This week, NEPABlogs.com will take its innaugural steps into the blogosphere and, in doing so, begin its mission to bring you news, information, and commentary from across Northeastern Pennsylvania as written by an ever-growing army of citizen journalists.

We are pleased to introduce our first group of writers and their blogs. It is only fitting that a “starting lineup” would begin with a sports-themed blog and, with that in mind, we bring you “Boston Red Thoughts” by Christine E. with thoughts “From a Red-Headed Boston Fan in Yankeeland”. Christine, a lifelong student of the game and a die-hard Boston fan, combines her wealth of knowledge with a sometimes twisted sense of humor to offer commentary on one of the oldest traditions in professional baseball.

If you prefer the performing arts over the baseball diamond, then be sure to check out “Waiting in the Wings” which will report on our culturally-rich corner of Pennsylvania with its many performing arts organizations. The column will be a collaborative effort of local theatre veterans Kelly Clisham and Paul Winarski, both of whom are well and widely known throughout the theatre community, with additional input from the NEPABlogs.com staff. The goal of “Waiting in the Wings” is to provide a single source for local performing arts news and information at a level that is unprecedented by any other media outlet in our area.

Is your brand of theatre more of the silver-screened variety? Maybe you’ve heard your friends talking about friends of friends making a movie locally and you want to find out more. Local film buff Rich Drees will cover the area’s film industry - past, present, and future - in “Reel Pennsylvania”. With topics ranging from how Wilkes-Barre played a pivotal role in the early days of film (think 1800’s) to the opening of its newest theater downtown, to the many talented, independent filmmakers in NEPA, and much, much more, “Reel Pennsylvania” will give you an inside look into this very new industry sweeping our area.

Perhaps your interests lean more towards local music by local musicians. Brandon Nicholas promises to “focus solely on local musicians, never neglecting a talented local band to do a story on a higher-profile artist that just happens to be visiting our area” in “Bringing It All Back Home”. With insightful interviews and commentary backed by a well-trained ear for good music, Brandon will bring you news from the “hotbed of creativity” that is our local music scene.

Maybe you’re a working mother and find yourself trying to figure out how to balance your career, family, and personal life. Perhaps you’re trying to figure out how to drop those few extra pounds that you seem to be dragging around lately, or maybe you are stuck for a nutritional meal idea that your kids will love. Maybe you’re looking for the perfect book to read to your toddler. Well, “Modern Mom” is just the blog for you. Written by Kelly Clisham, “Modern Mom” will bring you answers to the questions she is asking herself on a daily basis with interviews with local nutritionists, personal trainers, children’s literature specialists, and more.

One of our area’s best assets is the vast array of experiences to be had in the great outdoors of Northeastern Pennsylvania. To those among us who believe that there is nothing to do around here, we offer “Adventure Chick” written by Kaitlin Taber-Miller. “Born and raised in the outdoors, this outdoor guru finds the path to staying sane in today’s technological and environment-unfriendly world”. If it has to do with the outdoors, she’s probably done it and will tell you all about it, where it’s best to do it and, most importantly, how NOT to do it.

Sports, arts & entertainment, lifestyles, and more - NEPABlogs.com will work to bring you the widest variety of news and information about Northeastern Pennsylvania available anywhere. Stay tuned, and watch us grow…