Local stories reimagined? Take a look at what’s going on out here in the hills of Western Massachusetts — come out with me, and we’ll get under the surface, close enough to know what an artist feels or an event feels like. You’ll find art and music and theater and dance here, in stories and a Berkshire arts and events calendar — you’ll find hiking trails and canoe trips and restaurants linked to local farms. Most of all, you’ll find conversations. You’ll find people coming out to meet you and share the world we live in.

Local stories reimagined? Take a look at what’s going on out here in the hills of Western Massachusetts — come out with me, and we’ll get under the surface, close enough to know what an artist feels or an event feels like. You’ll find art and music and theater and dance here, in stories and a Berkshire arts and events calendar — you’ll find hiking trails and canoe trips and restaurants linked to local farms. Most of all, you’ll find conversations. You’ll find people coming out to meet you and share the world we live in. And you’ll find a creative community here which has been growing for years. Over time, diverse and wide-minded people have given me the chance to know them and help share their stories. I’ve been a storyteller and journalist and oral historian here for 20 years — and I’ve fallen for my field in a time when my field has been falling — the country has lost almost a third of its newspapers and almost two-thirds of its newspaper journalists (according to Northwestern’s Local News Initiative). So I’m joining a growing movement of storytellers across the country who want to keep on talking with people and exploring, and understanding how our communities work. I’m creating a web of stories, a digital source of local news, and a creative world I have not seen anywhere else.