diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index b140fb3..be20b7a 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -6,7 +6,8 @@ A collection of tools for publishing from and to NPR's Story API. [Find this plu
 - Original developers: NPRDS, INN Labs
 - Requires at least: 3.8.14
 - Tested up to: 6.4.1
-- Stable tag: 1.9.6
+- Version: 1.9.7
+- Stable tag: 1.9.7
 - License: GPLv2
 - License URI: https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-2.0.html
 
@@ -70,6 +71,15 @@ NPR Stories having got gotten
 ## Changelog
 
 <!-- copy from readme.txt to here -->
+### V1.9.7
+* Updated ID pattern matching on get_stories.php to accommodate NPR's new alphanumeric IDs
+
+### V1.9.6.2
+* Fixed a potentially fatal error when trying to pull a Story API ID from a blank URL
+
+### V1.9.6.1
+* Added messaging about the eventual retirement of the Story API with links to the newly launched CDS plugin
+
 ### V1.9.6
 * Articles imported from the API will now show the original article URL as the canonical URL in the header
 
diff --git a/composer.json b/composer.json
index 06455a8..82cc731 100644
--- a/composer.json
+++ b/composer.json
@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@
 	"license"    : "GPL-2.0+",
 	"require": {},
 	"dist": {
-		"url": "https://github.com/OpenPublicMedia/nprapi-wordpress/archive/refs/tags/v1.9.6.zip",
+		"url": "https://github.com/OpenPublicMedia/nprapi-wordpress/archive/refs/tags/v1.9.7.zip",
 		"type": "zip"
 	},
 	"authors": [
diff --git a/ds-npr-api.php b/ds-npr-api.php
index e9b2bb0..3791028 100644
--- a/ds-npr-api.php
+++ b/ds-npr-api.php
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
 /**
  * Plugin Name: NPR Story API
  * Description: A collection of tools for reusing content from NPR.org, now maintained and updated by NPR member station developers
- * Version: 1.9.6
+ * Version: 1.9.7
  * Author: Open Public Media
  * License: GPLv2
 */
@@ -264,7 +264,7 @@ function nprstory_add_header_meta() {
 }
 add_action( 'wp_head', 'nprstory_add_header_meta', 9 );
 
-// add_action('admin_notices', 'nprstory_cds_plugin_admin_notice');
+add_action('admin_notices', 'nprstory_cds_plugin_admin_notice');
 
 function nprstory_cds_plugin_admin_notice() {
 	global $pagenow;
@@ -282,10 +282,10 @@ function nprstory_cds_plugin_admin_notice() {
 		}
 	}
 	if ( $display ) { ?>
-		<div class="notice notice-warning">
+		<div class="notice notice-warning is-dismissible">
 			<h2><?php _e( 'The NPR Story API plugin is going away!', 'ds_npr_api' ); ?></h2>
-			<p><?php _e( 'In the coming months, the NPR Story API will be sunset in favor of the NPR Content Distribution System (CDS). The same great content, but with greater flexibility, a more modern architecture, and richer media support.', 'ds_npr_api' ); ?></p>
-			<p><?php _e( 'While the Story API will continue to function for some time, we encourage you to try out the new NPR CDS Plugin. Be sure to file a ticket in NPR Studio to get your authorization token and station information.', 'ds_npr_api' ); ?></p>
+			<p><?php _e( 'In the coming months, the NPR Story API will be sunset in favor of the <a href="https://npr.github.io/content-distribution-service/">NPR Content Distribution Service (CDS)</a>. The same great content, but with greater flexibility, a more modern architecture, and richer media support.', 'ds_npr_api' ); ?></p>
+			<p><?php _e( 'While the Story API will continue to function for some time, we encourage you to try out the <a href="https://wordpress.org/plugins/npr-content-distribution-service/">new NPR CDS Plugin</a>. Be sure to file a ticket in <a href="https://studio.npr.org/">NPR Studio</a> to get your authorization token and station information.', 'ds_npr_api' ); ?></p>
 		</div>
 <?php
 	}
diff --git a/get_stories.php b/get_stories.php
index b5787bc..554a94f 100644
--- a/get_stories.php
+++ b/get_stories.php
@@ -109,52 +109,62 @@ public function load_page_hook() {
 					403
 				);
 			}
-			$story_id = sanitize_text_field( $_POST[ 'story_id' ] );
+			$story_id = trim( sanitize_text_field( $_POST[ 'story_id' ] ) );
 			if ( isset( $_POST['publishNow'] ) ) {
 				$publish = true;
 			}
-			if ( isset( $_POST['createDaft'] ) ) {
+			if ( isset( $_POST['createDraft'] ) ) {
 				$publish = false;
 			}
 		} elseif ( isset( $_GET['story_id'] ) && isset( $_GET['create_draft'] ) ) {
-			$story_id = sanitize_text_field( $_GET['story_id'] );
+			$story_id = trim( sanitize_text_field( $_GET['story_id'] ) );
 		}
 
+		$valid = false;
 		// try to get the ID of the story from the URL
-		if ( isset( $story_id ) ) {
+		if ( !empty( $story_id ) ) {
 			//check to see if we got an ID or a URL
-			if ( is_numeric( $story_id ) ) {
-				if ( strlen( $story_id ) >= 8 ) {
-					$story_id = $story_id;
-				}
-			} elseif ( strpos( $story_id, 'npr.org' ) !== false ) {
+			if ( is_numeric( $story_id ) && strlen( $story_id ) >= 8 ) {
+				$valid = true;
+			} elseif ( preg_match( '/^[a-z0-9\-]+$/', $story_id ) ) {
+				$valid = true;
+			} elseif ( wp_http_validate_url( $story_id ) ) {
 				$story_id = sanitize_url( $story_id );
 				// url format: /yyyy/mm/dd/id
 				// url format: /blogs/name/yyyy/mm/dd/id
-				$story_id = preg_replace( '/https?\:\/\/[^\s\/]*npr\.org\/((([^\/]*\/){3,5})([0-9]{8,12}))\/.*/', '$4', $story_id );
-				if ( !is_numeric( $story_id ) ) {
-					// url format: /templates/story/story.php?storyId=id
-					$story_id = preg_replace( '/https?\:\/\/[^\s\/]*npr\.org\/([^&\s\<]*storyId\=([0-9]+)).*/', '$2', $story_id );
-				}
-			} else {
-				$story_id = sanitize_url( $story_id );
-				$meta = get_meta_tags( $story_id );
-				if ( !empty( $meta['brightspot-datalayer'] ) ) {
-					$json = json_decode( html_entity_decode( $meta['brightspot-datalayer'] ), TRUE );
-					if ( !empty( $json['nprStoryId'] ) ) {
-						$story_id = $json['nprStoryId'];
+				if ( str_contains( $story_id, 'npr.org' ) ) {
+					preg_match( '/https?:\/\/[^\s\/]*npr\.org\/((([^\/]*\/){3,5})([a-z\-0-9]+))\/.*/', $story_id, $matches );
+					if ( !empty( $matches[4] ) ) {
+						$story_id = $matches[4];
+						$valid = true;
+					} else {
+						preg_match( '/https?\:\/\/[^\s\/]*npr\.org\/([^&\s\<]*storyId\=([0-9]+)).*/', $story_id, $matches );
+						if ( !empty( $matches[2] ) ) {
+							$story_id = $matches[2];
+							$valid = true;
+						}
 					}
-				} elseif ( !empty( $meta['story_id'] ) ) {
-					$story_id = $meta['story_id'];
 				} else {
-					nprstory_show_message( "The referenced URL (" . $story_id . ") does not contain a valid NPR Story API ID. Please try again.", TRUE );
-					error_log( "The referenced URL (" . $story_id . ") does not contain a valid NPR Story API ID. Please try again." ); // debug use
+					$meta = get_meta_tags( $story_id );
+					if ( ! empty( $meta['brightspot-datalayer'] ) ) {
+						$json = json_decode( html_entity_decode( $meta['brightspot-datalayer'] ), true );
+						if ( ! empty( $json['nprStoryId'] ) ) {
+							$story_id = $json['nprStoryId'];
+							$valid = true;
+						}
+					} elseif ( ! empty( $meta['story_id'] ) ) {
+						$story_id = $meta['story_id'];
+						$valid = true;
+					} else {
+						nprstory_show_message( "The referenced URL (" . $story_id . ") does not contain a valid NPR CDS ID. Please try again.", true );
+						error_log( "The referenced URL (" . $story_id . ") does not contain a valid NPR CDS ID. Please try again." ); // debug use
+					}
 				}
 			}
 		}
 
 		// Don't do anything if $story_id isn't an ID
-		if ( isset( $story_id ) && is_numeric( $story_id ) ) {
+		if ( !empty( $story_id ) && $valid ) {
 			// start the API class
 			// todo: check that the API key is actually set
 			$api = new NPRAPIWordpress();
@@ -175,7 +185,6 @@ public function load_page_hook() {
 					$xml = simplexml_load_string( $api->xml );
 					nprstory_show_message( 'Error retrieving story for id = ' . $story_id . '<br> API error =' . $api->message->id . '<br> API Message =' . $xml->message->text, TRUE );
 					error_log( 'Not going to save the return from query for story_id=' . $story_id .', we got an error=' . $api->message->id . ' from the NPR Story API' ); // debug use
-					return;
 				}
 			}
 		}
diff --git a/readme.txt b/readme.txt
index cbadb61..90949b9 100644
--- a/readme.txt
+++ b/readme.txt
@@ -4,7 +4,8 @@ Donate link: https://www.npr.org/series/750002/support-public-radio
 Tags: npr, news, public radio, api
 Requires at least: 3.8.14
 Tested up to: 6.0
-Stable tag: 1.9.6
+Version: 1.9.7
+Stable tag: 1.9.7
 License: GPLv2
 License URI: http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-2.0.html
 Text Domain: nprapi
@@ -70,6 +71,15 @@ NPR Stories having got gotten
 
 
 == Changelog ==
+= V1.9.7 =
+* Updated ID pattern matching on get_stories.php to accommodate NPR's new alphanumeric IDs
+
+= V1.9.6.2 =
+* Fixed a potentially fatal error when trying to pull a Story API ID from a blank URL
+
+= V1.9.6.1 =
+* Added messaging about the eventual retirement of the Story API with links to the newly launched CDS plugin
+
 = V1.9.6 =
 * Articles imported from the API will now show the original article URL as the canonical URL in the header