Meet Young Adult Author Chelsey M. Ortega

Today fellow Wild Rose, Chelsey M. Ortega, talks about her writing life and the experiences that influenced the storyline of new young adult novel.

Is there an event in your life that affected you as a writer?

In 6th grade, my teacher had us write a short story that took place in Ancient Egypt. My story was basically Cleopatra, but she doesn’t die at the end. We split up the scenes in our stories onto separate pages, illustrated them, sewed them up, and hot glued a cover together. My teacher said anyone who wanted to could make two copies and leave one with her for examples for future classes, which I did. I returned to her classroom when I was in college to observe as an education major, and I learned that this teacher was still pulling mine off the shelf as an example for that project. It was the first time I thought, “I can really do this.”

What other genres of novel would you love to write?

My one and only published book is a YA Fantasy. I really want to write some historical fiction also. But even so, the historical fiction idea I have is still going to be mixed with fantasy. I just can’t give up magic in any story idea that comes to my head.

Can you tell us about your challenges in getting your first book published?

At first, Bondwitch didn’t match any agent’s manuscript wish list, or if it did, that agent was closed to queries. Then, as I searched for small publishers, it was disheartening to learn that my story was too “mainstream” for many of them to consider. Then my number one, first choice publisher rejected my query after a partial request. I stayed away from anything writing related for almost two weeks while I decompressed from that heartbreak. But after a helpful sit down with fellow author Rebecca Connally (who is my second cousin), I decided to try with my dream publisher again; and things worked out the second time around! And that publisher was The Wild Rose Press.

Is anything in your book based on real life experiences or purely all imagination?

Bondwitch is full of real life experiences – though it was not on purpose. One of my cousins is one of my beta readers. Her family moved onto the street next to mine when we were teenagers, so we went to middle and high school together. And every time she finishes one of my manuscripts she’s always asking, “Is this character so-and-so from high school?”

I was a ballroom dancer for ten years, and my favorite costumes, dances, and songs I wish I could have performed to, made it into the side plot: Annamaria befriends professional ballroom dancers who invite her onto their YouTube channel.

One particular scene, I did take directly from my life. My Sophomore year in high school, a couple of friends and I got into a fight right before our dance team’s tour. We had cooled off over the weekend and didn’t have any nefarious plans for the week on the bus; but one team member feared we were going to cause problems, so they told our coach. Before the bus pulled out of the parking lot, my coach escorted us off and told us we weren’t allowed back on until we fixed whatever was going on. We all kind of shrugged and laughed and said, “You good?” “Yep.” “Great!” Then we got back on the bus.

In the first act of Bondwitch, Annamaria and her friends go through something similar. Only, when their coach tries to force them to make-up, it doesn’t work, and leads to other problems that will send Annamaria on her adventure. 

What project are you working on now or what book will be next?

I’m working on three manuscripts right now. First, I’m at the tail end of editing the sequel, Bondwitch: Hybrid. I’m hoping to submit it by the start of Summer at the very latest. I’m also writing the first draft of the third book, Bondwitch: Liberation. I started that one during NaNoWriMo and am chugging along. I really only work on it when I need to take a break from editing Hybrid. And I’m also plotting a stand alone for a multi-author series I got invited to be a part of. That one is going to be a fun challenge because it has to be about ghosts and hauntings; which is new territory for me. You can stay up to date on my progress by subscribing to my blog: https://chelseymortega.com/

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The Bondwitch

Chelsey M. Ortega

Eighteen-year-old Annamaria Lyons has never left her small hometown of Harrison, Wyoming. She has lived with her aunt, Trinity, since her parents died when she was two years old. Trinity has been a wonderful guardian with one exception—she won’t allow Annamaria out of the house after sunset. That is, until the night of senior prom. Annamaria’s long-lost sister arrives, bringing with her a world full of hidden family secrets and the supernatural.

Forced to flee her childhood home without a proper goodbye to her human life and first love, Annamaria immerses herself in the magical world. New friends and a new suitor challenge her original dreams for the future, and when she finds herself caught in the middle of a centuries-old conflict, Annamaria must decide to rise above it or give in to the darkness.

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Available from

AMAZON | B&N

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Chelsey Ortega would love to hear from you. Post your thoughts and comments below.