Introducing “From the Desk of Author HR Burkett,” a quarterly guest blog from yours truly!

First and foremost, I’d love to thank Emily for the opportunity to feature on her blog. Emily is up to amazing things, and I’m so grateful to be along for the ride. This is going to be a beautiful collaboration, so stay tuned for more posts “From the Desk of Author HR Burkett.”

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The book fair was the one time of year my parents gave me carte blanche to buy as many books as my little arms could carry, and I loved every minute of it.

I started with picture books and rhyming books; first Dr. Seuss, then Shel Silverstein. When I learned about the Dewey Decimal System in grade school, I used my father’s label maker to apply decimal codes to every book in my growing library.

But Thanksgiving of 1991 was the year I discovered my first “epic” novel: The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi.

The book was a Newbery Honor recipient that year, and ten-year-old me was completely captivated. Without looking up the plot, I remember it being about a young girl aboard a ship on a dangerous voyage and the hardships she faced among a crew who didn’t expect her to be there.

The books I’d read before had been entertaining, but this was the first novel that truly immersed me.

I spent the entire Thanksgiving holiday curled up in the pea-green rocker in my grandmother’s front room, ignoring everything around me, eager for just…one…more…page.

When I finished the 240-page novel before dinner was served, I felt incredibly proud of myself. I felt grown-up. Smart.

But I also learned the downfall of reading.

That one-more-page feeling doesn’t stop when the book ends.

Before this, I liked reading.

After this, I was a reader.

The second life-changing book is one I’ve spent countless hours trying to identify.

Sadly, teenage Heather wasn’t nearly as careful about recording titles and authors as adult Heather wishes she had been.

It was a romance novel my aunt passed down to me, the first of its kind I’d ever read.

I remember sitting in English class and casually opening the book during reading hour. Five minutes later, my face was bright red, and I was convinced everyone around me somehow knew I had just read about a woman’s heaving bosom.

Needless to say, I snapped that book shut.

For a while.

Eventually, curiosity won.

I was about fifteen years old, and that novel became my introduction to contemporary romance—the genre where I now spend much of my writing time.

I didn’t read much for a few years after that, but in 2009, I happened to watch Twilight On Demand.

And, well…I may have become a little smitten with Edward Cullen.

So naturally, I rushed out, bought all four books in Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight series, and binge-read them in roughly fifteen hours.

Don’t judge me.

Then my best friend and I attended a Twilight convention in Seattle.

Here’s the crazy thing, though.

That series helped me find the courage to live a little.

I started volunteering at conventions, which allowed me to travel, sightsee in multiple states, meet actors, and make lifelong friends.

More importantly, it gave me the courage to give dating another chance. That decision ultimately led me to the man of my dreams who, unironically, still calls me his “Bella.”

Stephenie Meyer also became a role model of mine.

When I learned Twilight had started as a dream she’d had about Edward and Bella in a meadow, I remember thinking, “I could do that. I have a whole file full of ideas like that.”

So I dusted off a few of those ideas and started writing fan fiction.

I loved sharing my work and hearing from readers, but I was convinced I’d never be traditionally published.

Then came December 2025.

I caught the writing bug.

Within a month, I had written a novel.

Then two.

Then three.

Then four.

Then five.

By the end of May, I had written six stories.

After sending them to beta readers and receiving encouraging feedback, I made the decision to publish my own series.

Which brings me to the fourth and final book that has changed my life so far: Peckers: The Pact.

This book marks my debut as a published author, and I couldn’t be more excited about the reviews beginning to come in.

The Peckers series follows the four ladies behind an innovative high-end restaurant designed for women called Peckers, where the food is hot and the men are hotter.

Of course, there are opportunities for romance along the way, but at its heart, the series is about friendship, found family, and the bonds these women build with one another.

Looking back, it’s funny how each of these books arrived at exactly the right moment in my life.

The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle taught me the joy of getting completely lost in a story.

That unnamed romance novel introduced me to a genre I would one day write myself.

Twilight gave me the courage to step outside my comfort zone, travel, make friends, and eventually find the love of my life.

And Peckers: The Pact represents something I never thought I’d have the courage to do at all: call myself a published author.

Books have entertained me, challenged me, comforted me, and inspired me. They’ve introduced me to new worlds, new friendships, and even a new career.

And while I can’t predict what the next life-changing book will be, I know one thing for certain:

Some books simply tell a story.

Others change the course of your own.

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Peckers: The Pact is now available

On Amazon and Kindle Unlimited here

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Visit Author HR Burkett at

www.authorhrburkett.com

www.facebook.com/callmeheather

www.instagram.com/author_hr_burkett

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A note from Emily: Thank you to HR Burkett for being my first guest blogger! It is an honor to have a very talented writer (and author) make a quarterly appearance on my blog. I am grateful for all that will be shared in the coming quarters! I will be sharing more of my thoughts on Peckers: The Pact soon, so stay tuned! You will not want to miss it!