Kill Shakespeare wants you to get your first break in comics!
Anthony and I are often a little humbled by how friendly the comic world has been to us - two neophytes.Whether it's the incomparable Arvid Nelson giving us story tips, the brilliant Mike Carey, John Layman or Bryan Glass writing us great blurbs or Ty Templeton and Darwyn Cooke serving as mentors we have constantly been made to feel "just as worthy" as the men and women who have been doing this MUCH longer than we have.And so we want to pay it forward.We want YOU to get your first break in comics!It's the FIRST KILL SHAKESPEARE COVER CONTEST! 
WHAT: We want YOUR ART to grace the cover of Kill Shakespeare #11. And we're teaming up with some of the greatest comic shops in North America to make it happen.The winner's design will be the alternate cover for Kill Shakespeare #11, while four runners-up will be featured in print. All other finalists will get some on-line love.WHO: Anyone who does not already have a professional comic credit can win (although anyone can enter).WHEN: What we need from you is a completed cover design by the "Ides of March" (March 15th) by 9:00 PM EST (6:00 PM PST).WHERE & HOW: You can enter at any of the following awesome comic shops.
The Silver Snail (Toronto)Paradise Comics (Toronto)Midtown Comics (New York - Times Square location)Forbidden Planet (New York)Isotope - The Comic Book Lounge (San Francisco)Mission Comics and Art (San Francisco)Atomic City Comics (Philadelphia)Brave New Worlds (Philadelphia)Fat Jack's Comicrypt (Philadelphia)Golden Apple Comics (L.A.)Meltdown Comics (L.A.)Enter in person by giving them a copy of your work or by sending them your work (but please DO NOT mail, or e-mail your work without getting the o.k. from the store first). While you can submit a physical copy, the winners will need to have the designs digitally as high-res (300 DPI) JPEG's as well.But for submission purposes a low-res JPEG is fine as well.The store that submits the winner will also get their logo on the cover. So make sure you represent for your fave city, state, country, or store!WHAT DO I DRAW?: Here is the PREVIEW blurb for issue #11 to give you some inspiration.
With one trusted friend dead and the Prodigal army in pieces, Hamlet must plunge back into the Globe Woods. But even if he survives this second trip into the mouth of madness, can Shakespeare’s fabled quill stop the horrific combined might of Richard III, the Black Guard, and Lady Macbeth’s foul magic?
SOME OTHER RULES STUFF:
- The Contest ends at 9 PM EST March 15th, 2011.
- No purchase is required to enter.
- Only entrants without professional comic credits are eligible to win the contest.
- Each store will select up to three finalists.
- The final five finalists will be decided by the Kill Shakespeare creative team.
- The winner will be decided by a poll of Kill Shakespeare fans.
- The winner needs to be able to provide their design as a 300 DPI quality JPEG.
- All entries are property of Kill Shakespeare Entertainment.
- The sky is the limit. We'll be judging entries by how well they tell a story on the cover, how well the cover captures the "feel" of Kill Shakespeare and by how innovative and interesting the design is.
Good luck, and happy designing and drawing -- if you have any questions about how to enter drop me a line at muachado@killshakespeare.com