Chelz Marketing

Hi, I’m Chelsey Burris, aka Chelz.
Pleased to meet ya.

Class clown. Nature nerd. Marketing professional. Ex-racehorse advocate.
Aspiring author. I wear many hats, and I’m excited to share my passions with
all of you!

I have loved writing my whole life, but in 2023, I really hit a “sh*t or get off the pot” moment. And, rather than get off the pot, I’ve decided to sh*t.

With the newly lit fire under my ass, I now have several book ideas in progress, from a non-fiction true-crime profile about one of the wildest incidents in American history, to a horseracing book about the most talented crop of Thoroughbreds ever produced, and even a children’s picture book about one particularly special horse.

By day, I’m the Senior Marketing Coordinator for the United States Dressage Federation (USDF), a national federation for equestrian sports. I am also the Marketing Director of Friends of Ferdinand, Inc., a non-profit organization which retrains ex-racehorses into second careers. I’ve also been dedicating a lot of time in writing and creating mode lately, working on building the Chelz Empire.

In my free time (which LOL, who has that?), I enjoy watching NFL football, going to concerts (I’m still a punk rock kid at heart), photography, and hanging out with my troublemaking Husky mix and my crazy rescue cat. Oh, and if I’m lucky enough to be able to hop on the back of a horse, I’m at my happiest.

FINALLY Pursuing My Dream of Being an Author

The first time “author” officially made it into my list of aspirations, I was in 5th grade. My mom kept a little ‘School Years’ book for me, which you updated each spring with a photo, some info about what you’d been up to that year, and ended with a space to write down what you wanted to be when you grew up. For grades kindergarten through 4th, I had jotted down that I wanted to be a veterinarian. Grade 5 was the first one where author found its way into the rotation. But I can remember before then, having such a zest for writing that Mom (no doubt after growing tired of having to write for me while I dictated) brought home a dusty old book from the library that was supposed to teach you how to type on a keyboard. My hands were too small to reach all the keys as the book described, but I figured it out, and off I went, dreaming up fantasy realms, writing chapter books, and loving every second of how it felt to create your own world that way.

But there were some things keeping me down. As a lifelong sufferer of severe anxiety often coupled with nearly crippling depression, I had a heavy dose of Imposter Syndrome to overcome. I didn’t write as much in high school and college. Something I had loved so much as a kid fell by the wayside. The writing bug had seemingly left me.

As I got older and moved around the US working in the horse industry, I gradually began to remember how much I adored writing when I was young, so I started getting back into it. The spark was still there, and it bloomed. I’m now co-editor and frequent contributor to YourDressage.org, the official publications website of USDF. My work has also been featured in Practical Horseman, Equus Magazine, and of course, all over the Friends of Ferdinand website. I was even recognized with an American Horse Publications Equine Media Award for my story about the 2021 FEI North American Youth Championships (which you can check out here!)

In 2024, I’m setting my sights on something more ambitious. I have several ideas for books, and I’m finally ready to make it happen. Follow along with my journey as I work to get my first book published and launch what I hope is a long career as an author – bringing you entertaining, inspirational, and engrossing stories – horse-related or otherwise!