Scam Magazine is the new magazine for crime story enthusiasts. The magazine functions like a true crime podcast, featuring some crazy stories about fraud, or more commonly scams, from all around. Scam Magazine is more fun loving in making people aware of fraud, still sharing some good tips and heartfelt stories. It is inspired by Certified Fraud Examiners, or CFEs, and their effort to fight and educate about fraud in everyday life.
What Inspired Scam Magazine?
Scam Magazine is inspired by my dad, who is a certified fraud examiner (CFE) and a member of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE). I hear a lot about fraud at home, including some crazy stories, but I’ve also teased my dad for years about how I never see him reading ACFE’s Fraud Magazine publication, even though we always keep the old issues. Scam Magazine is my fun twist to an inside joke with my dad, while also being something that would make me more interested in fraud if I knew nothing about it.
Research
I began by doing more research into fraud, creating mind maps based on my previous and newly acquired knowledge on the topic. From this I began ideating names and sketching, eventually deciding on Scam Magazine. One of the other names which was a front-runner eventually became the name of the feature spread for the issue I created!
Two is Better Than One
I created two very different interpretations of Scam Magazine for both the masthead and the cover. Both options had elements of unseriousness and fun, that fit within the Scam theme.
Extra! Extra! Read All About It!
Next came creating the inside content for the magazine, including the feature spreads, table of contents, and an editor’s note page. It was important for me, through many iterations, to create a sense of familiarity across the pages to make them feel cohesive with each other and within the new brand of Scam Magazine.