Joe Egg in today's West

This isn't aimed at you, Neil, it just hit on something that I've thought about for a while. I keep having conversations with performing artists in Perth who complain that the West never covers their work, and when I ask if they'd actually spoken to Stephen Bevis they say "oh well I e-mailed him a media release and he never called back". If you want a major newspaper to cover your work then send a media release, and then a few days later pick up the phone and actually call the paper and ask to speak to the arts editor. Give him a reason to cover it. Before you call, think of three different angles he might be able to take: interesting or topical subject matter, a notable cast member or director, whatever. It's up to you to make your production irresistable to an arts editor (or radio producer, or whatever). You have to give him or her a reason to cover your story instead of someone else's.