Today we’re thrilled to welcome Jan Gangsei, whose newest middle-grade novel was released this week from Simon & Schuster/Aladdin. She’s here to tell us all about PROJECT ME 2.0 and her journey to its publication. Plus, she has generously offered to send one lucky reader an autographed copy of the novel. A winner will be chosen at random from those who comment below by midnight Wednesday. (U.S. only please.) Don’t miss your chance to win! Read the interview and let us know your thoughts at the bottom of this page!
But first, here’s a little bit about Jan and PROJECT ME 2.0.
Jan Gangsei writes fast-paced thrillers and humor with heart for teens and tweens. Her debut novel, ZERO DAY, a political thriller set in Washington, DC, was published in 2016 by Disney-Hyperion and has been named to several state award and reading lists. She’s also the author of THE WILD BUNCH (S&S/Aladdin, 2017) and nearly a dozen middle grade novels written for book packagers under pen names and published in multiple languages and countries. Jan was one of the founding members of the MUF blog, and she’s thrilled to be back here today as a guest!
An eleven-year-old boy on a quest to impress his suddenly cute, longtime friend accidentally manifests a tiny internet guru into existence in this hilarious MAX novel!
All class clown Farley Andrew Turner (yes, that spells FAT) wanted the summer before seventh grade was to give his image a little boost . . . and maybe, just maybe, impress his oldest pal, whom he has a secret crush on.
But when Farley accidentally manifests a tiny internet guru into existence (think genie, but far more annoying and without any ability whatsoever to grant wishes), his entire plan goes sideways.
Now, in order to rid himself of the four-inch tall pest spouting ridiculous self-help advice and doing yoga on his mouse pad, Farley must complete all “Seven Steps to a Whole New You!”—no matter how embarrassing they may be. Which is how Farley finds himself outfitted in too-small spandex and suffering through daily jogs with his super-athletic dad, attempting to read WAR AND PEACE, and agreeing to play toy guitar in his best friend Burt’s newly formed off-pitch boy band. Unfortunately, it only goes downhill from there . . . But hey, no one ever claimed the path to enlightenment would be easy, did they?
1. What was the inspiration behind PROJECT ME 2.0?