In the mid-1990s, in the early days of the internet, graphic designers lamented the ‘end of print’. However, the first two decades of the twenty-first century have seen an explosion of activity from graphic designers discovering their own agency to publish — often independently and, significantly, in print. A logical parallel development has been a growing interest amongst graphic designers to research and write about their own discipline. Drawing upon her experience as a design writer and educator, Teal Triggs reflects here upon her own influences, upon recent developments in critical writing in design, and upon what a ‘critical turn’ might mean for graphic design education.