To answer your questions;
Yes, I made the decision this year to have our talented staff of graphic designers come up with the over all scheme and design of the Program Book and Pocket Guide. It is my belief that this will do a couple of things:
#1 Provide us with a more cohesive design for our books (inside and out)
#2 Allow the Graphic Design staff to integrate their design into the entirety of the books without having to manipulate others' art
#3 Give them the freedom to get started RIGHT NOW on the books and their designs
I like all of those points, although I do have some feedback, thoughts and ideas about them that could work with bringing the contest back.
For example, you could set up the contest in such a way that it incorporates a unified look and theme for not only the book, but the whole convention. Since the mascot contest is a year in advance, you could have a rule that requires the mascot and color theme (or if you don't want to require the mascot, maybe just the color theme) be used for the cover art. That way, your in-house designers can already be setting up the color scheme and interior layout well before the cover contest is over.
The contest could also be for "just the art," with the logo and layout being designed in house. Take, for example, the covers for Giant Robot:
http://www.giantrobot.com/magazine/They all have the same logo, and mostly the same layout design, which for the most part are pretty simple layouts, and something like that would be very easy to do. But they all incorporate art in such a way that doesn't detract from the design, while providing a showcase for the art in a way that is both interesting and eye-catching.
I thought long and hard about the conundrum I faced with the book covers. I just couldn't come up with a good prize that didn't feel so generic or "meh" to our entrants. I'd like to hear from anyone who is interested in bringing this contest back about ideas for good prizes. Right now Artists Alley space is so limited I am not sure that's a viable option. But like I said, the more ideas I have the more likely we will be to bring back that contest!
Since the AA table is not a very likely option, I think other viable options would be a free pass to the convention, and/or free space in the art gallery, or more space in the art gallery. The art gallery is technically free already, but does take commission on pieces sold; the cover contest winner could have that commission waived. And/or be given more space in the art gallery (I think right now, only ten pieces are allowed to be shown per artist, so it would be neat if the contest winner prize was more space). So it's the next best thing to having an AA table.
Another option: contest winners could be given art tables
outside of the artist alley. Not only does that free up space in the AA, but it also looks like the con is saying "hey, check out the contest winners!" which would also serve to drum up excitement for the contest, tell more people about it, and attract more entries for the following year. The art tables for the contest winners could be in other places in the convention space, such as hallways, etc.
For now though, I hope you guys are excited because I'm going to be pushing my staff for the best covers and books they've ever printed for our 10th year!
I am super-excited to see what you guys come up with! Especially since this is the con's 10th anniversary.
I hope none of this comes off as detracting from the 10th year design; the main reason why I am voicing my concern is that it I really liked the spirit of the cover contest, the tradition of the cover art being made by the attendees of the con, and I am really sad to see that go. I hope that you will at least consider bringing it back for next year; maybe we can put together a focus group to discuss ideas for bringing back the contest, or setting up new rules, or something, to see if it can possibly come back next year.