I have worked a couple of years as an expert for The Finnish Centre for Easy-to-Read. When I started I thought I already knew everything I needed, since I have popularized texts throughout my working life. What an awakening I’ve had! I constantly learn new things from the Centre’s experienced professionals.
One important thing has been how to design an easy-to-read layout. At first, I used the recommended line length of 55 to 60 characters. However, an experienced colleague suggested even shorter lines.
For example, this line has 43 characters.
I learned, with some effort, to use shorter lines with only one phrase or sentence in the line. Even official documents began to resemble a poem.
Meanwhile, my font size became larger. Now I use Arial 14 point in the body text. I think it is the smallest size which is easily read by older people. It was educational to watch an 85-year-old trying to read a twenty-page guideline from the city – in an 11-point font. That didn’t go well.
General layout instructions are the same as in other texts. People read popular fonts fastest. Lowercase letters are easier than capitals. Contrast is best when using black text on a white background. The left edge of the column is even, the right edge ragged. Highlighting should be used only with caution.