“Hierarchy—it’s a big word, and an important but an easy-to-implement concept when it comes to typography.” So begins an insightful beginner-level article on Canva written by Janie Kliever: Why every design needs three levels of typographic hierarchy, posted under Design elements and principles.

From the airport blockbuster thriller, to the fantasy epic, to the literary prize-winner, BBC Arts’ Tom Churchill mocked up five clichés that pervade the book stands, then hilariously pulls out laughably bad real examples that have sold by the truck load.

The last two decades have seen huge changes in the publishing industries – the consolidation of publishers and agents, the advent of cost-effective digital printing for small runs, and the rise of the Internet as a discovery and distribution platform. It’s an industry my father would barely recognise from his time in publishing during the…