Every week, we know some of the news that’s going to happen – an election, a selectmen’s meeting, or a concert or other event to cover. It’s news people need to know or will enjoy reading about. Maybe they went to the event or their granddaughter did.

Then there’s the unplanned, or spot news – the fires, serious crashes and other bad news. On a good week, there is none. But when it happens, we gather the facts and sometimes photos and video footage. I’ve noted here before, spot news tends to climb quickly onto and up our website’s top 10. And yet, of course, I would have rather sat through 10 municipal meetings than tell everyone the awful thing that just happened to someone in one of our towns.

Some of my favorite stories to read or write fall into another category, reader-driven news – that gem we only know about because someone called us. We invite that, with our phone numbers and email addresses online and in print. Mine are 844-4633 and susanjohns@wiscassetnewspaper.com.

Thanks to readers’ calls, we know this week about Marge Pooler’s damaged American flag, and in 2014 we knew an Amtrak train had come through Wiscasset. Gordon and Lynne Kontrath told us, and we took it from there. It turned out, Amtrak’s CEO was on board. That headline quote of one spouse asking the other, ‘Did you see that train’ said it all, about this type of story: People sharing with fellow Wiscasset Newspaper readers the surprising things they have just seen or experienced.

With the exception of a serious interview, in local news, there is nothing better.

It’s not a meeting and it’s not a fire. It’s just interesting, and an avenue for sharing the human experience.

The calls don’t all become stories, nor should they. But the ones that fly are some of the best stories we publish.

So thank you to those who call us out of the blue. You make our day.