Cash for kidneys, characters for a cause

Donating money to the National Kidney Foundation is always a worthy cause, but this week my pal Ben Sobieck has managed to up the ante on saving lives and doing good deeds. He’s raising funds for the NKF’s annual Kidney Walk, and everybody who kicks in a few bucks towards his $2,000 goal gets to name a character in his next Maynard Soloman story!

If you don’t already know about Maynard, let me put it this way: he’s a pun-loving, crusty PI living in his Winnebago who solves America’s most pressing problems as he runs from his money troubles and failing health. Take, for instance, his case Maynard Soloman Solves the War on Drugs. It’s not your average gumshoe’s beat, that’s for sure, but at the end of the case Maynard ties it all up in a nice, neat bow for the feds to admire.

Maynard has also:

• Proven Santa Claus is real,
• Legalized gay knot-tying,
• Taken the bus to a strip club,
• Fixed Social Security, and
• Eaten a pony!

Obviously, this is a guy that gets around. He’s even going to be featured in Ben’s forthcoming Writer’s Digest book about writing weaponry correctly in crime fiction. Who wouldn’t want to be featured in such illustrious company?

So if you want to be a character in a funny detective story from a great writer, here’s Ben’s blog that explains the whole deal. You’ve got until October 11 to think of a great character name and make your donation, so get thee to the nearest name generator and go hog wild!