Happy New Year!
October 3, 2024
Welcome to Day 2 of promoting my next release - Time for Love. I’ve been working on this collection for about four years. The romantic collection has twenty short stories - ten about how a couple got engaged and ten about how a couple met. The story I’m going to talk about today is Happy New Year!, a short story taking place on New Year’s Day 2009.
Sawyer planned to propose to his longtime girlfriend Harleigh the night before, but the ring went missing. Their adventures to find the ring lead to a perfect proposal. Where was the ring? You’ll have to read the 8th story in the collection to find out.
How does this story relate to other stories in the gagengirl universe?
This story has ties to The Broken Road series. Harleigh’s sister Caleigh was one of Craig Sargeant’s friends in The Broken Road. Harleigh, her parents, and her brother were created at that time. You don’t need to have read The Broken Road to read this one. This is a stand-alone story. You’ll actually learn more about Caleigh in this story than you did in The Broken Road. This story also has ties to Mad Dog Chronicles. While looking for the missing ring, Harleigh and Sawyer go to Sullenberger’s Pizza Parlor. Does that name sound familiar? Maddie’s family owns it and her brother now runs it. Maddie’s brother George and sister-in-law Ziva make an appearance because they are friends with Harleigh and Sawyer.
What can you share about Harleigh?
Harleigh always wanted to work for herself. She owns and runs a small gift shop, Rooster Rose’s Gifts, in the touristy section of Charleston. Her friend’s pizza parlor is within walking distance of the shop, as is another friend’s Ice Cream and Funnel Cake shop. Where did her shop get its name? She was born in the Year of the Rooster and her middle name is Rose.
And what can you share about Sawyer?
Sawyer is a cyber security software developer. He is laidback, despite his stressful job. His goal in life is to make Harleigh happy and take care of their dogs Zoey & Zia. He wants to take care of Harleigh, but insists she can take care of herself.
Is there anything else you’d like to share about this story?
It’s a romance, the story of how Harleigh and Sawyer got engaged. Spoiler alert… they find the ring and he proposes. (It shouldn’t really be a spoiler, the collection is about happy endings.) This story is one of my favorites.
Do you know which story you’ll tell us about tomorrow?
Yes. Tomorrow’s story is What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve? It’s also one of my favorites.
Are you curious about the music that helped inspire me while writing Happy New Year!? Click here to read about it.
