I am thrilled to be hosting a spot on the WELCOME TO DWEEB CLUB by Betsy Uhrig Blog Tour
hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. Check out my post and make sure to enter the giveaway!
Betsy Uhrig was born and raised in Greater Boston, where she lives with her family and way more books than you are picturing. She graduated from Smith College with a degree in English and has worked in publishing ever since. She writes books for children instead of doing things that aren’t as fun. Betsy is the author of Double the Danger and Zero Zucchini and Welcome to Dweeb Club. Visit her at BetsyUhrig.com for more information about her books and her cats.
Title: WELCOME TO DWEEB CLUB
Author: Betsy Uhrig
Pub. Date: September 28, 2021
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Formats: Hardcover, eBook
Pages: 272
What if a school club changed your life forever?
In the second week of seventh grade, Jason Sloan signs up for the brand-new HAIR Club. He and
his friends have no idea what it’s about, but since they’re the first to sign up they figure they’ll
be in charge in no time. The club turns out to be super weird: using fancy new equipment
donated by a mysterious benefactor, the members are supposed to monitor school security
footage. Their first assignment: find out what is stealing the cafeteria’s croutons.
Instead of the expected dark cafeteria, the computers show the club members something else
entirely: actual footage of themselves as high school seniors, five years in the future! What on
earth could be happening? Is it some kind of time warp, or alternate reality? Or is it just an un-
funny prank? As they scramble to solve the mystery, they can’t help but notice something
else—none of them like what they see five years from now. Is there any way to change the
future—and their fates?
This excerpt comes near the end of the book, when the main character (Jason) and three other
club members attempt to create a diversion at the headquarters of a high-tech company and
end up on the run in one of the golf carts used to ferry employees around the campus.
There were several things we could have done, none of them involving stealing a golf cart. But
Vincent had already managed to shift the thing into drive, and it was starting to roll. Hoppy,
Lara, and I scrambled aboard, and Lara actually told Vincent to “Floor it!”
I guess he did floor it, because we all lurched backward under the tiny g-force for a second. But
“high speed” and “golf cart” are words you never see together for a reason. We pulled away
from the curb and then started to putter along the lane at a leisurely-golf-outing pace.
The security guards didn’t seem eager to chase the runaway cart on foot. They climbed into the
other one and started puttering along after us, yelling something we couldn’t really hear but
was probably along the lines of “Stop!” and “Come back here!” The big one kept his original
grim expression, but the small one was getting red and shiny in the face.
Picture the most ridiculous low-speed chase you can. Then add one inexperienced driver
(Vincent), one extremely critical passenger-seat occupant (Hoppy), two—let’s be honest—sort-
of-thrilled backseat passengers (Lara and Jason), two yelling uniformed men, and multiple
speed bumps. I don’t know how long it would have gone on—both parties moving at top
velocity (= slow), always about the same distance apart—if Hoppy hadn’t told Vincent to “Hurry
up!” and Vincent hadn’t reached the golf course portion of our drive at the same time.
“I’m going to off-road it,” Vincent announced, and he jerked the steering wheel and headed out
onto the impossibly smooth green grass of the golf course.
“They’re going to follow us, you know,” said Hoppy. “They’re in a golf cart too, you realize.”
“I think I can lose them,” said Vincent.
And then he got to say something in real life that most nerds only dream of. He said it in the
perfect tone, with the exact right amount of seriousness. I’m just glad I was there to hear it.
“Evasive maneuvers!” Vincent cried.
GUEST INTERVIEW!
Betsy Uhrig / Welcome to Dweeb Club/YABC Q&A
Let’s start with, how are you this fine day?
Well, we’re expecting “torrential rain” as we speak, but I’m fine so far! This time of year always
makes me think I should be shopping for “school shoes” and binder paper and maybe some fun
erasers that will make me instantly popular. But I don’t need any of those things. (Except
maybe the erasers…)
Where do you get your information or ideas for your books?
I usually mine my own childhood for material, then layer on things happening around me. So
my kid characters tend to be a weird hybrid of overconfident and insecure, but they also have
(or really, really want) cell phones and internet connections. Which tends to make things
worse…
When did you write your first book and how old were you?
Assuming you count lined paper stapled together as a book (and you should), I think I was in
fourth grade: Woodmouse’s Adventures at Sea. Illustrated by the author. It was about a flood,
and a mouse and an ant having to team up to survive. That’s about all I remember. My mother
loved it!
What do you like to do when you're not writing?
I work full-time, so I enjoy resting when I’m not writing or working. But I love to read (I consider
that resting, since it’s done lying down in my case), and I also enjoy baking treats and needle-
felting tiny creatures. Like writing, needle-felting takes a long time and involves intense
attention to detail, but I also get to stab my projects over and over, which you don’t usually do
when writing.
What does your family think of your writing?
I’m going to describe their attitude as tolerant amusement. But they’ve been very supportive
and tend to be better marketers of my books than I am.
What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your books?
That is an intriguing question! I definitely discovered that you can drop little details into a
manuscript just for color that wind up directing the plot or the characters in new and
interesting ways. At which point I follow along as best I can, trying to keep up. I once gave a
character a strange last name purely for laughs, and it ended up being a major plot point later
on – that was a surprise!
How many books have you written? Which is your favorite?
I’ve written more manuscripts than will ever see the light of day, but some of those are odd and
unpublishable picture books, so it’s not as if my garret is filled with teetering piles of dusty
paper. My favorite book is always the one I’m envisioning that I can’t quite get my arms around
yet. I guess I love a challenge! In writing, at least.
Do you hear from your readers much? What kinds of things do they say?
I have so far published two books in the pandemic, so it’s hard to connect with readers,
unfortunately. I have heard “quirky, but in a fun way,” which is high praise as far as I’m
concerned! I wouldn’t mind that as my epitaph, actually.…
Have you even been sent fan art?
Not yet, but if I were, I would immediately run outside and jump around with excitement. Then
frame it and hang it up. Fan art seems like the ultimate show of appreciation.
What do you think makes a good story?
For me, it’s all about entertainment. I want something engrossing, with a unique voice and
some good twists and turns. Humor is also important to me. Even in the most trying situation,
most people can’t help but take note of what’s funny about it. Give me a character making
snide remarks to an over-serious villain and I’m hooked!
As a child, what did you want to do when you grew up?
This is pretty clichéd, but I did indeed want to be a writer. Also a witch.
What is that one weird quirk about yourself, that no one else knows?
I often put my pants on two legs at a time.
If you had your time back what would you tell yourself about writing?
I would tell myself that my favorite kind of book is middle grade, so I should stop struggling to
write edgy adult stuff and just do what I love. (My edgy adult stuff was not good.)
Last but not least, What advice would you give aspiring writers?
Going with another cliché, but it’s a good one: read. Read everything and anything that makes
you happy. Then write what makes you happy – it’s so much easier that way. And be sure to
save everything you write. You never know what old, abandoned manuscript can be
resurrected someday – or at least pillaged for the good stuff.
Thank you for answers my questions
You’re welcome! It was my pleasure.
Week One:
9/13/2021
Excerpt
9/14/2021
Review
9/15/2021
Guest Post
9/16/2021
Excerpt
9/17/2021
Review
9/18/2021
Review
Week Two:
9/19/2021
Review
9/20/2021
Review
9/21/2021
Review
9/22/2021
Review
9/23/2021
Review
9/24/2021
Review
9/25/2021
Review
Week Three:
9/26/2021
Review
9/27/2021
Review
9/28/2021
Interview
9/29/2021
Review
9/30/2021
Interview
10/1/2021
Review
10/2/2021
Review/IG Spotlight
Week Four:
10/3/2021
Guest Post
10/4/2021
Review
10/5/2021
Review
10/6/2021
Excerpt
10/7/2021
Review
10/8/2021
Review
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