A few weeks ago I asked for help coming up with names for my hamster. Not a real hamster, mind you. I haven't had one of those since high school (and that's just fine with my husband). This name was for a hamster who will appear (star?) in my novella releasing next Valentine's season in the collection called Pet's Amore!
My story is set in a kindergarten class on Valentine's day. The hamster is brought by a student who was sick the day of show-and-tell, so he decides it's okay to bring him the first day he's back instead. The kindergarten teacher isn't so sure it's okay, but the animal is already there. Let the chaos ensue!

I'm working on a Valentine's novella to release in 2025, and it includes a Kindergarten teacher, a little boy and his cute uncle, and a hamster. Sounds like the perfect combination for chaos, right?
Especially when they all come together the day of the Valentine's day party. Yep. This one is going to be fun.
Right now, my characters' names are Ms. Kimberly, Uncle Miles, and Jacob. But I can't come up with a super cute name for the hamster. And since he's sort of one of the stars of the show, I want a good one.
​Want to help?

How do you celebrate birthdays in your family?
In ours, we tend to stretch them over weeks and sometimes even months. For instance, my niece will turn 6 on the 6th, but we won't get to celebrate with her until Labor day weekend. Almost a month later. We'll cram in celebrations for my son and me, too, at that same time, but our birthdays are at the end of the month.
If I had my way, I'd have an ice cream cake to celebrate my birth each year. I just love them. Two of my favorite things crammed together in perfection!
So, since my birthday is at the end of the month, I wanted to do something to celebrate with all of you, dear readers. I'm going to give away some ice cream (via a gift card because let's be real -- it would totally melt in the mail). And an ebook. Want to know more?
Over the next few weeks, I'm going to write a short story about someone's birthday. But I want to hear your ideas. What do you think I should include in this story?
I'll post the finished project, a piece at a time, from August 26th through 30th. I'll also post clues that you'll have to look for each day, sort of a scavenger hunt. When you've collected all the clues, send them in to me either through facebook or through my contact me page on here. I'll put each reader who gets all the clues correct into a hat and draw a winner after Labor day.
What do you think? Does this sound fun?
So, hit me with your best ideas. If you were reading a short story about someone's birthday, what would you really truly hope would be included?