How a magazine is laid out..

Every magazine is different, they all sell different things and advertise in their own way, here is a picture from Cosmopolitan magazine and how the layout is structured.

Above is an image of how a magazine front cover is set out. All front pages have these above. They need to advertise the name of the magazine so you know which brand you are purchasing, also a price label to know how much it costs to buy, a bar code for the shop to scan when you purchase this. Most magazines always have a cover story, something that gets you interested about whats happening around you lately. Also magazines include a date which is usually placed at the top, because you wouldn't want to buy an out of date magazine would you? 

Here is a more detailed explanation of what else a magazine includes..

I found this information on the following website: http://www.magforum.com/cover_secrets.htm

Logo	The name of the magazine displayed in a specific typeface. This is the visual branding of the title and is often done in a specially designed typeface to be very recognisable and unique. The masthead is usually used on the contents page inside as well as the front cover, and as a logo for advertising and branding purposes
Dateline	Month and year of publication, often with the price. Note that a monthly magazine usually hits the news-stands the month before the cover date
Main image	In the case of this front cover there is a single image of the model Shania. The image is used in a classic way, the face is big enough to stand out on the news-stand, with the model making full eye-contact
Model credit	This says: 'Shania: So hot.' It is unusual for such a credit to appear on a magazine front cover, but is done on fashion magazines. The photographer and model credit is usually on the contents page
Cover lines	Cosmopolitan magazine uses a lot of cover lines, which are distributed around the main image without detracting from it too much. A mistake often made with cover lines is that they run over an image that has a lot of colour changes, rendering the words invisible. This is a problem here with the red text on the hair on the left and the smaller yellow text against Shania's skin
Main cover line	This is very large - taking up almost a quarter of the magazine cover - and comes in three layers, each with a different colour. It promotes the use of naked male centrefolds, a feature of Cosmopolitan in the UK since its first issue. Note the main cover line is positioned against the model's shoulder so it shows up clearly
Left third	The left third of the magazine cover is vital for sales in shops where the magazine is not shown full-frontage. The title must be easily recognisable in a display of dozens of competitors. The start of the masthead is important here, as are short cover lines that are easy to read. The top fifth of the cover - usually dominated by the masthead - may be the vital part in supermarkets, where magazines are displayed differently
Bar code	Standard bar code used by retailers
Selling line	Short, sharp description of the title's main marketing point (forCosmopolitan: 'The world's No 1 magazine for young women') or perhaps setting out its editorial philosophy