Ten tips for better text

R Ladies Rome | Code-along Workshop | 30th November 2023

Hi there đź‘‹

đź‘© Cara Thompson

👩‍💻 Love for patterns in music & language, and a fascination with the human brain %>% Psychology PhD %>% Analysis of postgraduate medical examinations %>% Data Visualisation Consultant


đź’™ Helping others maximise the impact of their expertise

Find out more: cararthompson.com/about

10 tips for making text better

  • Using {bakeoff} by Alison Presmanes Hill
  • Namespacing
    • package::function("blah")
  • Choose your own pipe
    • I like the old one
  • All the code and slides available on my talks page
    • hello@cararthompson.com



Setting up a basic plot

Our starting point

Some data…

library(tidyverse)

all_the_bakes <- bakeoff::challenges %>% 
  select(-technical) %>%
  pivot_longer(c(signature, showstopper)) %>%
  pull(value) %>%
  tolower()

key_components <- tibble(
  component = c("Chocolate",
                "Raspberry",
                "GĂ©noise or Sponge",
                "Rhubarb"),
  count = c(sum(grepl("chocolat", all_the_bakes)),
            sum(grepl("raspberr", all_the_bakes)),
            sum(grepl("sponge|genoise|génoise", all_the_bakes)),
            sum(grepl("rhubarb", all_the_bakes)))
)

key_components
# A tibble: 4 x 2
  component         count
  <chr>             <int>
1 Chocolate           206
2 Raspberry            76
3 GĂ©noise or Sponge    12
4 Rhubarb              30

Our starting point

A plot!

key_components %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = component,
             y = count,
             fill = component)) +
  geom_bar(stat = "identity")

Our starting point

Mini tip - theme_minimal()!

key_components %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = component,
             y = count,
             fill = component)) +
  geom_bar(stat = "identity") +
  theme_minimal()

Our starting point

Let’s add a bit of text…

key_components %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = component,
             y = count,
             fill = component)) +
  geom_bar(stat = "identity") +
  labs(title = "Everybody loves chocolate",
       subtitle = "Out of our four key cake components, selected arbitrarily for the purpose of this demonstration, chocolate stood out as the most frequently used by far. No huge surprises there!") +
  theme_minimal()

Our starting point

Let’s add a bit of text…

key_components %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = component,
             y = count,
             fill = component)) +
  geom_bar(stat = "identity") +
  labs(title = "Everybody loves chocolate",
       subtitle = "Out of our four key cake components, selected arbitrarily for the purpose of this demonstration, chocolate stood out as the most frequently used by far. No huge surprises there!") +
  theme_minimal(base_size = 18)

Our starting point

Mini tip! Get the bars in order

key_components %>%
  arrange(count) %>%
  mutate(component = factor(component, 
                            levels = component)) %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = component,
             y = count,
             fill = component,
             colour = component)) +
  geom_bar(stat = "identity") +
  labs(title = "Everybody loves chocolate",
       subtitle = "Out of our four key cake components, selected arbitrarily for the purpose of this demonstration, chocolate stood out as the most frequently used by far. No huge surprises there!") +
  theme_minimal(base_size = 18)

Our starting point

Mini tip! Avoid giving everyone a sore neck

key_components %>%
  arrange(count) %>%
  mutate(component = factor(component, 
                            levels = component)) %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = component,
             y = count,
             fill = component,
             colour = component)) +
  geom_bar(stat = "identity") +
  labs(title = "Everybody loves chocolate",
       subtitle = "Out of our four key cake components, selected arbitrarily for the purpose of this demonstration, chocolate stood out as the most frequently used by far. No huge surprises there!") +
  theme_minimal(base_size = 18) +
  coord_flip()

Our starting point

Mini tip! Use plain English

key_components %>%
  arrange(count) %>%
  mutate(component = factor(component, 
                            levels = component)) %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = component,
             y = count,
             fill = component,
             colour = component)) +
  geom_bar(stat = "identity") +
  labs(title = "Everybody loves chocolate",
       subtitle = "Out of our four key cake components, selected arbitrarily for the purpose of this demonstration, chocolate stood out as the most frequently used by far. No huge surprises there!",
       y = "Number of bakes") +
  theme_minimal(base_size = 18) +
  coord_flip()

Our starting point

Perfectly functional - but…

#1 Decrease reliance on text

#1 Decrease reliance on text

Which one is Bouba, and which one is Kiki?
“Sound Symbolism” - Wolfgang Köhler 1929

Find out more: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bouba/kiki_effect

#1 Decrease reliance on text

Which one is Bouba, and which one is Kiki?

Predicted by sound properties - Passi & Arun, 2022

Find out more: Passi, A. and Arun, S.P. (2022) The Bouba–Kiki effect is predicted by sound properties but not speech properties

#1 Decrease reliance on text

A mouth-watering palette!

component_colours <- c("Chocolate" = "#300300",
                       "Raspberry" = "#a8001a",
                       "GĂ©noise or Sponge" = "#d4943b",
                       "Rhubarb" = "#df7864")

monochromeR::view_palette(component_colours)

#1 Decrease reliance on text

basic_bar_plot

#1 Decrease reliance on text

basic_bar_plot +
  scale_fill_manual(values = component_colours)

#1 Decrease reliance on text

basic_bar_plot +
  scale_fill_manual(values = component_colours) +
  theme(legend.position = "none")

#1 Decrease reliance on text

basic_bar_plot +
  scale_fill_manual(values = component_colours) +
  theme(legend.position = "none",
        axis.title.y = element_blank())

#1 Decrease reliance on text

#2 Add text hierarchy

#2 Add text hierarchy

Source: https://www.interaction-design.org/

#2 Add text hierarchy

Where we were…

basic_bar_plot +
  scale_fill_manual(values = component_colours) +
  theme(legend.position = "none",
        axis.title.y = element_blank())

#2 Add text hierarchy

Use text colour based on “anchor” colour

basic_bar_plot +
  scale_fill_manual(values = component_colours) +
  theme(text = element_text(colour = "#4C3232"),
        legend.position = "none",
        axis.title.y = element_blank())

#2 Add text hierarchy

Override theme_minimal()’s axis text colour

basic_bar_plot +
  scale_fill_manual(values = component_colours) +
  theme(text = element_text(colour = "#4C3232"),
        legend.position = "none",
        axis.title.y = element_blank(),
        axis.text = element_text(colour = "#4C3232"))

#2 Add text hierarchy

Use text colour(s) based on “anchor” colour

basic_bar_plot +
  scale_fill_manual(values = component_colours) +
  theme(text = element_text(colour = "#4C3232"),
        legend.position = "none",
        axis.title.y = element_blank(),
        plot.title = element_text(colour = "#200000"),
        axis.text = element_text(colour = "#4C3232"))

#2 Add text hierarchy

Increase difference between title and subtitle

basic_bar_plot +
  scale_fill_manual(values = component_colours) +
  theme(text = element_text(colour = "#4C3232"),
        legend.position = "none",
        axis.title.y = element_blank(),
        plot.title = element_text(size = 24, 
                                  colour = "#200000"),
        axis.text = element_text(colour = "#4C3232"))

#2 Add text hierarchy

Add some personality!

basic_bar_plot +
  scale_fill_manual(values = component_colours) +
  theme(text = element_text(family = "Cabin", 
                            colour = "#4C3232"),
        legend.position = "none",
        axis.title.y = element_blank(),
        plot.subtitle = element_text(size = 16),
        plot.title = element_text(family = "OPTIAuvantGothic-DemiBold", 
                                  size = 24, 
                                  face = "bold",
                                  colour = "#200000"),
        axis.text = element_text(colour = "#4C3232"))

#2 - Add text hierarchy

Getting fonts to work can be frustrating!

  • Check what fonts are installed on your system
    • systemfonts::system_fonts() |> View()
  • Nothing there you like?
    • Install a new one!
    • Google fonts, or your alternative of choice
    • “Download family”
    • Extract .ttf files
    • Right click, install for “all users”
    • Restart RStudio

#2 - Add text hierarchy

Getting fonts to work can be frustrating!

Install fonts locally, restart R Studio + 📦 {systemfonts} ({ragg} + {textshaping}) + Set graphics device to “AGG” + 🤞



knitr::opts_chunk$set(dev = “ragg_png”)



Find out more: yjunechoe.github.io/posts/2021-06-24-setting-up-and-debugging-custom-fonts/

#2 Add text hierarchy

I ❤️ {ggtext}

basic_bar_plot +
  scale_fill_manual(values = component_colours) +
  theme(text = element_text(family = "Cabin", 
                            colour = "#4C3232"),
        legend.position = "none",
        axis.title.y = element_blank(),
        plot.subtitle = ggtext::element_textbox_simple(size = 16),
        plot.title = element_text(family = "OPTIAuvantGothic-DemiBold", 
                                  size = 24, 
                                  face = "bold",
                                  colour = "#200000"),
        axis.text = element_text(colour = "#4C3232"))

#2 Add text hierarchy

I ❤️ {ggtext} - but watch that alignment!

basic_bar_plot +
  scale_fill_manual(values = component_colours) +
  theme(text = element_text(family = "Cabin", 
                            colour = "#4C3232"),
        legend.position = "none",
        axis.title.y = element_blank(),
        plot.subtitle = ggtext::element_textbox_simple(size = 16, 
                                                       vjust = 1),
        plot.title = element_text(family = "OPTIAuvantGothic-DemiBold", 
                                  size = 24, 
                                  face = "bold",
                                  colour = "#200000"),
        axis.text = element_text(colour = "#4C3232"))

#2 Add text hierarchy

Allow some breathing space

basic_bar_plot +
  scale_fill_manual(values = component_colours) +
  theme(text = element_text(family = "Cabin", 
                            colour = "#4C3232"),
        legend.position = "none",
        axis.title.y = element_blank(),
        plot.subtitle = ggtext::element_textbox_simple(size = 16, 
                                                       vjust = 1,
                                                       margin = margin(0, 0, 12, 0)),
        plot.title = element_text(family = "OPTIAuvantGothic-DemiBold", 
                                  size = 24, 
                                  face = "bold",
                                  colour = "#200000",
                                  margin = margin(12, 0, 12, 0)),
        axis.text = element_text(colour = "#4C3232"))

#2 Add text hierarchy

#2 Add text hierarchy

plot +
  theme_minimal() +
  theme(text = element_text(family = "Cabin", 
                            size = 12, 
                            colour = "#4C3232"),
        legend.position = "none",
        axis.title.y = element_blank(),
        plot.subtitle = ggtext::element_textbox_simple(size = 16,
                                                       vjust = 1,
                                                       margin = margin(0, 0, 12, 0)),
        plot.title = element_text(family = "OPTIAuvantGothic-DemiBold", 
                                  size = 24, 
                                  face = "bold",
                                  colour = "#200000",
                                  margin = margin(12, 0, 12, 0)),
        axis.text = element_text(colour = "#4C3232"))

#2 Add text hierarchy

plot +
  theme_bakeoff()

#2 Add text hierarchy

theme_nhsr_demo <- function(base_size = 12, 
                            dark_text = "#1A242F") {

  mid_text <-  monochromeR::generate_palette(dark_text, "go_lighter", n_colours = 5)[2]
  light_text <-  monochromeR::generate_palette(dark_text, "go_lighter", n_colours = 5)[3]
  
  theme_minimal(base_size = base_size) +
    theme(text = element_text(colour = mid_text, family = "BrandonText", lineheight = 1.1),
          plot.title = element_text(colour = dark_text, family = "EnriquetaSB", size = rel(1.6), margin = margin(12, 0, 8, 0)),
          plot.subtitle = element_text(size = rel(1.1), margin = margin(4, 0, 0, 0)),
          axis.text.y = element_text(colour = light_text, size = rel(0.8)),
          axis.title.y = element_text(size = 12, margin = margin(0, 4, 0, 0)),
          axis.text.x = element_text(colour = mid_text, size = 12),
          axis.title.x = element_blank(),
          legend.position = "top",
          legend.justification = 1,
          panel.grid = element_line(colour = "#F3F4F5"),
          plot.caption = element_text(size = rel(0.8), margin = margin(8, 0, 0, 0)),
          plot.margin = margin(0.25, 0.25, 0.25, 0.25,"cm"))
}

Find out more: Variation on a ggtheme

#2 Add text hierarchy

palmerpenguins::penguins %>%
  ggplot() +
  geom_point(aes(x = bill_length_mm,
                 y = flipper_length_mm,
                 colour = species,
                 size = body_mass_g)) +
  labs(x = "Bill length (mm)",
       y = "Flipper length (mm)",
       title = "Let's try some *italics* in the title",
       subtitle = "Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat.",
       caption = "Data from {palmerpenguins}") +
  guides(size = "none")

#2 Add text hierarchy

palmerpenguins::penguins %>%
  ggplot() +
  geom_point(aes(x = bill_length_mm,
                 y = flipper_length_mm,
                 colour = species,
                 size = body_mass_g)) +
  labs(x = "Bill length (mm)",
       y = "Flipper length (mm)",
       title = "Let's try some *italics* in the title",
       subtitle = "Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat.",
       caption = "Data from {palmerpenguins}") +
  guides(size = "none") +
  ophelia::theme_ophelia()

#2 Add text hierarchy

palmerpenguins::penguins %>%
  ggplot() +
  geom_point(aes(x = bill_length_mm,
                 y = flipper_length_mm,
                 colour = species,
                 size = body_mass_g)) +
  labs(x = "Bill length (mm)",
       y = "Flipper length (mm)",
       title = "Let's try some *italics* in the title",
       subtitle = "Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat.",
       caption = "Data from {palmerpenguins}") +
  guides(size = "none") +
  ophelia::scale_colour_ophelia() +
  ophelia::theme_ophelia()

#3 Reduce unnecessary eye movement

Our starting point

bar_plot_text_hierarchy

#3 Reduce unnecessary eye movement

Mind the gap!

bar_plot_text_hierarchy +
  scale_y_continuous(expand = expansion(c(0, 0.02)))

#3 Reduce unnecessary eye movement

I ❤️ {ggtext}

bar_plot_text_hierarchy +
  scale_y_continuous(expand = expansion(c(0, 0.02))) +
  ggtext::geom_textbox(aes(label = component))

#3 Reduce unnecessary eye movement

Debugging mode

bar_plot_text_hierarchy +
  scale_y_continuous(expand = expansion(c(0, 0.02))) +
  ggtext::geom_textbox(aes(label = component),
                       fill = "white")

#3 Reduce unnecessary eye movement

Debugging mode

bar_plot_text_hierarchy +
  scale_y_continuous(expand = expansion(c(0, 0.02))) +
  ggtext::geom_textbox(aes(label = component),
                       fill = "white",
                       size = 7,
                       hjust =  1,
                       halign = 1)

#3 Reduce unnecessary eye movement

Conditional alignments!

bar_plot_text_hierarchy +
  scale_y_continuous(expand = expansion(c(0, 0.02))) +
  ggtext::geom_textbox(aes(label = component,
                       hjust =  case_when(count < 50 ~ 0,
                                          TRUE ~ 1),
                       halign = case_when(count < 50 ~ 0,
                                          TRUE ~ 1)),
                       size = 7,
                       fill = "white")

#3 Reduce unnecessary eye movement

Conditional alignments & colour

bar_plot_text_hierarchy +
  scale_y_continuous(expand = expansion(c(0, 0.02))) +
  ggtext::geom_textbox(aes(label = component,
                       hjust =  case_when(count < 50 ~ 0,
                                          TRUE ~ 1),
                       halign = case_when(count < 50 ~ 0,
                                          TRUE ~ 1),
                       colour = case_when(count < 50 ~ "#4C3232",
                                          TRUE ~ "white")),
                       size = 7,
                       fill = "white")

#3 Reduce unnecessary eye movement

Conditional alignments & colour

bar_plot_text_hierarchy +
  scale_y_continuous(expand = expansion(c(0, 0.02))) +
  ggtext::geom_textbox(aes(label = component,
                       hjust =  case_when(count < 50 ~ 0,
                                          TRUE ~ 1),
                       halign = case_when(count < 50 ~ 0,
                                          TRUE ~ 1),
                       colour = case_when(count < 50 ~ "#4C3232",
                                          TRUE ~ "white")),
                       size = 7,
                       fill = "white") +
  scale_colour_identity()

#3 Reduce unnecessary eye movement

Bring in our fonts and colours

bar_plot_text_hierarchy +
  scale_y_continuous(expand = expansion(c(0, 0.02))) +
  ggtext::geom_textbox(aes(label = component,
                       hjust =  case_when(count < 50 ~ 0,
                                          TRUE ~ 1),
                       halign = case_when(count < 50 ~ 0,
                                          TRUE ~ 1),
                       colour = case_when(count < 50 ~ "#4C3232",
                                          TRUE ~ "white")),
                       fill = NA,
                       box.colour = NA,
                       family = "Cabin",
                       size = 7,
                       fontface = "bold") +
  scale_colour_identity()

#3 Reduce unnecessary eye movement

Do we need that text?

bar_plot_text_hierarchy +
  scale_y_continuous(expand = expansion(c(0, 0.02))) +
  ggtext::geom_textbox(aes(label = component,
                       hjust =  case_when(count < 50 ~ 0,
                                          TRUE ~ 1),
                       halign = case_when(count < 50 ~ 0,
                                          TRUE ~ 1),
                       colour = case_when(count < 50 ~ "#4C3232",
                                          TRUE ~ "white")),
                       fill = NA,
                       box.colour = NA,
                       family = "Cabin",
                       size = 7,
                       fontface = "bold") +
  scale_colour_identity() +
  theme(axis.text.y = element_blank())

#3 Reduce unnecessary eye movement

Could we make our labels more informative?

bar_plot_text_hierarchy +
  scale_y_continuous(expand = expansion(c(0, 0.02))) +
  ggtext::geom_textbox(aes(label = paste0(component,
                                          "<br><span style='font-size:32pt'>",
                                          count,
                                          "</span>"),
                       hjust =  case_when(count < 50 ~ 0,
                                          TRUE ~ 1),
                       halign = case_when(count < 50 ~ 0,
                                          TRUE ~ 1),
                       colour = case_when(count < 50 ~ "#4C3232",
                                          TRUE ~ "white")),
                       fill = NA,
                       box.colour = NA,
                       family = "Cabin",
                       size = 7,
                       fontface = "bold") +
  scale_colour_identity() +
  theme(axis.text.y = element_blank())

#3 Reduce unnecessary eye movement

Alignment tweak

bar_plot_text_hierarchy +
  scale_y_continuous(expand = expansion(c(0, 0.02))) +
  ggtext::geom_textbox(aes(label = paste0(component,
                                          "<span style='font-size:32pt'><br>",
                                          count,
                                          "</span>"),
                       hjust =  case_when(count < 50 ~ 0,
                                          TRUE ~ 1),
                       halign = case_when(count < 50 ~ 0,
                                          TRUE ~ 1),
                       colour = case_when(count < 50 ~ "#4C3232",
                                          TRUE ~ "white")),
                       vjust = 0.45,
                       fill = NA,
                       box.colour = NA,
                       family = "Cabin",
                       size = 7,
                       fontface = "bold") +
  scale_colour_identity() +
  theme(axis.text.y = element_blank())

#3 Reduce unnecessary eye movement

Do we need the rest of this?

bar_plot_text_hierarchy +
  scale_y_continuous(expand = expansion(c(0, 0.02))) +
  ggtext::geom_textbox(aes(label = paste0(component,
                                          " bakes<span style='font-size:32pt'><br>",
                                          count,
                                          "</span>"),
                       hjust =  case_when(count < 50 ~ 0,
                                          TRUE ~ 1),
                       halign = case_when(count < 50 ~ 0,
                                          TRUE ~ 1),
                       colour = case_when(count < 50 ~ "#4C3232",
                                          TRUE ~ "white")),
                       vjust = 0.45,
                       fill = NA,
                       box.colour = NA,
                       family = "Cabin",
                       size = 7,
                       fontface = "bold") +
  scale_colour_identity() +
  theme(axis.text.y = element_blank(),
        axis.text.x = element_blank(),
        axis.title.x = element_blank(),
        panel.grid = element_blank())

#3 Reduce unnecessary eye movement

How would I actually say that?

bar_plot_text_hierarchy +
  scale_y_continuous(expand = expansion(c(0, 0.02))) +
  ggtext::geom_textbox(aes(label = paste0("<span style='font-size:32pt'><br>",
                                          count,
                                          "<br></span>",
                                          component, " bakes"),
                       hjust =  case_when(count < 50 ~ 0,
                                          TRUE ~ 1),
                       halign = case_when(count < 50 ~ 0,
                                          TRUE ~ 1),
                       colour = case_when(count < 50 ~ "#4C3232",
                                          TRUE ~ "white")),
                       vjust = 0.45,
                       fill = NA,
                       box.colour = NA,
                       family = "Cabin",
                       size = 7,
                       fontface = "bold") +
  scale_colour_identity() +
  theme(axis.text.y = element_blank(),
        plot.title.position = "plot",
        axis.text.x = element_blank(),
        axis.title.x = element_blank(),
        panel.grid = element_blank())

#3 Reduce unnecessary eye movement

#4 Declutter, declutter, declutter

#4 Declutter, declutter, declutter

“But that was easy, there was so little data!”

bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
  left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
              filter(series_winner == 1)) %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = episode,
             y = -technical)) +
  geom_path(aes(colour = baker)) +
  theme_minimal()

#4 Declutter, declutter, declutter

#4 Declutter, declutter, declutter

#4 Declutter, declutter, declutter

Try facets?

bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
  left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
              filter(series_winner == 1)) %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = episode,
             y = -technical)) +
  geom_path(aes(colour = baker),
            show.legend = FALSE) +
  facet_grid(. ~ series) +
  theme_minimal()

#4 Declutter, declutter, declutter

#4 Declutter, declutter, declutter

Try facets on less data?

bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
  filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
  left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
              filter(series_winner == 1)) %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = episode,
             y = -technical)) +
  geom_path(aes(colour = baker),
            show.legend = FALSE) +
  facet_grid(. ~ series) +
  theme_minimal()

#4 Declutter, declutter, declutter

Enter {gghighlight}

bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
  filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
  left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
              filter(series_winner == 1)) %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = episode,
             y = -technical)) +
  geom_path(aes(colour = baker),
            show.legend = FALSE) +
    gghighlight::gghighlight(series_winner == 1) +
  facet_grid(. ~ series) +
  theme_minimal()

#4 Declutter, declutter, declutter

Enter {gghighlight} - calculate_per_facet

bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
  filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
  left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
              filter(series_winner == 1)) %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = episode,
             y = -technical)) +
  geom_path(aes(colour = baker),
            show.legend = FALSE) +
  gghighlight::gghighlight(series_winner == 1,
                           calculate_per_facet = TRUE) +
  facet_grid(. ~ series) +
  theme_minimal()

#4 Declutter, declutter, declutter

Enter {gghighlight} - calculate_per_facet

bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
  filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
  left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
              filter(series_winner == 1)) %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = episode,
             y = -technical)) +
  geom_path(aes(colour = series),
            show.legend = FALSE) +
  gghighlight::gghighlight(series_winner == 1,
                           calculate_per_facet = TRUE) +
  scale_colour_gradient2(low = "#e04121", mid = "#f7238a", 
                         high = "#ed9e00", midpoint = 7) +
  facet_grid(. ~ series) +
  theme_minimal()

#4 Declutter, declutter, declutter

I ❤️ {geomtextpath}

bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
  filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
  left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
              filter(series_winner == 1)) %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = episode,
             y = -technical)) +
  geom_path(aes(colour = series),
            show.legend = FALSE) +
  gghighlight::gghighlight(series_winner == 1,
                           calculate_per_facet = TRUE) +
  scale_colour_gradient2(low = "#e04121", mid = "#f7238a", 
                         high = "#ed9e00", midpoint = 7.1) +
  facet_grid(. ~ series) +
  geomtextpath::geom_textpath(aes(label = baker),
                              vjust = -0.2,
                              text_only = TRUE,
                              hjust = 0.3) +
  theme_minimal()

#4 Declutter, declutter, declutter

And some more {ggtext} fun!

bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
  filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
  left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
              filter(series_winner == 1)) %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = episode,
             y = -technical)) +
  geom_path(aes(colour = series),
            show.legend = FALSE) +
  gghighlight::gghighlight(series_winner == 1,
                           calculate_per_facet = TRUE) +
  scale_colour_gradient2(low = "#e04121", mid = "#f7238a", 
                         high = "#ed9e00", midpoint = 7.1) +
  facet_grid(. ~ series) +
  geomtextpath::geom_textpath(aes(label = baker),
                              vjust = -0.2,text_only = TRUE,
                              hjust = 0.3) +
  ggtext::geom_textbox(data = bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
                         filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
                         left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
                                     filter(series_winner == 1)) %>% 
                         filter(series_winner == 1,
                                episode %in% c(1, 10)),
                       aes(label = technical)) +
  theme_minimal()

#4 Declutter, declutter, declutter

And some more {ggtext} fun!

bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
  filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
  left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
              filter(series_winner == 1)) %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = episode,
             y = -technical)) +
  geom_path(aes(colour = series),
            show.legend = FALSE) +
  gghighlight::gghighlight(series_winner == 1,
                           calculate_per_facet = TRUE) +
  scale_colour_gradient2(low = "#e04121", mid = "#f7238a", 
                         high = "#ed9e00", midpoint = 7.1) +
  facet_grid(. ~ series) +
  geomtextpath::geom_textpath(aes(label = baker),
                              vjust = -0.2,text_only = TRUE,
                              hjust = 0.3) +
  ggtext::geom_textbox(data = bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
                         filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
                         left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
                                     filter(series_winner == 1)) %>% 
                         filter(series_winner == 1,
                                episode %in% c(1, 10)),
                       aes(label = technical,
                           hjust = case_when(episode == 1 ~ 1, 
                                             TRUE ~ 0),
                           halign = case_when(episode == 1 ~ 1, 
                                             TRUE ~ 0))) +
  theme_minimal()

#4 Declutter, declutter, declutter

And some more {ggtext} fun!

bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
  filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
  left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
              filter(series_winner == 1)) %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = episode,
             y = -technical)) +
  geom_path(aes(colour = series),
            show.legend = FALSE) +
  gghighlight::gghighlight(series_winner == 1,
                           calculate_per_facet = TRUE) +
  scale_colour_gradient2(low = "#e04121", mid = "#f7238a", 
                         high = "#ed9e00", midpoint = 7.1) +
  facet_grid(. ~ series) +
  geomtextpath::geom_textpath(aes(label = baker),
                              vjust = -0.2,text_only = TRUE,
                              hjust = 0.3) +
  ggtext::geom_textbox(data = bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
                         filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
                         left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
                                     filter(series_winner == 1)) %>% 
                         filter(series_winner == 1,
                                episode %in% c(1, 10)),
                       aes(label = paste0("#", technical),
                           hjust = case_when(episode == 1 ~ 1, 
                                             TRUE ~ 0),
                           halign = case_when(episode == 1 ~ 1, 
                                             TRUE ~ 0)),
                       box.colour = NA,
                       fill = NA) +
  scale_x_continuous(expand = expansion(0.2)) +
  theme_minimal()

#4 Declutter, declutter, declutter

And some more {ggtext} fun!

bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
  filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
  left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
              filter(series_winner == 1)) %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = episode,
             y = -technical)) +
  geom_path(aes(colour = series),
            show.legend = FALSE) +
  gghighlight::gghighlight(series_winner == 1,
                           calculate_per_facet = TRUE) +
  scale_colour_gradient2(low = "#e04121", mid = "#f7238a", 
                         high = "#ed9e00", midpoint = 7.1) +
  facet_grid(. ~ series) +
  geomtextpath::geom_textpath(aes(label = baker),
                              vjust = -0.2,text_only = TRUE,
                              hjust = 0.3,
                              family = "Cabin") +
  ggtext::geom_textbox(data = bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
                         filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
                         left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
                                     filter(series_winner == 1)) %>% 
                         filter(series_winner == 1,
                                episode %in% c(1, 10)),
                       aes(label = paste0("#", technical),
                           hjust = case_when(episode == 1 ~ 1, 
                                             TRUE ~ 0),
                           halign = case_when(episode == 1 ~ 1, 
                                             TRUE ~ 0)),
                       box.colour = NA,
                       family = "Cabin",
                       fill = NA) +
  scale_x_continuous(expand = expansion(0.2)) +
  theme_minimal()

#4 Declutter, declutter, declutter

Format the facet titles

bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
  filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
  left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
              filter(series_winner == 1)) %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = episode,
             y = -technical)) +
  geom_path(aes(colour = series),
            show.legend = FALSE) +
  gghighlight::gghighlight(series_winner == 1,
                           calculate_per_facet = TRUE) +
  scale_colour_gradient2(low = "#e04121", mid = "#f7238a", 
                         high = "#ed9e00", midpoint = 7.1) +
  facet_grid(. ~ series, 
             labeller = as_labeller(function(x) 
               paste("Series", x))) +
  geomtextpath::geom_textpath(aes(label = baker),
                              vjust = -0.2,text_only = TRUE,
                              hjust = 0.3,
                              family = "Cabin") +
  ggtext::geom_textbox(data = bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
                         filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
                         left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
                                     filter(series_winner == 1)) %>% 
                         filter(series_winner == 1,
                                episode %in% c(1, 10)),
                       aes(label = paste0("#", technical),
                           hjust = case_when(episode == 1 ~ 1, 
                                             TRUE ~ 0),
                           halign = case_when(episode == 1 ~ 1, 
                                             TRUE ~ 0)),
                       box.colour = NA,
                       family = "Cabin",
                       fill = NA) +
  scale_x_continuous(expand = expansion(0.2)) +
  theme_void() +
  theme(strip.text = element_text(family = "Cabin", colour = "#200000",
                                  size = 16))

#4 Declutter, declutter, declutter

Format the facet titles

bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
  filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
  left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
              filter(series_winner == 1)) %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = episode,
             y = -technical)) +
  geom_path(aes(colour = series),
            show.legend = FALSE) +
  gghighlight::gghighlight(series_winner == 1,
                           calculate_per_facet = TRUE) +
  scale_colour_gradient2(low = "#e04121", mid = "#f7238a", 
                         high = "#ed9e00", midpoint = 7.1) +
  facet_grid(. ~ series, labeller = as_labeller(function(x) paste("Series", x))) +
  geomtextpath::geom_textpath(aes(label = baker),
                              vjust = -0.2,text_only = TRUE,
                              hjust = 0.3,
                              family = "Cabin") +
  ggtext::geom_textbox(data = bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
                         filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
                         left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
                                     filter(series_winner == 1)) %>% 
                         filter(series_winner == 1,
                                episode %in% c(1, 10)),
                       aes(label = paste0("#", technical),
                           hjust = case_when(episode == 1 ~ 1, 
                                             TRUE ~ 0),
                           halign = case_when(episode == 1 ~ 1, 
                                             TRUE ~ 0)),
                       box.colour = NA,
                       family = "Cabin",
                       fill = NA) +
  scale_x_continuous(expand = expansion(0.2)) +
  theme_void() +
  theme(strip.text = element_text(family = "Cabin", colour = "#200000",
                                  size = 16,
                                  margin = margin(c(16, 0, 0, 0))))

#4 Declutter, declutter, declutter

Very subtle decluttering - NA colours!

bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
  filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
  left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
              filter(series_winner == 1)) %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = episode,
             y = -technical)) +
  geom_path(aes(colour = series),
            show.legend = FALSE) +
  gghighlight::gghighlight(series_winner == 1,
                           calculate_per_facet = TRUE, 
                           unhighlighted_params = 
                             list(color = "#D2CCCC")) +
  scale_colour_gradient2(low = "#e04121", mid = "#f7238a", 
                         high = "#ed9e00", midpoint = 7.1) +
  facet_grid(. ~ series, labeller = as_labeller(function(x) paste("Series", x))) +
  geomtextpath::geom_textpath(aes(label = baker),
                              vjust = -0.2,text_only = TRUE,
                              hjust = 0.3,
                              family = "Cabin") +
  ggtext::geom_textbox(data = bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
                         filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
                         left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
                                     filter(series_winner == 1)) %>% 
                         filter(series_winner == 1,
                                episode %in% c(1, 10)),
                       aes(label = paste0("#", technical),
                           hjust = case_when(episode == 1 ~ 1, 
                                             TRUE ~ 0),
                           halign = case_when(episode == 1 ~ 1, 
                                             TRUE ~ 0)),
                       box.colour = NA,
                       family = "Cabin",
                       fill = NA) +
  scale_x_continuous(expand = expansion(0.2)) +
  theme_void() +
  theme(strip.text = element_text(family = "Cabin", colour = "#200000",
                                  size = 16,
                                  margin = margin(c(16, 0, 0, 0))))

#4 Declutter, declutter, declutter

Adjust text hierarchy

bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
  filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
  left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
              filter(series_winner == 1)) %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = episode,
             y = -technical)) +
  geom_path(aes(colour = series),
            show.legend = FALSE) +
  gghighlight::gghighlight(series_winner == 1,
                           calculate_per_facet = TRUE, 
                           unhighlighted_params = list(color = "#D2CCCC")) +
  scale_colour_gradient2(low = "#e04121", mid = "#f7238a", 
                         high = "#ed9e00", midpoint = 7.1) +
  facet_grid(. ~ series, labeller = as_labeller(function(x) paste("Series", x))) +
  geomtextpath::geom_textpath(aes(label = baker),
                              vjust = -0.2,text_only = TRUE,
                              hjust = 0.3,
                              size = 7,
                              family = "Cabin") +
  ggtext::geom_textbox(data = bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
                         filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
                         left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
                                     filter(series_winner == 1)) %>% 
                         filter(series_winner == 1,
                                episode %in% c(1, 10)),
                       aes(label = paste0("#", technical),
                           hjust = case_when(episode == 1 ~ 1, 
                                             TRUE ~ 0),
                           halign = case_when(episode == 1 ~ 1, 
                                             TRUE ~ 0)),
                       box.colour = NA,
                       size = 6,
                       family = "Cabin",
                       fill = NA) +
  scale_x_continuous(expand = expansion(0.2)) +
  theme_void() +
  theme(strip.text = element_text(family = "Cabin", colour = "#200000",
                                  size = 16,
                                  margin = margin(c(12, 0, 0, 0))))

#4 Declutter, declutter, declutter

#5 Tie your text to the data

Use colour!

bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
  filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
  left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
              filter(series_winner == 1)) %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = episode,
             y = -technical)) +
  geom_path(aes(colour = series),
            show.legend = FALSE) +
  gghighlight::gghighlight(series_winner == 1,
                           calculate_per_facet = TRUE, 
                           unhighlighted_params = list(color = "#D2CCCC")) +
  scale_colour_gradient2(low = "#e04121", mid = "#f7238a", 
                         high = "#ed9e00", midpoint = 7.1) +
  facet_grid(. ~ series, labeller = as_labeller(function(x) paste("Series", x))) +
  geomtextpath::geom_textpath(aes(label = baker),
                              vjust = -0.2,text_only = TRUE,
                              hjust = 0.3,
                              size = 7,
                              family = "Cabin") +
  ggtext::geom_textbox(data = bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
                         filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
                         left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
                                     filter(series_winner == 1)) %>% 
                         filter(series_winner == 1,
                                episode %in% c(1, 10)),
                       aes(label = paste0("#", technical),
                           hjust = case_when(episode == 1 ~ 1, 
                                             TRUE ~ 0),
                           halign = case_when(episode == 1 ~ 1, 
                                             TRUE ~ 0)),
                       box.colour = NA,
                       size = 6,
                       family = "Cabin",
                       fill = NA) +
  scale_x_continuous(expand = expansion(0.2)) +
  theme_void() +
  theme(strip.text = element_text(family = "Cabin", colour = "#200000",
                                  size = 16,
                                  margin = margin(c(12, 0, 0, 0))))

#5 Tie your text to the data

Use colour!

bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
  filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
  left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
              filter(series_winner == 1)) %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = episode,
             y = -technical)) +
  geom_path(aes(colour = series),
            show.legend = FALSE) +
  gghighlight::gghighlight(series_winner == 1,
                           calculate_per_facet = TRUE, 
                           unhighlighted_params = list(color = "#D2CCCC")) +
  scale_colour_gradient2(low = "#e04121", mid = "#f7238a", 
                         high = "#ed9e00", midpoint = 7.1) +
  facet_grid(. ~ series, labeller = as_labeller(function(x) paste("Series", x))) +
  geomtextpath::geom_textpath(aes(label = baker,
                                  colour = series),
                              vjust = -0.2,text_only = TRUE,
                              hjust = 0.3,
                              size = 7,
                              family = "Cabin") +
  ggtext::geom_textbox(data = bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
                         filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
                         left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
                                     filter(series_winner == 1)) %>% 
                         filter(series_winner == 1,
                                episode %in% c(1, 10)),
                       aes(label = paste0("#", technical),
                           hjust = case_when(episode == 1 ~ 1, 
                                             TRUE ~ 0),
                           halign = case_when(episode == 1 ~ 1, 
                                             TRUE ~ 0)),
                       box.colour = NA,
                       size = 6,
                       family = "Cabin",
                       fill = NA) +
  scale_x_continuous(expand = expansion(0.2)) +
  theme_void() +
  theme(strip.text = element_text(family = "Cabin", colour = "#200000",
                                  size = 16,
                                  margin = margin(c(12, 0, 0, 0))))

#5 Tie your text to the data

Use colour!

bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
  filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
  left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
              filter(series_winner == 1)) %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = episode,
             y = -technical)) +
  geom_path(aes(colour = series),
            show.legend = FALSE) +
  gghighlight::gghighlight(series_winner == 1,
                           calculate_per_facet = TRUE, 
                           unhighlighted_params = list(color = "#D2CCCC")) +
  scale_colour_gradient2(low = "#e04121", mid = "#f7238a", 
                         high = "#ed9e00", midpoint = 7.1) +
  facet_grid(. ~ series, labeller = as_labeller(function(x) paste("Series", x))) +
  geomtextpath::geom_textpath(aes(label = baker,
                                  colour = series),
                              vjust = -0.2,text_only = TRUE,
                              hjust = 0.3,
                              size = 7,
                              family = "Cabin",
                              show.legend = FALSE) +
  ggtext::geom_textbox(data = bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
                         filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
                         left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
                                     filter(series_winner == 1)) %>% 
                         filter(series_winner == 1,
                                episode %in% c(1, 10)),
                       aes(label = paste0("#", technical),
                           hjust = case_when(episode == 1 ~ 1, 
                                             TRUE ~ 0),
                           halign = case_when(episode == 1 ~ 1, 
                                             TRUE ~ 0),
                           colour = series),
                       box.colour = NA,
                       size = 6,
                       family = "Cabin",
                       fill = NA) +
  scale_x_continuous(expand = expansion(0.2)) +
  theme_void() +
  theme(strip.text = element_text(family = "Cabin", colour = "#200000",
                                  size = 16,
                                  margin = margin(c(12, 0, 0, 0))))

#5 Tie your text to the data

Use colour!

bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
  filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
  left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
              filter(series_winner == 1)) %>%
  ggplot(aes(x = episode,
             y = -technical)) +
  geom_path(aes(colour = series),
            show.legend = FALSE) +
  gghighlight::gghighlight(series_winner == 1,
                           calculate_per_facet = TRUE, 
                           unhighlighted_params = list(color = "#D2CCCC")) +
  scale_colour_gradient2(low = "#e04121", mid = "#f7238a", 
                         high = "#ed9e00", midpoint = 7.1) +
  facet_grid(. ~ series, labeller = as_labeller(function(x) paste("Series", x))) +
  geomtextpath::geom_textpath(aes(label = baker,
                                  colour = series),
                              vjust = -0.2,text_only = TRUE,
                              hjust = 0.3,
                              size = 7,
                              family = "Cabin",
                              show.legend = FALSE) +
  ggtext::geom_textbox(data = bakeoff::bakes_raw %>%
                         filter(series %in% c(6:8)) %>%
                         left_join(bakeoff::bakers %>% 
                                     filter(series_winner == 1)) %>% 
                         filter(series_winner == 1,
                                episode %in% c(1, 10)),
                       aes(label = paste0("#", technical),
                           hjust = case_when(episode == 1 ~ 1, 
                                             TRUE ~ 0),
                           halign = case_when(episode == 1 ~ 1, 
                                             TRUE ~ 0),
                           colour = series),
                       box.colour = NA,
                       size = 6,
                       family = "Cabin",
                       fill = NA) +
  scale_x_continuous(expand = expansion(0.2)) +
  theme_void() +
  theme(strip.text = element_text(family = "Cabin", colour = "#200000",
                                  size = 16,
                                  margin = margin(c(12, 0, 0, 0))),
        legend.position = "none")

#5 Tie your text to the data

#6 Don’t neglect your tables!

#6 Don’t neglect your tables!

Starting point

Sources: {bakeoff} + www.krishthebaker.com/bake-off-technicals

#6 Don’t neglect your tables!

Reduce cognitive load: Plain English headers

#6 Don’t neglect your tables!

Reduce cognitive load: Plain English dates - oops!

#6 Don’t neglect your tables!

Reduce cognitive load: Plain English dates

#6 Don’t neglect your tables!

Make numbers easy to compare: formatting

#6 Don’t neglect your tables!

Make numbers easy to compare: monospace

#6 Don’t neglect your tables!

Add text hierarchy: AvoiD Too MaNy CapiTalS!

#6 Don’t neglect your tables!

Add text hierarchy: colour & size

#6 Don’t neglect your tables!

Add text hierarchy and personality!

#6 Don’t neglect your tables!

Make it easy to follow a line: stripe

#6 Don’t neglect your tables!

Make it easy to follow a line: stripe or hover?

#6 Don’t neglect your tables!

Reduce unnecessary eye movements: alignments

#6 Don’t neglect your tables!

Reduce unnecessary eye movements: row heights (no wrap)

#6 Don’t neglect your tables!

Reduce unnecessary eye movements: column widths

#6 Don’t neglect your tables!

Reduce unnecessary eye movements: what’s the story?

#6 Don’t neglect your tables!

Show vs tell: conditional colours?

#6 Don’t neglect your tables!

Show vs tell: so much easier to compare!

#6 Don’t neglect your tables!

Show vs tell: meaningful colours

#6 Don’t neglect your tables!

But we should probably specify their meaning…

#6 Don’t neglect your tables!

Technical challenges, star bakers, and number of viewers for episodes hosted by Mel & Sue and Noel & Co

#6 Don’t neglect your tables!

#6 Don’t neglect your tables!

#7 Signpost additional information

#7 Signpost additional information

Time to get interactive! {ggiraph}

ggiraph::girafe()

  • Show the main data story
  • Allow people to access the detail they’re interested in
  • Show them lots of information about one thing
    • … rather than indigestible information about everything
  • Keep the ggplot styling you’ve worked hard to get right
    • Tweak a few extra things

#7 Signpost additional information

A (relatively easy) technical challenge

bakeoff::challenges %>% 
  select(-technical) %>%
  pivot_longer(c(signature, showstopper)) %>%
  mutate(choc_raspberry = case_when(grepl("[Cc]hocolate", value) & grepl("[Rr]aspberr", value) ~ "Both",
                                    grepl("[Cc]hocolate", value) == T ~ "Chocolate",
                                    grepl("[Rr]aspberry", value) == T ~ "Raspberry")) %>%
  filter(!is.na(choc_raspberry)) %>%
  ggplot() +
  geom_rect(aes(xmin = -Inf, ymin = -Inf, xmax = Inf, ymax = Inf), fill = "#300300") +
  geom_jitter(aes(x = 1, y = 1),
              alpha = 0.7,
              shape = 21,
              size = 10,
              colour = "#ec3f24",
              fill = "#b41504") +
  coord_polar()  +
  scale_colour_identity() +
  scale_y_discrete(expand = c(0.05, 0)) +
  labs(title = "Chocolate & Raspberry Bakes") +
  theme_void() +
  theme(plot.title = element_text(family = "Cabin", size = 24, 
                                  colour = "#200000", hjust = 0.5,
                                  lineheight = 1.3))

#7 Signpost additional information

A (relatively easy) technical challenge

choc_raspberry_bakes <- bakeoff::challenges %>% 
  select(-technical) %>%
  pivot_longer(c(signature, showstopper)) %>%
  mutate(choc_raspberry = case_when(grepl("[Cc]hocolate", value) & grepl("[Rr]aspberr", value) ~ "Both",
                                    grepl("[Cc]hocolate", value) == T ~ "Chocolate",
                                    grepl("[Rr]aspberry", value) == T ~ "Raspberry")) %>%
  filter(!is.na(choc_raspberry)) %>%
  ggplot() +
  geom_rect(aes(xmin = -Inf, ymin = -Inf, xmax = Inf, ymax = Inf), fill = "#300300") +
  ggiraph::geom_jitter_interactive(aes(x = 1, y = 1, 
                                       tooltip = value),
                                   alpha = 0.7, 
                                   shape = 21,
                                   size = 5,
                                   colour = "#ec3f24",
                                   fill = "#b41504") +
  coord_polar()  +
  scale_colour_identity() +
  scale_y_discrete(expand = c(0.05, 0)) +
  labs(title = "Chocolate & Raspberry Bakes") +
  theme_void() +
  theme(plot.title = element_text(family = "Cabin", size = 24, 
                                  colour = "#200000", hjust = 0.5,
                                  lineheight = 1.3))

#7 Signpost additional information

A (relatively easy) technical challenge

ggiraph::girafe(ggobj = choc_raspberry_bakes)

#7 Signpost additional information

But don’t hide the cutlery!

choc_raspberry_bakes <- 
  choc_raspberry_bakes +
  labs(subtitle = "<br>Hover over the raspberries to see **who** created **what** in **which episode**") +
  theme(plot.subtitle = ggtext::element_textbox_simple(family = "Cabin",
                                                       colour = "#4C3232",
                                                       halign = 0.5, 
                                                       size = 16))

ggiraph::girafe(ggobj = choc_raspberry_bakes)

#8 Manipulate text in tibbles

#8 Manipulate text in tibbles

bakeoff::challenges %>% 
  select(-technical) %>%
  pivot_longer(c(signature, showstopper)) %>%
  mutate(tidy_full_ingredients = gsub("(.+?[^ |\\(])([A-Z].)", "\\1\n\\2", value),
         tooltip_content = paste0(ifelse(!is.na(tidy_full_ingredients),
                                         tidy_full_ingredients,
                                         ""),
                                  "<br><br><span style='font-weight:bold'>", baker, " - S", 
                                  str_pad(series, 2, pad = "0"),
                                  " E", str_pad(episode, 2, pad = "0"),
                                  "</span>")) %>%
  pull(tooltip_content) %>%
  head(5)
[1] "Light Jamaican Black Cakewith Strawberries and Cream<br><br><span style='font-weight:bold'>Annetha - S01 E01</span>"                                                          
[2] "Red, White & Blue Chocolate Cake with Cigarellos, Fresh Fruit, and Cream<br><br><span style='font-weight:bold'>Annetha - S01 E01</span>"                                      
[3] "Chocolate Orange Cake<br><br><span style='font-weight:bold'>David - S01 E01</span>"                                                                                           
[4] "Black Forest Floor Gateaux with Moulded Chocolate Leaves, Fallen Fruit and Chocolate Mushrooms Moulded from eggs<br><br><span style='font-weight:bold'>David - S01 E01</span>"
[5] "Caramel Cinnamon and Banana Cake<br><br><span style='font-weight:bold'>Edd - S01 E01</span>"

#8 Manipulate text in tibbles

choc_raspberry_bakes <- bakeoff::challenges %>% 
  select(-technical) %>%
  pivot_longer(c(signature, showstopper)) %>%
  mutate(tidy_full_ingredients = gsub("(.+?[^ |\\(])([A-Z].)", "\\1\n\\2", value),
         tooltip_content = paste0(ifelse(!is.na(tidy_full_ingredients),
                                         tidy_full_ingredients,
                                         ""),
                                  "<br><br><span style='font-weight:bold'>", baker, " - S", 
                                  str_pad(series, 2, pad = "0"),
                                  " E", str_pad(episode, 2, pad = "0"),
                                  "</span>")) %>%
  mutate(choc_raspberry = case_when(grepl("[Cc]hocolate", value) & grepl("[Rr]aspberr", value) ~ "Both",
                                    grepl("[Cc]hocolate", value) == T ~ "Chocolate",
                                    grepl("[Rr]aspberry", value) == T ~ "Raspberry")) %>%
  filter(!is.na(choc_raspberry)) %>%
  ggplot() +
  geom_rect(aes(xmin = -Inf, ymin = -Inf, xmax = Inf, ymax = Inf), fill = "#300300") +
  ggiraph::geom_jitter_interactive(aes(x = 1, y = 1, 
                                       tooltip = tooltip_content),
                                   alpha = 0.7, 
                                   shape = 21,
                                   size = 5,
                                   colour = "#ec3f24",
                                   fill = "#b41504") +
  labs(subtitle = "<br>Hover over the raspberries to see **who** created **what** in **which episode**") +
  coord_polar()  +
  scale_colour_identity() +
  scale_y_discrete(expand = c(0.05, 0)) +
  labs(title = "Chocolate & Raspberry Bakes") +
  theme_void() +
  theme(plot.title = element_text(family = "Cabin", size = 24, 
                                              colour = "#200000", hjust = 0.5,
                                              lineheight = 1.3),
        plot.subtitle = ggtext::element_textbox_simple(family = "Cabin",
                                                       colour = "#4C3232",
                                                       halign = 0.5, 
                                                       size = 16))

ggiraph::girafe(ggobj = choc_raspberry_bakes)

#9 Optimise text functionality

#9 Optimise text functionality

Starting point: our colours

ggiraph::girafe(ggobj = choc_raspberry_bakes,
       options = list(
                  ggiraph::opts_tooltip(
                    css = "background-color:#200000;color:#f9f9f7;font-family:Cabin;")))

#9 Optimise text functionality

Add padding

ggiraph::girafe(ggobj = choc_raspberry_bakes,
       options = list(
                  ggiraph::opts_tooltip(
                    css = "background-color:#200000;color:#f9f9f7;padding:7.5px;border-radius:5px;font-family:Cabin;")))

#9 Optimise text functionality

Fix the max width

ggiraph::girafe(ggobj = choc_raspberry_bakes,
       options = list(
                  ggiraph::opts_tooltip(
                    css = "background-color:#200000;color:#f9f9f7;max-width:250px;        padding:7.5px;border-radius:5px;font-family:Cabin;")))

#9 Optimise text functionality

Add lineheight spacing

ggiraph::girafe(ggobj = choc_raspberry_bakes,
       options = list(
                  ggiraph::opts_tooltip(
                    css = "background-color:#200000;color:#f9f9f7;max-width:250px; padding:7.5px;line-height:1.3;border-radius:5px;font-family:Cabin;")))

#9 Optimise text functionality

🪄 Increase spacing between letters!

ggiraph::girafe(ggobj = choc_raspberry_bakes,
       options = list(
                  ggiraph::opts_tooltip(
                    css = "background-color:#200000;color:#f9f9f7;max-width:250px; padding:7.5px;letter-spacing:0.04em;line-height:1.3;border-radius:5px;font-family:Cabin;")))

#10 Give everything space to breathe

#10 Give everything space to breathe

Back to the start

bar_plot_needs_space

#10 Give everything space to breathe

Add plot margin

detach("package:reactablefmtr", unload = TRUE)
detach("package:reactable", unload = TRUE)

bar_plot_needs_space +
  theme(plot.margin = margin(rep(18, 4)))

#10 Give everything space to breathe

Increase lineheight

bar_plot_needs_space +
  theme(plot.margin = margin(rep(18, 4)),
        plot.subtitle = ggtext::element_textbox_simple(
          lineheight = 1.3))

#10 Give everything space to breathe

Add margin under subtitle

bar_plot_needs_space +
  theme(plot.margin = margin(rep(18, 4)),
        plot.subtitle = ggtext::element_textbox_simple(
          lineheight = 1.3,
          margin = margin(b = 12)))

#10 Give everything space to breathe

We made it!

10 tips for better text

#1 Decrease reliance on text

#2 Add text hierarchy

#3 Reduce unnecessary eye movement

#4 Declutter, declutter, declutter

#5 Tie your text to the data

#6 Don’t neglect your tables!

#7 Signpost additional information

#8 Manipulate text in tibbles

#9 Optimise text functionality

#10 Give everything space to breathe

Over to you










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