Kind of a long drumroll, in fact. The California Newspaper Publishers Association has announced its finalists for first or second place awards in its 2016 Better Newspapers Contest and the North Coast Journal is up for seven. But we won't know the final results until next month. But while we're waiting, here is the list of work the judges have chosen:

Best Investigative Reporting: "The Case of the Missing $5 Million," by Linda Stansberry
Non-Profile Feature Story: "Sanity on Trial," by Thadeus Greenson
Best Columns: from Week in Weed, "Not Even From Around Here" and "Stop It," by Linda Stansberry
Best Arts & Entertainment Coverage: staff
Environmental Reporting: "Until the Sun Sets," by Thadeus Greenson
Profile Feature Story: "Prove Them Wrong," by Thadeus Greenson
Informational Graphic: "The Chase," by Mile Eggleston

We're proud of the staff named here, of course (shout out to regular arts and entertainment freelancers John J. Bennett, Pat Bitton, Gabrielle Gopinath, David Jervis, Andy Powell), as well as the entire Journal staff who make their work possible and help them tell these stories. Go team.