The 2014 Better Newspaper Contest packets are being prepared this week, so expect them to arrive at your paper very soon. Sometimes the packages get misplaced in large newsrooms; so if you don’t see one at your paper, check with the editor or drop us an email and we’ll try to straighten things out.

Here’s a recap of a few changes we’ve announced previously.

New categories have been added to Sports: Game Story, Sports Profile, Sports Section, and Sports Page Design.

There will be two General Excellence Awards presented in all circulation divisions: Print and Digital. The digital award replaces the Best Website awards.

The Best Newspapers in Education (NIE) Idea category has been changed to Best Youth Engagement. However, NIE sections are still eligible under the revised rules.

A Food Story entry has been added to the Writing category. In previous years, many food articles were entered under Arts/Lifestyle Feature.

Best New Revenue Idea has also been added to the Advertising category. This could include something outside of in-house sales or promotions such as participation in community events or trade shows.

All stories and photos will be submitted online this year with articles in a PDF format.

However, tear sheets of sections and pages (Specialty Page, Sports Section, Supplement, etc.) will still be required.

So please read the instructions carefully and send us your best work!