Meet Vontress Ortega of Honeyz Drips, Written By Vontress and Swampz ENT in Sacramento

Today we’d like to introduce you to Vontress Ortega.

Vontress, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I came from a single parent home. Raised solely by my mother. She pushed me and my siblings to work as hard as we could on our educations and to follow the avenue of life that was best suited for us. Majority of my life school was my focus. I always maintained good grades and received all of the awards to match. I graduated High School through home schooling. I decided pretty early on in my high school years that I was not built for the traditional setting and I was also a mother of two small children. Of course after high school, I did what we all do. Got an apartment, a job and focused all my time into being the best mother that I could be.

Until one day I decided that I was over my hometown of Sacramento, CA and took a leap of faith and moved to San Diego, CA. It was all brand new for me and I was completely alone. With my suit cases of clothes and my children in toe. I enjoyed San Diego very much. I had so much fun and also met so many great people. This was the place that I learned the most about myself and where I began to pick back up my high school passion of poetry and short stories.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
The road of my life has not always been easy because I have ALWAYS been a person who wanted to learn from their own mistakes. I see the beauty in falling and getting back up and ultimately realizing that what may work for someone else doesn’t’ always work for me. As a single mother of four (at the time) and living in San Diego; I was determined to prove to everyone back home that I could make it on my own. But it came at a cost. I worked three jobs just to keep things afloat. I stopped writing and lost my drive altogether. Me and my children ended up homeless and literally sleeping outside. This was until I made the tough decision to send them back to my hometown in order for them to live with their father. It was a few months later when I finally made the decision to go back home and face what I saw as shame. Shame because I came back home and personal shame because I felt like a failure.

When I look back now, I feel being able to face myself when I returned back to my hometown was not me failing. It was putting me in a position to accomplish goals and dreams that I had no idea that I was capable of. I am always the person in everyone’s life who is always supporting and encouraging others but I needed to be those things for myself in order to stand in my truth.

Now as a mother of six, I understand all of the things that I went through in order to get to where I am in this moment. It has taught me to be resilient, unafraid to step out of my comfort zone, and willing to wear my mistakes as a badge of honor.

We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
I currently run a personal Blogging site called Written By Vontress and two small apparel companies called Honeyz Drips and Swampz ENT. I use my blog for many things. To speak on my personal experiences, things that I feel men and women suffer from daily and don’t always have the courage to speak about. But I mostly use it to display my books.

I have three books that I have published within a span of nine months. The first two books are a collection of poetry called ” Rose Petals Under a Reaper’s Robe”. Also, a self-care workbook called ” Affirmed Queen: Book of Affirmations for the Woman in Healing” My collection of poetry has been many journal entries over many years that have included my pains, my triumphs and touches on some heavy situations of sexual abuse that was endured.

I created my line of apparel Honeyz Drips for women like myself. Constantly connected with the outside world and hardly connected with themselves. Searching for a bit of peace and all while being fashionable. The shirts, sweaters, and Hats all have Inspirational quotes and affirmations that can be worn as a badge of strength.

Swampz ENT. is a brand that I run with my boyfriend. He has been using the name as an entertainment manager for many years and we decided that it would be a great idea to start a small brand where entertainment meets fashion.

With all of my companies, I have been most proud of the growth we have had in less than a year. Each thing that I have decided to do was carefully planned and executed just how I envisioned. I have met so many great entrepreneurs through my books and work and I hope that I continue to grow as a writer and a brand.

I think what sets my companies apart is the fact that I get out there with the people. I take in a lot of advice and rub shoulders with people to find out what’s really in demand and what the people around me would like to be involved in.

What were you like growing up?
Growing up, I was always a shy kid and kept to myself. Throughout school, I was bullied and that is where I knew one day that I would want to help those in need. Whether it was friends or family. I have always been a nurturing soul. I felt the most joy when I was helping someone else with a problem or simply just encouraging them to stick up for themselves when they otherwise wouldn’t. I always felt the need to be a voice for others because It took me such a long time in order to find my own.

Then as I got older, I chose to dedicate myself to helping others. Even when it came to my work. I often held jobs as a caregiver for the elderly because it was fulfilling to know that I could do something so small that someone would greatly appreciate.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://vontressrortega.com/
• Email: WrittenByVontress@gmail,com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/writtenbyvontress/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/writtenbyvontress/
• Other: https://www.honeyzdrips.com/ and https://swampzthebrand.bigcartel.com/

Image Credit:
Black and White Author Portrait [Photo Courtesy of Dev Anglin]; “Affrmed Queen Hoodie ” Honeyz Drips Brand [ Model: Keyaunah Clark]; Swampz ENT Brand [ Courtesy of Better Visual Photography]

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