A brave new world

 AFTER seven years of more than full-time media work - firstly as a reporter with one of Queensland's last independently owned newspapers, the Whitsunday Coast Guardian, then as the senior journalist of APN's Whitsunday Times and finally as the editor of News Corp's Whitsunday Coast Guardian and Whitsunday Times - a lot of people have been asking me "what's next?"

The front page of my last Whitsunday Times. This one was about the 2017 Airlie Beach Race Week featuring a drone shot by local company Th3rd Dimension Media.

Coming out of my corporate cocoon it's certainly a brave new world out there, but one I intend to embrace as a freelancer for a while.
The Whitsundays and its watery playground boast a plethora of stories to be told and illustrated.
There are wonderful people and events in our communities with whom I still want to be involved.
Meanwhile just as some things change, others stay the same.
This morning I chatted as normal to ABC Tropical North's Meecham Philpott about all things Whitsundays.

Talking to Meecham Philpott from ABC Tropical North earlier in the year at the Airlie Beach foreshore markets.

And that included the 2017 Shag Islet Cruising Yacht Club Rendezvous, which I am heading off to today.

A couple of views from last year's SICYC Rendezvous 'Hands Across the Blue' event, in which participants make a human version of the logo for the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia in the waters off Gloucester Passage. 

To keep all my valued readers up to date for now, I've metaphorically dusted off this old blog.
So please follow, like, share and allow me to tell your stories.
Hopefully I continue to do them justice.

Sharon Smallwood
Photo-journalist / Editor / Communications Professional
Email: j-s-smallwood@hotmail.com
Phone: 0402 126 461

Last Day at the Office

I'm actually not hungover today, although that's not through lack of trying! Last night we celebrated my final day of full-time work with Coastline Newspapers. I started work with this newspaper group in February 2008. It's been an interesting year-and-a-bit, full of the highs and lows common to jobs in media and advertising, where there are always deadlines looming and not enough hours in the day.

On Monday morning I won't have to don my smart clothes and totter up the gang-plank in high heels. I won't have to drive at 110km/p/h through the sugarcane fields to make it to my desk by 8.30.

Despite this it's not really goodbye. I will still be writing the odd feature for Coastline's publications, just working from my floating home instead. So if you're heading to Bundaberg pick up a copy of the Bundy Book. If you're on the road in Queensland look out for the Tourist Queensland. Or if you live in one of Queensland's mining towns pick up the next Coalfields Express.