diff --git a/.changelog.yml b/.changelog.yml
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index 0000000..852fec7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.changelog.yml
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+# Configuration for gh-changelog
+# Labels added here will be omitted from the changelog
+excluded_labels:
+  - maintenance
+  - dependencies
+  - wontfix
+  - duplicate
+  - invalid
+
+# This is the filename of the generated changelog
+file_name: CHANGELOG.md
+
+# This is where labels are mapped to the sections in a changelog entry
+# The possible sections are restricted to: Added, Changed, Deprecated,
+# Removed, Fixed, Security.
+sections:
+  added:
+    - enhancement
+    - feature
+    - new
+  changed:
+    - backwards-incompatible
+    - breaking-change
+    - change
+  deprecated:
+    - deprecation
+  removed:
+    - removal
+  fixed:
+    - bug
+    - bugfix
+    - fix
+  security:
+    - security
+    - vulnerability
+
+# When set to true, unlabelled entries will not be included in the changelog.
+# By default they will be grouped in a section named "Other".
+skip_entries_without_label: false
+
+# Adds an unreleased section to the changelog. This will contain any qualifying entries
+# that have been added since the last tag.
+# Note: The unreleased section is not created when the --next-version flag is used.
+show_unreleased: true
+
+# If set to false, the tool will not check remotely for updates
+check_for_updates: true
+
+# Determines the logging mode. The default is spinner. The other option is console.
+logger: console
diff --git a/.github/workflows/release_prep.yml b/.github/workflows/release_prep.yml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..24aa51d
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+++ b/.github/workflows/release_prep.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,92 @@
+name: "Release Prep"
+
+on:
+  workflow_dispatch:
+    inputs:
+      target:
+        description: "The target for the release. This can be a commit sha or a branch."
+        required: false
+        default: "main"
+        type: "string"
+      version:
+        description: "Version of gem to be released."
+        required: true
+        type: "string"
+
+jobs:
+  release_prep:
+    name: "Release Prep"
+    runs-on: "ubuntu-latest"
+
+    steps:
+      - name: "Checkout"
+        uses: "actions/checkout@v4"
+        with:
+          ref: ${{ github.event.inputs.target }}
+          clean: true
+          fetch-depth: 0
+
+      - name: "Setup Ruby"
+        uses: "ruby/setup-ruby@v1"
+        with:
+          ruby-version: "3.2"
+          bundler-cache: true
+
+      - name: "Bundle environment"
+        run: |
+          echo ::group::bundler environment
+          bundle env
+          echo ::endgroup::
+
+      - name: "Update Version"
+        run: |
+          current_version=$(ruby -e "require 'rubygems'; puts Gem::Specification::load(Dir.glob('*.gemspec').first).version.to_s")
+          normalized_version=$(echo ${{ github.event.inputs.version }} | sed "s/-/./g")
+          sed -i "s/$current_version/$normalized_version/g" $(find . -path './lib/**' -name 'version.rb' -not -path "vendor/*")
+
+      - name: "Generate changelog"
+        run: |
+          export GH_HOST=github.com
+          gh extension install chelnak/gh-changelog || gh extension upgrade chelnak/gh-changelog
+          gh changelog new --next-version v${{ github.event.inputs.version }}
+        env:
+          GH_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+
+      - name: "Run tests to ensure everything works"
+        run: |
+          bundle exec rake spec
+
+      - name: "Run RuboCop to ensure code quality"
+        run: |
+          bundle exec rubocop
+
+      - name: "Build gem to verify it can be built"
+        run: |
+          bundle exec rake build
+
+      - name: "Commit changes"
+        run: |
+          git config --local user.email "${{ github.repository_owner }}@users.noreply.github.com"
+          git config --local user.name "GitHub Actions"
+          git add .
+          git commit -m "Release prep v${{ github.event.inputs.version }}"
+
+      - name: "Create pull request"
+        uses: "peter-evans/create-pull-request@v7"
+        with:
+          token: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+          commit-message: "Release prep v${{ github.event.inputs.version }}"
+          branch: "release-prep-v${{ github.event.inputs.version }}"
+          delete-branch: true
+          title: "Release prep v${{ github.event.inputs.version }}"
+          base: "main"
+          body: |
+            Automated release-prep for version v${{ github.event.inputs.version }} from commit ${{ github.sha }}.
+            
+            This PR includes:
+            - Version bump to v${{ github.event.inputs.version }}
+            - Updated CHANGELOG.md
+            - Verified tests pass
+            - Verified RuboCop passes
+            - Verified gem can be built
+          labels: "maintenance"
diff --git a/docs/how-to/publishing_automation.md b/docs/how-to/publishing_automation.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3034c4b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docs/how-to/publishing_automation.md
@@ -0,0 +1,143 @@
+# Publishing Your Gem with GitHub Automation
+
+This repository includes GitHub Actions workflows to automate the gem publishing process, inspired by the puppetlabs/cat-github-actions workflows but adapted for personal use.
+
+## Prerequisites
+
+Before you can use these workflows, you need to set up a few things:
+
+### 1. RubyGems API Key
+
+To publish to RubyGems.org, you need to set up an API key:
+
+1. Go to https://rubygems.org/settings/edit
+2. Create an API key with the scope you need (usually "Push rubygems")
+3. In your GitHub repository, go to Settings → Secrets and variables → Actions
+4. Add a new repository secret named `GEM_HOST_API_KEY` with your RubyGems API key
+
+### 2. Optional: Codecov Integration
+
+For enhanced coverage reporting:
+
+1. Go to https://codecov.io and sign up/login with your GitHub account
+2. Add your repository to Codecov
+3. Get your repository's Codecov token
+4. Add it as a repository secret named `CODECOV_TOKEN`
+
+## Available Workflows
+
+### 1. CI Workflow (`.github/workflows/ci.yml`)
+
+**Triggers:** Push to main/master/development branches, pull requests to main/master
+
+**What it does:**
+- Runs tests on Ruby 3.1 and 3.2
+- Runs RuboCop linting
+- Generates coverage reports
+- Uploads coverage to Codecov (if configured)
+- Deploys coverage reports to GitHub Pages
+
+### 2. Release Prep Workflow (`.github/workflows/release_prep.yml`)
+
+**Triggers:** Manual trigger via GitHub Actions tab
+
+**What it does:**
+- Updates the version in your `lib/gempath/version.rb` file
+- Generates/updates the CHANGELOG.md using PR/issue labels
+- Runs tests and linting to ensure everything works
+- Builds the gem to verify it can be built
+- Creates a release preparation pull request
+
+**How to use:**
+1. Go to your repository's Actions tab
+2. Select "Release Prep" workflow
+3. Click "Run workflow"
+4. Enter the version you want to release (e.g., "1.0.0")
+5. Review and merge the generated pull request
+
+### 3. Release Workflow (`.github/workflows/release.yml`)
+
+**Triggers:** Manual trigger via GitHub Actions tab
+
+**What it does:**
+- Runs final tests and linting
+- Builds the gem
+- Creates a GitHub release with generated release notes
+- Publishes the gem to RubyGems.org
+- Publishes the gem to GitHub Packages
+
+**How to use:**
+1. Ensure your release prep PR has been merged
+2. Go to your repository's Actions tab
+3. Select "Release" workflow
+4. Click "Run workflow"
+5. The workflow will automatically detect the version from your gemspec
+
+## Changelog Generation
+
+The workflows use the `gh-changelog` extension to automatically generate changelog entries based on:
+
+- Pull request titles and descriptions
+- Issue labels
+- Git commit messages
+
+### Label Mapping
+
+The changelog generator maps GitHub labels to changelog sections:
+
+- **Added:** enhancement, feature, new
+- **Changed:** backwards-incompatible, breaking-change, change
+- **Fixed:** bug, bugfix, fix
+- **Security:** security, vulnerability
+- **Deprecated:** deprecation
+- **Removed:** removal
+
+### Excluded Labels
+
+These labels won't appear in the changelog:
+- maintenance
+- dependencies
+- wontfix
+- duplicate
+- invalid
+
+## Release Process
+
+Here's the recommended process for releasing a new version:
+
+1. **Develop and test your changes** on feature branches
+2. **Create and merge pull requests** to main with appropriate labels
+3. **Run the Release Prep workflow** with your desired version number
+4. **Review the generated pull request** to ensure the changelog and version bump look correct
+5. **Merge the release prep pull request**
+6. **Run the Release workflow** to publish the gem
+
+## Differences from puppetlabs/cat-github-actions
+
+While inspired by the puppetlabs workflows, these have been adapted for personal use:
+
+1. **Repository ownership check:** Changed from `puppetlabs` to `gavindidrichsen`
+2. **Ruby version:** Updated to use Ruby 3.2 as primary version
+3. **Additional verification:** Added gem building verification in release prep
+4. **Enhanced CI:** Added matrix testing across Ruby 3.1 and 3.2
+5. **Development branch:** Added support for development branch in CI
+6. **Better error handling:** Made Codecov upload optional to prevent failures
+
+## Troubleshooting
+
+### Release Prep Fails
+
+- Check that your repository has proper PR/issue history for changelog generation
+- Ensure your version.rb file is in the expected location (`lib/gempath/version.rb`)
+- Verify tests pass locally before running the workflow
+
+### Release Fails
+
+- Ensure `GEM_HOST_API_KEY` secret is set correctly
+- Check that the gem builds successfully locally with `bundle exec rake build`
+- Verify your gemspec is valid
+
+### Coverage Issues
+
+- Codecov upload is optional; the workflow will continue if it fails
+- Check that your test suite generates coverage data in the expected format
diff --git a/docs/how-to/release_checklist.md b/docs/how-to/release_checklist.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f2d19e8
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+++ b/docs/how-to/release_checklist.md
@@ -0,0 +1,69 @@
+# Release Checklist
+
+Use this checklist to ensure a smooth release process:
+
+## Pre-Release
+
+- [ ] All desired features and fixes are merged to `main`
+- [ ] Tests are passing locally: `bundle exec rake spec`
+- [ ] RuboCop passes locally: `bundle exec rubocop`
+- [ ] Gem builds successfully: `bundle exec rake build`
+- [ ] Documentation is up to date
+- [ ] Version number follows [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/)
+
+## Release Prep
+
+- [ ] Run the "Release Prep" workflow from GitHub Actions
+  - [ ] Go to Actions tab → Release Prep → Run workflow
+  - [ ] Enter the new version number (e.g., "1.0.0")
+- [ ] Review the generated pull request:
+  - [ ] Version bump is correct in `lib/gempath/version.rb`
+  - [ ] CHANGELOG.md has been updated appropriately
+  - [ ] All automated checks pass
+- [ ] Merge the release prep pull request
+
+## Release
+
+- [ ] Ensure the release prep PR has been merged
+- [ ] Run the "Release" workflow from GitHub Actions
+  - [ ] Go to Actions tab → Release → Run workflow
+- [ ] Verify the release completed successfully:
+  - [ ] GitHub release was created with release notes
+  - [ ] Gem was published to RubyGems.org
+  - [ ] Gem was published to GitHub Packages (optional)
+
+## Post-Release
+
+- [ ] Verify the gem can be installed: `gem install gempath`
+- [ ] Test the installed gem works as expected
+- [ ] Announce the release (optional):
+  - [ ] Update project README if needed
+  - [ ] Share on social media, blog, etc.
+
+## Secrets Required
+
+Ensure these GitHub repository secrets are configured:
+
+- [ ] `GEM_HOST_API_KEY` - Your RubyGems.org API key (required)
+- [ ] `CODECOV_TOKEN` - Your Codecov token (optional, for coverage reporting)
+
+## Troubleshooting
+
+If something goes wrong:
+
+1. **Release Prep fails**: Check the workflow logs and ensure your repo has sufficient history for changelog generation
+2. **Release fails**: Verify your `GEM_HOST_API_KEY` is correct and has push permissions
+3. **Gem push fails**: Check if the version already exists on RubyGems.org
+
+## Version Numbering Guide
+
+Follow [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/):
+
+- **Major (X.0.0)**: Breaking changes
+- **Minor (0.X.0)**: New features, backwards compatible
+- **Patch (0.0.X)**: Bug fixes, backwards compatible
+
+Examples:
+- `0.1.0` → `0.1.1` (bug fix)
+- `0.1.1` → `0.2.0` (new feature)
+- `0.2.0` → `1.0.0` (breaking change or first stable release)