THE National is giving our readers a chance of a lifetime to design a front page for our publication to mark the second anniversary of the Scottish independence referendum.
This is a unique opportunity for budding designers, young or old, to showcase their talents on the front cover of a national newspaper – the only one that supports an independent Scotland.
We want our readers to let their creative juices flow and use their imagination to come up with a winning design which will be published on Saturday, September 17, the day before the anniversary.
There will also be a £150 prize for the top front page and the winner will feature in a full celebratory interview in that day’s edition.
The closing date for entries is September 12 so get your thinking caps on and blow the judges away with a front page to rival some of our best eye-catching splashes such as David Cameron’s Pig-gate scandal and our “Bye-Bye Boris” Johnson being cut from a zipwire by Michael Gove.
Among our panel of expert judges will be The National’s consultant editor and former editor of the Sunday Herald Richard Walker, and our award-winning photographer Damian Shields.
Walker said: “This is the first time a competition to design a front page for a national newspaper has been opened up to the public.
“I think The National has, in a relatively short space of time, established a reputation for striking front covers and I think it is a really exciting opportunity to give members of the public a chance to follow in that tradition.
“The great thing is, there is pretty much nothing that’s off limits and it is great chance just to let your imagination go nuts.
“The ingredients that we will be looking for would be something very dramatic, something that makes an impact.
“There is also a lot of space for wit and humour, something that is really clever.
“You don’t need to be a PhotoShop expert, we are not really looking for fantastic expertise, we are looking for a great idea that’s really well executed. It also has to make a strong point, and you can make that point in any way you choose.
“It is not particularly easy to put together an original front page but I am sure our readers have the talent, the intelligence, the imagination and the brainpower necessary to rise to that challenge. I just can’t wait to see what they come up with.”
Send your designs to submissions@thenational.scot before the deadline and make sure you leave room at the top for The National masthead.
The image must be high quality and W 259mm x H 325mm.
Good luck!
Terms and conditions:
1. Acceptance of these Terms: By entering into The National - Scottish Independence front cover competition, you will be deemed to have agreed and accepted these terms and conditions as detailed below. All instructions, rules and conditions on any promotional and marketing materials relating to this competition form part of these terms and conditions. In the event that there is any disagreements or inconsistency with entrants, these terms and conditions shall prevail.
2. Participants: You must be a UK resident, participants under the age of 16 must have permission from a parent/legal guardian to enter. The competition is not open to anyone professionally connected with the competition.
3. How to Enter: To enter the competition, you must send your original The National – Scottish Independence front cover design to submissions@thenational.scot with your full name, address, postcode, contact telephone number and an email address in which you wish to be contacted on.
Entries must: - Be your own original photographs, or your own original design, image or drawing by you the entrant - Designs must not include any copyrighted images or logos - Designs must be W 259mm x H 325mm and must allow room at the top of the design for the masthead. - Designs must not include any graphic violence, nudity, offensive language or images that could be deemed offensive
The entry terms above must be met in order for your submission to be considered. The National accepts no liability for any technical issues which may prevent someone from entering this competition. Please note that even if you are not selected as the winner, your design may feature in an editorial piece for The National or an online social media piece.
By submitting your entry to The National - Scottish Independence front cover competition you release and agree to your artwork being published in The National and all social media channels associated with The National as part of your agreement to these terms and conditions. If you wish to remove your entry from the competition and from being published you must contact us on submissions@thenational.scot before 12:00pm on Monday 12.09.2016.
4. Start Date and Closing Date: The start date and time for this competition is at 04:00am on Friday 26.08.2016 and the competition will end at 12:00pm on Monday 12.09.2016.
5. The Selection Process: All entries received by the closing date Monday 12.09.2016, will be collected together and the winner will be chosen from a selection process in which designs will be judged and a winner selected by our competition panel. The selection process will take place the day of or day after the competition has closed on or after Monday 12.09.2016. The winner will receive a phone call or email notifying them that they have won no later than 2 days after the competition has closed. In the case that we are unable to contact a winner or should a winner be unable to accept the prize, we reserve the right to award the prize to an alternative winner selected in accordance with these terms and conditions.
6. The Prize: One (1) winner will be selected to have their original design featured as the front cover on The National’s Scottish Independence issue on Saturday 17.09.2016. The winner will also receive a cash prize of £150 and will be featured in an editorial piece with The National regarding their submission. The winner will be contacted no later than 28 days after the competition has ended regarding an editorial piece with The National.
7. The National Rights: We reserve the right to (1) amend these terms and conditions at any time and without notice, and (2) terminate or suspend the competition at any time due to circumstances beyond its control.
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