by Maurice Merchant, Editor in Chief

31/7- When my father began the Blackwood Gazette, his vision was a humble one. He lived in a small town in The Middle of Nowhere, that thin region that separates Old Crowndon and the Alliance of Southern Kingdoms, where news of the outside world was scarce. He simply wanted to keep his community and the surrounding areas informed, so he used his meager savings to travel North and bring back stories from the Capital, and then South, to bring news from Walsh and Toring.

These stories that inspired men and women like industrialist Sean Abernathy and poet Cairistiona Ridpath to look out beyond the fens of their homeland and become important cultural representatives of the region. And along with them, the Gazette found moderate success throughout the Crowndonian Empire.

Alas, the world moves too fast for such humility, and in my father’s waning years, amongst the outbreak of the war with Nor Easter, the Gazette found itself in dire straights. On my father’s deathbed, I approached him with a bold proposal, to take the Gazette over the mountains to Nor Easter, and across the Cove to Monteddor. He was reluctant at first, but I won him over, telling him that it was merely an extension of what he began, when he first left The Middle of Nowhere all those years ago.

After three years, I’m happy to announce that the Gazette is more successful than it’s ever been. We recently opened a branch in Nor Easter (to no shortage of controversy), that has proven to be an invaluable perspective in understanding our great Triumvirate. Soon, we hope to open a branch in Monteddor as well. Perhaps someday we’ll make the jump across the Barricade Ocean, to the colonies. With Adella Chatelaine currently making her way there, it’s closer to reality than we think.

None of this would be possible without you, dear readers. Your tips, feedback, praise, and hate mail are what keep us going. Thanks for reading, and here is to several more years of success!

***On a real world note: I just want to thank everyone who has followed, read, and commented on my blog over the course of the last year. I recently hit one hundred followers, and while it may have taken me quite a long time compared to some, I’m grateful for every pair of eyes that reaches this page. Thanks!