Included in this weekend’s print edition of The Coastland Times is something new – new for us and new for our readers, too. We are proud and excited to share our Outlook edition with you and truly hope you enjoy it.

Outlook is an annual special section we’ll be publishing and this is our inaugural issue. What makes this different from our other special sections? The format, the depth of coverage, style and cohesive content, just to name a few. While all of our special sections have specific themes and connected content, Outlook takes it a step further. Not to mention that it’s in full color with a glossy cover and printed on thick paper – it really looks and feels great!

This year’s theme is 24 Hours on the Outer Banks. By breaking the day down hour by hour, we are able to focus in on one person or place and take a snapshot, so to speak, of what a specific hour in a typical day looks like for them. We tried to capture the essence of year round (or at least mostly year round) activity rather than special event days or only-in-winter (or summer) coverage to make it more timeless and relatable.

From the people who work while most of us are sleeping – after all, 911 operators, police and many others are always “on” – to those we see on the daily – gas station attendants and gatekeepers – this is a celebration of who we are. We were also able to take a look behind the scenes at a few places you may not have been – the Dare County Detention Center, the back areas of a funeral home and a busy restaurant kitchen, for example.

There is much more included than I can mention here and besides – I’d like you to read it for yourself and let us know what you think. We would have loved to include more places and we had many more ideas, but just like the hours in a day, there were only so many hours to cover for this edition. If you have story ideas you’d like to share, please send them to news@thecoastlandtimes.com. There is always next year and the year after.

While the theme will likely change from edition to edition, we will always strive to produce a high quality and engaging book for you to read, enjoy and share. Speaking of sharing – we printed extra copies of Outlook and would love to share them with you. Stop by our office at 207 Queen Elizabeth Street, Suite 10 in Manteo between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. to pick up some extra copies for yourself or to share. You can also call 252-473-2105 if you’d like some at your place of business and we’ll arrange delivery.

READ ABOUT MORE NEWS AND EVENTS HERE.