InkWell App
InkWell is your writing companion. Reach your writing goals and organize your projects, your way.
Client
UX/UI Design Bootcamp at George Washington University
Team
Alejandra Robinson (Interaction Designer, Project Manager)
Carlos Lopez (User Experience Researcher)
Karen Klinedinst (User Interface Designer, Character Designer, Animator)
Saad Ashraf (User Experience Designer)
Project Overview
Inkwell is an application concept created for the UX/UI Design Bootcamp at George Washington University. Our design team researched, prototyped, tested, and validated an idea for an application that could help writers organize their projects, collaborate, and reach their writing goals by gamifying the writing process guided by our cool, animated character, Inky.
I acted as the art director and visual design lead for this project. During our initial brainstorming sessions, I developed our app name InkWell and created the overall visual style, including character design and animation. Inky became the driving force behind InkWell, and elevated the app from a simple writing app to a motivational writing experience.
Problem
During our user interviews and surveys, we found that writers need organization, collaboration, and motivation to help them reach their project goals.
Solution
Inkwell is a flexible writing platform that encourages collaboration and seeks to gamify the experience of writing to keep writers engaged and motivated in their writing projects.
Character Design and Animation
I created our character Inky, the InkWell mascot inspired by Edgar Alan Poe’s Raven and Duolingo’s Owl. Inky walks you through the onboarding process and keeps you motivated through InkWell’s quests and your personal writing goals.
Along with animations, the UX writing gives Inky personality, creating engagement and enhancing the overall user experience.
Style Guide
We set out to create a visual style for InkWell that was sophisticated, yet fun.
Inky was the foundation of the visual style, including the app's logo, sophisticated color palette, typography, and a simple, intuitive, minimal user interface designed not to distract you from the act of writing.
“Karen joined the UX/UI program at GWU with a diverse group of career changers. From day one, she stood out for her enthusiasm and strong work ethic. Her design background and art direction experience were evident in her meticulous attention to detail and exceptional design skills. During group projects, Karen's leadership emerged naturally. She effectively communicated complex ideas, cohesively presented concepts, and utilized her storytelling skills to engage her team. This was particularly evident in her final project, where her out-of-the-box thinking inspired her team to develop outstanding solutions.”
— Gio Montoya, UX Design Facilitator and Educator