Janet Tashjian is a middle-grade and young adult novelist who's been writing books for children for fifteen years. Her first novel 'Tru Confessions' was made into a critically acclaimed Disney TV movie starring Clara Bryant and Shia LaBeouf. 'The Gospel According to Larry' series is a cult favorite and 'Fault Line' is taught in many middle and high schools. Her novels 'My Life As a Book,' 'My Life As a Stuntboy,' and 'My Life As a Cartoonist' are all illustrated by her teenage son, Jake.Their collaboration continues with a new series, 'Einstein the Class Hamster.'Janet has been doing school visits for fifteen years; you can email her for details.You can follow her on Twitter and like her books on Facebook, and check out her YouTube Channel. Jake Tashjian is a teenage illustrator of middle grade children's books.

He has illustrated My Life As a Book and My Life As a Stuntboy, as well as My Life As a Cartoonist and Einstein the Class Hamster. He collaborates on his novels with his mother, the author Janet Tashjian. He has a video blog entitled Notes From the Panic Room at their My Life as a Book website. He films all of the segments then edits the vlogs in IMovie.When Jake was in elementary school, he used to draw his vocabulary words on index cards. This later became the inspiration for the main character, Derek, in the My Life As A.series.Jake grew up in Needham, Massachusetts and currently lives in Los Angeles where he attends Fusion Academy.

He is an avid surfer and film aficionado.