The concept behind the cover challenge was thought up only a week and a half before things needed to be finalized for print, which did not allow us enough time for planning. Thinking that partication would be a problem, we encouraged designers to sign up multiple times. Once the word got out, we had too many designers. This led to the list having to be cut nearly in half for the print deadline.

The most controversial issue with the challenge, however, was deciding on what the design of the actual cover would be. Some of the staff wanted us to pick the best cover out of the bunch, while others wanted to use the final cover that was submitted by the deadline for print. Not wanting this to be seen as a competition, I had difficulty siding with either of those positions. I did not want to favor any designs or have designers waiting to sign up in final spots. A compromise was reached by overlaying each of the completed 21 covers on top of each other in the order they were submitted for the final product. This shows the progession of all the designs and emphasizes the challenge as a community effort rather than a competition. -- Susie Sobota, Art Director 14:34, 25 January 2009 (EST)