Reporter’s Notebook
by AMANDA WINTERS

There was a time when writing everyday thoughts was an act confined to notebooks and seldom shared with others.

Milestones in life reached friends and family after traveling for days in the mail.

People had to wait for friends to come calling before they could show off their newest recipes or discuss current events or advances in science.

Now, there are oh so many ways to share everything from personal thoughts, family photos, creative writing and interesting sources with whomever you’d like.

On Feb. 18, Matthew Nash, Michael Dashiell and I will be at the Sequim Library to make a presentation based on our knowledge of and experiences with blogging. Blogging is the act of regularly updating a blog, an online web log where people post photos, stories, thoughts, recipes and more.

In November 2011, the Sequim Gazette launched newsroom blogs to give us writers another medium and also more creative freedom. We have something for everyone and so far the blogs are well received by our online readers and Facebook fans.

Ad-builder and photographic goofball wizard Jay Cline joined us and regularly posts photos, sometimes asking readers to identify where the photo was taken.

Mark Couhig’s blogs are humorous and off-the-wall, with everything from fictional advice columns to light-hearted commentary on the world of sports.

Matthew Nash calls himself the “No. 1 authority on nothing” and ponders his impending fatherhood while recommending good movies.

Michael Dashiell blogs about sports and occasionally pokes fun at his own headlines.

I blog about things seen around Sequim, seasonal tidbits (did you see the photo of my epic Christmas tree cookie?), and sometimes touch on more personal things like my dog and family history.

While blogs serve a certain purpose for us as journalists, there are many reasons to blog and we’d be glad to share what we know to help others get started!

To see our blogs, go to www.sequimgazette.com/blogs. If you’d like to submit questions or topic suggestions before the event, e-mail them to mnash@sequimgazette.com.