{"id":2229,"date":"2019-04-04T12:50:40","date_gmt":"2019-04-04T16:50:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blinkyabooks.com\/?p=2229"},"modified":"2026-01-02T08:18:36","modified_gmt":"2026-01-02T08:18:36","slug":"blink-blog-author-spotlight-heather-hepler-part-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staging.harpercollinsfocus.hcusweb.com\/blinkyabooks\/blink-blog-author-spotlight-heather-hepler-part-2\/","title":{"rendered":"#Blink Blog Author Spotlight: Heather Hepler (Part 2)"},"content":{"rendered":"

As we continue to celebrate the release of\u00a0We Were Beautiful<\/em>, we are featuring part two of our \u201cAuthor Spotlight\u201d with Heather Hepler!<\/p>\n

Get your copy of We Were Beautiful<\/em> HERE<\/a>!<\/p>\n

What makes this book special\/unique?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I think We Were Beautiful\u00a0<\/em>tackles something that most anyone will struggle with at some point. Causing harm or doing something wrong is unfortunately a part of even the most carefully lived life. I wanted to show Mia\u2019s movement from guilt and shame to forgiveness and freedom. I also wanted it to be clear that she\u2019s not just sweeping what she did under the rug or making excuses for it, but she\u2019s facing it head on and doing the hard work to move through it.<\/p>\n

I also love the love story between Mia and Cooper. It\u2019s not glossy and easy, but real and deep and beautiful.<\/p>\n

How are you reflected in We Were Beautiful<\/em> (or, how much of you is reflected in the book)?<\/strong><\/p>\n

This is such a difficult question because writing is all about the author, I think. It\u2019s the weird blender that each of us has in his or her head. You consciously put things in there, but also life comes along and sneaks in some ingredients that you might not notice. When you write, you switch that blender on. And like the smoothies that I make sometimes it\u2019s delicious, but sometimes, you just have to chuck it out and start again.<\/p>\n

What is the biggest lesson you\u2019ve learned while being a writer?<\/strong><\/p>\n

It can be lonely, typing away early in the morning or late at night, knowing that much of what I am writing will never make it off my hard drive. But it\u2019s also hugely satisfying, bringing something amazing from only my imagination.<\/p>\n

Any additional thoughts?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Just a thought to anyone wanting to be a writer or wanting to publish \u2013 don\u2019t give up. Sometimes it takes a really long time to find the right story and sometimes even longer before you know how to tell it, but it\u2019s worth it. Whether one person or a hundred million people read it \u2013 it\u2019s worth it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As we continue to celebrate the release of\u00a0We Were Beautiful, we are featuring part two of our \u201cAuthor Spotlight\u201d with Heather Hepler! Get your copy of We Were Beautiful HERE! What makes this book special\/unique? I think We Were Beautiful\u00a0tackles something that most anyone will struggle with at some point. Causing harm or doing something […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2229","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news-notes"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n#Blink Blog Author Spotlight: Heather Hepler (Part 2) - Blink YA Books<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/staging.harpercollinsfocus.hcusweb.com\/blinkyabooks\/blink-blog-author-spotlight-heather-hepler-part-2\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"#Blink Blog Author Spotlight: Heather Hepler (Part 2) - Blink YA Books\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"As we continue to celebrate the release of\u00a0We Were Beautiful, we are featuring part two of our \u201cAuthor Spotlight\u201d with Heather Hepler! 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