Anyone who has spent time in southwest Michigan and northern Indiana is apt to tell you that the region has no shortage of things to see and do.

From natural amenities like Lake Michigan to longstanding institutions like Notre Dame, Michiana offers a vast variety of entertainment options — so many that it is difficult to keep track of it all.

When Leader Publications created Off the Water several years ago, the idea was to showcase as many of these things as possible. This publication would be readers’ weekend guide to all sorts of fun in the area.

For the last five years or so, readers have received weekly previews for tons of local events, which may be valuable to you, but we think we can do better.

As time has passed, we have discovered that the publication can be doing so much more for not only the residents of Michiana, but the thousands of tourists who visit each year.

Rather than just telling you what is going on and when and where to participate, we want to showcase the people and places that make these opportunities available.

Rather than telling readers about the festival coming up this weekend, we want to talk about the special dishes a local restaurant serves just to celebrate that event. Instead of simply telling you about the concert coming up next month, we want to find longtime fans, get a behind the scenes look at the show or research the history the artist has in Michiana.

To put it simply, we want to tell better, more interesting stories, while still accomplishing our goal of informing readers about all the fun things to do in southwest Michigan and northern Indiana.

I believe that an arts and entertainment publication should be, well, entertaining!

Moving forward, Off the Water will publish on a monthly cycle, rather than weekly. The first week of each month, readers will get an outlook of all the fun things coming up — we’ll just do it once a month, and in a more engaging way.

As we work to revamp the product, we would love your input as far as what you would like to see in an arts and entertainment publication.

Maybe you’re really interested in the local craft beer movement. Perhaps you love to watch community theater, or visit local bars and clubs to watch up and coming musicians.

You might be really into outdoor recreation, or maybe you want to know about fun places to take the kiddos.

We would love your input. What do you value? What do you not care about?

What entertains you?

Of course we won’t be able to accommodate every request, but we’ll do our best to cater to readers’ interests.

We know there are no shortage of opportunities here in Michiana, and we’re excited to continue showcasing that. But we’re even more eager to shine a light on the countless amazing people, businesses and organizations that draw people to this area and make those opportunities happen.

 

Ambrosia Neldon is the general manager at Leader Publications. She can be reached by phone at (269) 687-7713, or by email at ambrosia.neldon@leaderpub.com.