Claribel A. Ortega is a former reporter who writes middle grade and young adult books inspired by her Dominican heritage. Claribel has been featured on Buzzfeed, Good Morning America, and Deadline. Her books include the middle grade novels Ghost Squad and Witchlings, and her debut graphic novel Frizzy.
Rose Bousamra is a freelance illustrator and comic creator born and based in Michigan. Frizzy is their first graphic novel, with their solo debut graphic novel Gutless also being published with First Second. When they're not making or reading comics they love baking sweets and playing fantasy video games.
New York Times Bestselling and award-winning author Claribel A. Ortega went from journalism student, editing her classmates' often hilarious ads and ramblings on the back page of SUNY Purchase’s Independent Newspaper, to a small-town reporter, where she enjoyed going to board of ed meetings and texting the town mayors about the line at Starbucks.
Today when she’s not busy turning her obsession with eighties pop culture, magic, and video games into books, she's co-hosting the hilarious and chaotic Bad Author Book Club podcast or helping authors navigate publishing with her consulting business GifGrrl. She is a Marvel contributor and has been featured on Buzzfeed, Bustle, Good Morning America, and Deadline.
Claribel’s debut middle grade novel Ghost Squad is a New York Times Bestseller and is being made into a feature film. Ghost Squad won Best in Middle Grade at the 2021 Ignyte Awards, was a Goodreads Choice Award finalist, and an International Latino book awards honorary mention for 2020. Her other titles include Witchlings (Scholastic) and the graphic novel Frizzy (First Second), winner of the 2023 Pura Belpré Award for Children's Text, with Rose Bousamra.
Rose Bousamra is a freelance illustrator and comic creator born and based in Michigan.
Frizzy (with Claribel A. Ortega)
, winner of the 2023 Pura Belpré Award for Children's Text, is their first graphic novel, with their solo debut graphic novel
Gutless also being published with First Second. When they're not making or reading comics they love baking sweets and playing fantasy video games.