The best way to explain this is with a few examples.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

Comparing fonts in action<\/strong><\/h3>\n

To illustrate the importance of type choices, I created a brief story using Summit, one of our pre-designed themes. It employs Avenir Next (a sans serif font) for titles, and Noto Serif for paragraph text. It\u2019s an effective combination, but as one of our original themes it\u2019s widely used and might have lost some of its distinctiveness as a result.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"sidebar","content":"

For easy comparison,<\/strong> click on each of the images below to open them in a series of browser tabs.<\/p>\n","image_reference":false,"layout":"standard","image_reference_figure":"","snippet":"","spotlight_name":"","section_title":"","position":"Center","spotlight_image":false},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":1145742,"id":1145742,"title":"","filename":"StoryTypo1.jpg","filesize":263725,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo1.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/story-maps\/constituent-engagement\/the-quick-brown-foxmaking-smart-type-choices-for-storymaps\/storytypo1","alt":"","author":"7221","description":"","caption":".","name":"storytypo1","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":1145582,"date":"2021-02-19 21:32:59","modified":"2021-02-19 21:45:21","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":1920,"height":1080,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo1-213x200.jpg","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo1.jpg","medium-width":464,"medium-height":261,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo1.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":432,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo1.jpg","large-width":1920,"large-height":1080,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo1-1536x864.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":864,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo1.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1080,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo1-826x465.jpg","card_image-width":826,"card_image-height":465,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo1.jpg","wide_image-width":1920,"wide_image-height":1080}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

I created the original story using dummy type, or \u201cgreeking\u201d, which can be a handy way to evaluate the look of your text even before you\u2019ve drafted your narrative. You can copy dummy text at this site<\/a>, free of charge, and paste it into your draft story.<\/p>\n

You might notice it ends with \u201cThe quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog.\u201d Why? Because that sentence uses every letter in the alphabet, and provides an efficient way to inspect a potential type choice.<\/p>\n

With my original in place, I then made several duplicates of the story. Next I went into the theme builder to create several font pairings. You\u2019ll find <\/strong>Add from Google Fonts<\/strong> under the <\/strong>Typography<\/strong> menu in the theme builder.<\/strong><\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

Mismatched personalities<\/strong><\/h3>\n

For the first part of the experiment, I made an effort to find fonts that I thought might be particularly inappropriate and that don\u2019t work well together:<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":1145752,"id":1145752,"title":"StoryTypo2","filename":"StoryTypo2.jpg","filesize":257145,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo2.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/story-maps\/constituent-engagement\/the-quick-brown-foxmaking-smart-type-choices-for-storymaps\/storytypo2","alt":"","author":"7221","description":"","caption":"","name":"storytypo2","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":1145582,"date":"2021-02-19 21:33:08","modified":"2021-02-19 21:33:08","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":1920,"height":1080,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo2-213x200.jpg","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo2.jpg","medium-width":464,"medium-height":261,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo2.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":432,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo2.jpg","large-width":1920,"large-height":1080,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo2-1536x864.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":864,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo2.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1080,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo2-826x465.jpg","card_image-width":826,"card_image-height":465,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo2.jpg","wide_image-width":1920,"wide_image-height":1080}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

What\u2019s wrong with this story? The fonts, Almendra and Montserrat, are designed to call attention to themselves rather than to maximize readability. And their styles are utterly different, which means they make poor bedfellows. Almendra’s ornate, antique look might work well on a treasure map, and Montserrat’s informality might be effective on a take-out menu, but it\u2019s hard to imagine their being appropriate for a story, regardless of topic.<\/p>\n

Out of sync serifs<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Here are two other versions of the Adventures in Typography story. They both use serif fonts. But note how the paragraph text in the story that uses EB Garamond looks much smaller than its sister, which uses Manuale. The type is the same size in both stories, but the styling of the font makes the text in story number 3 look considerably smaller. Blame those tall ascenders and descenders. I like the classic look of the Garamond, but the Manuale version scores higher in accessibility.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":1145762,"id":1145762,"title":"StoryTypo3","filename":"StoryTypo3.jpg","filesize":257636,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo3.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/story-maps\/constituent-engagement\/the-quick-brown-foxmaking-smart-type-choices-for-storymaps\/storytypo3","alt":"","author":"7221","description":"","caption":"","name":"storytypo3","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":1145582,"date":"2021-02-19 21:33:16","modified":"2021-02-19 21:33:16","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":1920,"height":1080,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo3-213x200.jpg","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo3.jpg","medium-width":464,"medium-height":261,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo3.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":432,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo3.jpg","large-width":1920,"large-height":1080,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo3-1536x864.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":864,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo3.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1080,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo3-826x465.jpg","card_image-width":826,"card_image-height":465,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo3.jpg","wide_image-width":1920,"wide_image-height":1080}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":1145772,"id":1145772,"title":"StoryTypo4","filename":"StoryTypo4.jpg","filesize":247287,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo4.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/story-maps\/constituent-engagement\/the-quick-brown-foxmaking-smart-type-choices-for-storymaps\/storytypo4","alt":"","author":"7221","description":"","caption":"","name":"storytypo4","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":1145582,"date":"2021-02-19 21:33:25","modified":"2021-02-19 21:33:25","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":1920,"height":1080,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo4-213x200.jpg","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo4.jpg","medium-width":464,"medium-height":261,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo4.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":432,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo4.jpg","large-width":1920,"large-height":1080,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo4-1536x864.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":864,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo4.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1080,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo4-826x465.jpg","card_image-width":826,"card_image-height":465,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo4.jpg","wide_image-width":1920,"wide_image-height":1080}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

Are serif fonts less readable than sans serif? The conventional wisdom for print media is that serif fonts are easier on the eye, and that those terminal strokes and slabs help our eyes move across lines of text, especially within books and lengthy articles. But reading on screens is a different experience. Those fine serif strokes tend to break up or even disappear on some displays; thus, sans serif\u00a0 fonts may be a better choice for paragraph text. But screens on newer computers, tablets, and mobile devices have higher resolutions, so the serif\/sans serif issues are increasingly negligible. What’s more important is how ornate and decorative your fonts choices are.<\/p>\n

In other words, whether a font is serif or sans serif is less important than the thousands of little design details that, in aggregate, make a font easier or harder on the eye. I\u2019m quite fond of a Google Font called Open Sans, used in this version:<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":1145782,"id":1145782,"title":"StoryTypo5","filename":"StoryTypo5.jpg","filesize":243853,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo5.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/story-maps\/constituent-engagement\/the-quick-brown-foxmaking-smart-type-choices-for-storymaps\/storytypo5","alt":"","author":"7221","description":"","caption":"","name":"storytypo5","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":1145582,"date":"2021-02-19 21:33:32","modified":"2021-02-19 21:33:32","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":1920,"height":1080,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo5-213x200.jpg","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo5.jpg","medium-width":464,"medium-height":261,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo5.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":432,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo5.jpg","large-width":1920,"large-height":1080,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo5-1536x864.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":864,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo5.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1080,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo5-826x465.jpg","card_image-width":826,"card_image-height":465,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/StoryTypo5.jpg","wide_image-width":1920,"wide_image-height":1080}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

To me it\u2019s elegant and readable, and has a subtle sense of style that\u2019s not fussy and distracting.<\/p>\n

Carefully chosen combinations<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Is it kosher to mix serif and sans serif fonts within the same story? Answer: Yes. But it\u2019s important to strive for pairings that complement each other. That can either mean that the fonts provide a clear contrast, or that they bear a family resemblance.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s imagine you\u2019re doing a story on, say, 1950s-era drive-in theaters, or Game of Thrones. In those cases, a more flamboyant font might<\/em>\u00a0be appropriate for titles and headers. But I\u2019d choose a paragraph font that\u2019s more conventional and readable, rather than making both of them shout for attention\u2014as in\u00a0Adventures in Typography: 2<\/a>.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":1146162,"id":1146162,"title":"TypoStory6","filename":"TypoStory6.jpg","filesize":378450,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/TypoStory6.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/story-maps\/constituent-engagement\/the-quick-brown-foxmaking-smart-type-choices-for-storymaps\/typostory6","alt":"","author":"7221","description":"","caption":"","name":"typostory6","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":1145582,"date":"2021-02-22 14:11:55","modified":"2021-02-22 14:11:55","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":2452,"height":1564,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/TypoStory6-213x200.jpg","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/TypoStory6.jpg","medium-width":409,"medium-height":261,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/TypoStory6.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":490,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/TypoStory6.jpg","large-width":1693,"large-height":1080,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/TypoStory6-1536x980.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":980,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/TypoStory6-2048x1306.jpg","2048x2048-width":2048,"2048x2048-height":1306,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/TypoStory6-729x465.jpg","card_image-width":729,"card_image-height":465,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2021\/02\/TypoStory6-1693x1080.jpg","wide_image-width":1693,"wide_image-height":1080}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

Conversely, you can choose fonts that are designed to be sympatico. A good example from the Google Fonts list is PT Sans and PT Serif (above). They share both a name and a family resemblance\u2014and both are easy on the eyes.<\/p>\n

By the way, our “pre-packaged” story themes\u2014Summit, Obsidian, Ridgeline, Mesa, Tidal, and Slate\u2014all contain font pairings for which we carefully considered both aesthetics and accessibility.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"sidebar","content":"

Reasons to consider making special font choices for your story:<\/strong><\/p>\n