The phone rings, you answer. On the line is a friend, or perhaps a family member, issuing an invitation to dinner at your favorite restaurant, a shopping trip to a 50-percent off sale at Macy’s or your favorite college team’s pivotal game. You really want to go. You really do. But the invitation is last minute. And you’ve already promised Aunt Martha you’d take her to bingo.

Maybe this situation sounds familiar to you. It’s certainly familiar to us at the Washington Daily News. A newsworthy event, one all of our readers should know about, slips through the cracks. We really wanted to go. We really would have written a story for the next edition. But it was last minute, and, unfortunately, we had other, previous obligations.

Here at the beginning of 2012, we’d like to start the new year right and issue our own invitation. The Washington Daily News cordially invites you to share your news, and here are a few tips as to how:

• Let us know about an event at least two weeks in advance so we can make arrangements to try to have one of our staff writers to cover it.

You may request coverage for an event or submit information about an event (press release, photos) by calling the newsroom directly at 940–4220 or emailing the news staff at news@thewashingtondailynews.com.

• You may now submit a news tip directly through the Washington Daily News website by scrolling down to the bottom of the home page, clicking on the  “Submit a news tip” link and filling out the form provided.

• Photos may be submitted through the website by scrolling down to the bottom of the homepage and clicking on the “Submit a photo” link or email an image directly to the news staff.

Be sure you include all relevant information about a submitted image: full names, event, place, time, date and so on.

All submitted photos should be of good quality. We can scan print copies of photos, but we prefer digital images of at least 150 ppi (pixels per inch).

We’re looking forward to working closely with the community in 2012. We hope you’ll help us celebrate some good news throughout the year.