GAZETTALE’22

— FORSAKEN BY TIME —
ENVISION. BUILD. REALISE.

Come one, come all! Gazettale veterans, Gazettale rookies!

BSP’s much-awaited magazine-making competition is back with what is -

hopefully - its last online edition (barring future pandemics, of course). Like every
other conversation that has happened in the past two years, the pandemic is
implicit in this year’s Gazettale - a shadow cast over all our lives, minds and
bodies.

In March 2020, when the lockdown had just hit us, we were feeling many things -
fear, uncertainty, maybe even some excitement at witnessing a momentous time in
history.

Today, we are just weary. The passage of time weighs strongly on every person:
years lost, plans derailed, merriment missed. We are stuck in between, and we are
so tired of it.

But of course things aren’t nearly so bad! In our own ways, we have adapted to the
circumstances. We have overcome the fear that gripped us two years ago. And each
passing day has strengthened our hope for the lives we wish to lead.

That is what inspires this year’s Gazettale: some weariness, but mostly hope.
Forsaken by time we might be, but we have survived - and we’re ready to start
living again. (Even if it means giving exams in physical classrooms.)
“You Know the Rules, And So Do I . . .”
-the greatest poet of our times, Rick Astley

The components of your creation (not necessarily in this order):

● What’s in a name? (2 points)

As it turns out, many things. A name identifies, defines, influences, and
completes a piece of art. The title of your magazine should be memorable,
relevant and intriguing.

● Sketch your theme! (8 points)

A crucial aspect of designing a magazine is to give it an overall theme.
Choose such a theme that attracts attention for being unusual, extreme, or
prominent; a theme that makes your magazine stand out like a sore thumb
on a crowded magazine rack. In this section, you need to create a design
concept that is closely tied to the theme of the magazine issue. You have to
depict your central magazine theme using only graphics/doodles/digital art.

● Curiosity didn’t Kill the Cat! (The Magazine Headliner)

(7 content + 4 design = 11 points)
You sip your morning chai, reading the newspaper, and wonder how the
news is curated, the facts and figures brought to light. Well, curiosity
doesn’t necessarily kill the cat.
Put on your journalistic caps and write on issues you feel strongly about.
Write about some change in the system. Write on anything you want your
friends and family to know about. Bring out stories hidden in the maze of the
world, the unheard, untold. This is your chance at being a student journalist,
speaking through the might of your pen (read keyboard).

Note: There are no limitations on what you can write about, but it should be
centred around IIT Delhi. Every piece of content must be factually accurate.
Provide sources for any statistical data you use in your article.
● Scars or Spades (6 content + 5 design = 11 points)
The past two years were full of uncertainty. “Will the majors be offline?”
“Will deboarding be allowed?” We have lived many worlds in one
Your task is to write a short story, whether fiction or nonfiction, which
revolves around the central theme of uncertainty. Dream your own world,
weave a story, or narrate an incident. Develop a conflict in the story while
showing us your best creative and imaginative outpours.
Your short story uncertainty themes can be one from the following:
1. Half and Half
2. Walking the Line
3. Smudged Ink

● Fake it till you make it! (5 content + 5 design = 10 points)

Do you ever feel like you could be the best writer, the best detective, the best
investigative journalist… if only there was something going on for you to
cover? Ever feel like you have the perfect headline, the perfect hook, but no
story to spin around it?
Well, yearn no more! In this part of your magazine, you will write a news
article covering an event that never happened or an issue that isn’t real,
using facts that aren’t true, about people that don’t exist. You can do a
scathing parody of the times we live in, or you can dust off your
world-building skills to present a strange new culture.
You must follow but two edicts: Thou shalt be original; and Thou shalt be
convincing.

For inspiration, more inspiration, and clarity.

● Rhyme and Restraint (3 content + 2 design = 5 points)

William Shakespeare has given the world of literature many things of note,
not least of all the headache that every reader has incurred trying to
interpret his words. It seemed fitting, hence, that we should give you a
Shakespearean headache for the poetry section of Gazettale.
The great playwright wrote in Hamlet, ‘Brevity is the soul of wit.’ We hope
you’ve got your wits about you because there is only one rule for the poem
you must write - keep your words short.
Your goal is to create a beautiful, meaningful poem of any form and genre
while minimising the average word length (NOT word count or sentence
length). This might help.
Note: Micropoetry is strongly discouraged.
● The Sommelier (4 content + 2 design = 6 points)
Books and movies have been our old companions. An escape from the
rigidities and monotonies of life. No wonder our days in lockdown have
passed in binge-watching TV series and movies.
It’s your time to be a professional Wine Taster Book/Movie critic. Trace the
heartbeat or the brainwaves caused by the narrative, characters, or setting,
and write a review of that movie, or book, or TV series, or any other work of
art whose taste your taste buds can never forget.

Read this piece for inspiration.

● IIT Influencers, Awake! (3 content + 6 design = 9 points)

Aspire to model for Vogue? Have some beauty or lifestyle tips? Brand
reviews and recommendations? Here is your chance to create your own
fashion section.
Fashion is not just clothes. It’s much more than that. It speaks and radiates
stories just like the words in the book. You may write about the latest trends.
Or write about beauty trips and tricks, or lifestyle advice on how to keep a
balanced diet. The section should have models depicting fashion with a
central theme of ‘Change and Humour’ while also aligning with the writings
of the piece.

Learn about the fashion section from here and take inspiration from here.
Read FAQs for more information.

● [ The Brackets ] (8 points)

It’s unfortunate but true - magazines are judged by covers. That’s why you
should be careful with your front and back covers. Your magazine must fight
for space in a crowded rack and stand out.

● Style and Soul (5 points)

Gandhiji said, “Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what
you do are in harmony.”
If not you, then certainly your magazine should live by these words. Every
piece must exist in conceptual and visual harmony, and your theme must
prevail in every page.
 ● Feisty Fillers (2 points × 5 fillers max = 10 points max)
We’ve often heard it said that a filler is worth a thousand words- hmm,
perhaps that’s not quite right. But it’s what we believe!
Apart from the assignments detailed above, you can jazz up your magazine
with anything the mind can conceive - art, memes, quotes, puzzles, and
more. Though we place no constraints on this part, we will ask you a
question: what usually lives in the empty spaces of magazines? Something
that starts with an a and ends with a tisement, perhaps?
Choose your elements carefully, for less is more - but sometimes more is
also more ;)

General Rules:
● You can register your team at this link. There can be a maximum of one
Chief Editor/GSec/DGSec and four members (including journos, techies,
and volunteers) in total from BSP in a given team, and a maximum of 12
members, all from the same hostel.

● Each team should have at least 2 first-year students from the same hostel.

● Hostels are allowed to have multiple entries. However, only the team with
the best scores from each hostel will be counted for the shield, the BSP
Trophy, and Design Club Trophy rankings.

● All ideas should be original. Plagiarism in any form will not be tolerated and
will lead to immediate disqualification of the team from the competition.
Some common examples of plagiarism are– all/a fraction of content is
copied in either or both semantics and syntax, graphics termed as original
which can easily be reverse-searched on the web. For design/graphic rules,
scroll down to FAQs.

● Late submissions shall be penalised at the rate of -3/hour.

Timeline of the Event:

1. Release of the competition: 12th February 2022
2. Team Registration Ends: 21st February 2022
3. Deadline of Submission: 12th March 2022, 23:59:59
4. Announcement of Results: TBD
FAQs:

Q: Are there any constraints with respect to the design of the magazine?
A: Yes, please read the following carefully:

1) All graphic elements used must be properly sourced. That is:

a) If completely original, raw files must be provided.
(Photoshop/Illustrator/Camera RAW/Figma Link)
b) If the graphic has been modified after being taken from the internet,
the original file, link to the original file, and a photoshop/illustrator
file showing the modifications made must be provided
c) If the graphic is unoriginal then the original file, link to the original
file must be provided
2) A graphic element is classified as unoriginal if it has been used without
modification after having been taken from the internet, or if the only
modification made to the said element is a change in the colors of the
element.
3) A graphic element is classified as completely original if it has been made
completely from scratch by the designer. If a similar image is found on the
internet, the designer must be able to replicate it from scratch, to be able to
classify it as a completely original element.
4) Without proper sourcing, a graphic element or a font will be treated as an
unoriginal element. For free/default fonts, do mention their sources like the
website link or “default system font”.
5) The maximum number of unoriginal graphic elements allowed will be 5 for
the entire magazine. Upon exceeding this number, penalization will occur
for each extra unoriginal graphic used.
6) While submitting the magazine, a folder containing all the graphic elements
and a document stating all fonts used by the designer must be submitted. A
separate text file must also be attached which clearly states into which of
the three categories, each element falls:
completely_original/modified/unoriginal, with required additional
documentation (link to work files or parent website, etc).
7) Google fonts and fonts which are made free by their developer are allowed to
be used but do mention their links in the text file.
8) A high-quality PDF of the magazine is to be submitted, strictly of A4
dimensions. We strongly advise you to keep ensuring that the total number
of pages of your entry be a multiple of 4 (including the cover page and back
page)
 9) While designing the magazine, keep in mind that designs will be judged for:
a) Relevance to the accompanying piece/ overall concept
b) Choice, quality, and hygiene of the graphic elements, as well as the
typography, incorporated
c) Consistency, Coherence, and Aesthetic Appeal of the entry as a whole,
and how effectively does the design boost the quality and appeal of
the entry.
d) The cover page, back page, and contents page will be judged as
independent components falling within the design, so make sure that
your covers manage to make a bold statement!

Q: Do you have any examples we can take inspiration from?

A: Yes! Find the Gazettale submissions from the past two years below.
1. Gazettale'21 Magazines
2. Gazettale'20 Magazines

Q: Are there any word limits to the articles?

A: Yes, all your pieces should be no less than 1500 words, except for the poem,
digital art and the fashion article.

Q: I didn’t completely understand the fashion section.

A: Show us your modelling instincts with clothes and accessories that depict
“Change and Humour” while also writing a piece on it. For example, you can
humorously contrast change in jean fashion.
You may also write about lifestyle changes and picture the model in a way that
showcases the same. Just add a tinge of laughter and comedy to whatever
influencer instincts you want to show us.

Q: Where and how are we supposed to submit our magazines?

A: For your final submission, you need to create a drive folder which must contain
the final PDF of the magazine, a text file having the full content of the magazine,
and a separate text file for mentioning the graphic resources used in the magazine
(refer to the first question of FAQ’s). You need to submit a shareable link of this
drive folder in a separate form which will be floated a few days before the
submission deadline.

NOTE: Do not forget to give view access to your drive folder.

A Note from Us

From making our own Gazettale magazines to putting on the Gazettale event, a lot
has changed in the time between. But what has remained the same is the spirit and
the intent of Gazettale as the vehicle for the expressions of our IITD people.
Everything from conception to completion, is a journey of coming together,
making new friends, expressing your voice and deep interiors.

So channel your frustration, your excitement, and a little bit of your melancholy,
into your creations; we look forward to seeing what you come up with. Good luck!

Warmly,
Anoushka, Jaskeen & Sahil
BSP & Design Club

For any queries, feel free to reach out to us!

Anoushka Barthakur : Say Hello!

Jaskeen Singh : Say Hello!
Sahil Kumar Raj: Say Hello!