In April this year, the Barrier Truth newspaper closed its doors after almost 130 years of serving the Broken Hill community.
The city held its breath and could finally exhale in September when Mildura-based publisher ENG Media announced the Broken Hill Times would launch the following month.
April Shepherd was camping in regional Tasmania with her kelpie Stella when she received a call asking if she would be interested in a reporter's role with the new Broken Hill Times.
She jumped at the opportunity, eager to get some red dust on her boots.
President of the Country Press New South Wales Inc. Lucie Peart says the association has seen more communities that have lost their print publication bring back newspapers.
Parenting magazines to marketing for escorts
The first edition of the Broken Hill Times was published after major outages across far west NSW. (Supplied: Em Jensen)
Shepherd grew up in the town of Deloraine in regional Tasmania. Her home had one computer, where she would write up stories.
"I loved to write even when I was a little kid," she said.
After graduating from Monash University with a degree in journalism, she hit the ground running, building an impressive resume across the sector.
"I did feature writing for a parenting magazine. I worked at Melbourne's biggest escort agencies doing their media and marketing," she said.
"I'm quite proud of myself looking back because when you're starting out you send pitches out all the time and no-one gets back to you."
Then, after freelancing for a few years, she got a role writing for Monkey Media, a company that produces magazines on local councils, energy and infrastructure.
Shepherd has worked across the sector after graduating from Monash University. (ABC Broken Hill: Coquohalla Connor)
It didn't take Shepherd too long to become an editor.
But something was missing.
"In school, we're made to feel like you have to keep going and going until you're the most senior, which for journalists is being an editor," she said.
"But once I was an editor, I missed being a journalist and doing the news," she said.
In December last year, Shepherd bought a van and a kelpie, who she named Stella, and together, the duo travelled the country.
"A lot of my [Melbourne] friends thought I had gone completely feral," she said.
"I was basically camping in my van with my dog."
Shepherd says she had never been to Broken Hill when she moved her life to the outback city. (Supplied: April Shepherd)
While travelling she applied for roles across the country, eager to get back to her roots and work at a regional newspaper.
While camping, on her friend's property in Tasmania, she got the call that she had been successful in her application for the Broken Hill Times.
"I just thought, I'm going to take this leap and see if it works," she said.
Publishing come rain or shine
Moving to the remote city of Broken Hill in October was a challenge, but even more challenging was helping put out the first edition of the Broken Hill Times.
The Tuesday before the first edition was due out, the power flickered off.
Rolling outages caused by storm damage to power infrastructure plagued the far west in October. (Supplied: Vlatko's photography)
Suddenly, just like the entire region, the Times was without power.
"It was 37 degrees, we were sweating, there was no internet, no one was washed," she said.
But Shephard and her colleagues refused to have it stand in their way, and the entire team of journalists, editors and photographers delivered on their promise to the community.
"It was important to show people that this is not a fair-weather operation," she said.
"We are here with the community going through this rain, hail, or shine."
It cemented Shephard's decision to go "out bush".
"It's the type of journalism where you really feel like you're making a difference and you're helping people because people need to know this information," she said.
Newspapers not dying, editor says
Lucie Peart is the president of the Country Papers Association. She is also the general manager at the Gilgandra Weekly, The Warren Star, The Narromine Star and The Nyngan Weekly.
She first moved regionally eleven years ago to become a reporter at the Gilgandra Times.
Lucie Peart says print media is alive and well. (Supplied: Jade Thompson)
Ms Peart said she was constantly fighting the narrative that regional papers were dying.
"We have been told we're all dead and dying," said Ms Peart.
"There's this whole myth that there's no newspapers left in the country, and it's simply not true."
She said the cost of living crisis did affect newspapers as they relied upon their communities to keep going.
However, Ms Peart said she had also witnessed regional newspapers restarting.
"I myself have taken over three adjacent territories where there were newspaper closures," Ms Peart said.
"It's happened in Gunnedah. It's happening all up the coast now and in Broken Hill.
Shephard agreed, saying papers in regional communities were vital.
"I think it's the lifeblood of these small communities," she said.
"People think that print media is dying, but I think the opposite. People want something they can hold."