Ade Malsasa Akbar contact
Senior author, Open Source enthusiast.
Wednesday, September 16, 2015 at 01:00

I've published a digital magazine created from Scribus. Now, I want to share how to create a magazine like that. So, you can create that magazine yourself. This tutorial tells about internal page layout. I want to tell cover page layout in next tutorial. My foreword is you will deal with F2 (Properties) intensely in Scribus. My magazine picture looks like below. Enjoy.



Ingredients

 

  • Scribus
  • Properties (F2), Text Frame (T), Link Text Frame (N), Insert Image Frame (I)
  • FreeSans font (download here)
  • A complete article in TXT
  • A picture in PNG
  • Focus on the blank spaces, not the contents
  • Don't think Scribus as Libreoffice Writer, they are too different
  • Pen and paper

Sketching

 

Sketch on your paper a concept layout design like this.


Putting Text Boxes

 

Create text boxes (Scribus calls it text frame) based on your sketch. See, the frames put as columns. Ignore the most left column below (that is shape, not text box). You will see the result like this.


Insert Text

 

Double click the first text boxes, paste your text. Yes, your long text will not fit one single text box. You will see a little red box contains X letter in its bottom-right. You will see the result like this.



Link Text Boxes

 

Click the first text frame, click Link Text Frame (N) button, click second text frame. This will continue your text into frame number two. You can link again from number two to three as you like. You will see the result like this.


Format Text

 

Click the text frame, press F2 (Properties), open Text tab, change the font into FreeSans Medium 7 pt with space for 9 pt. Your fundamental layout is almost finished. See result below.


Insert Picture

 

Click Insert Image Frame (I) button, put in a place even on your text. You will see a blank frame just like Text Frame. Double click it, select picture you have prepared. See result below.


Eyecandies

 

Above, you've got the basics. The basic concept of desktop publishing (dealing with text)  in Scribus. Now, with that basic concept, repeat it to create the title text and another text boxes. Place some pictures too. For example, see this final result: