Lyndsay Gamber Interviews Heather Says
Insights from a Baker, DIYer, and Talented Hubber
You have been Hubbing for about 2 years now and your Hubs are beautifully put together! What is your inspiration for creating your Hubs and what do you enjoy most about Hubbing?
By my nature, I'm always longing to make something-- whether it's something beautiful, something useful or something delicious to eat. My Hubs are created by simply documenting what I did today or yesterday. I love to waste time on Pinterest. I'll Pin projects or food and then reimagine them to reuse different supplies or ingredients to cater to my own taste and/or budget. My food Hubs in particular are inspired by recipes I grew up baking with my mother, comfort food, and incorporating leftovers when possible. I love leftovers and hate to waste food.
I love everything about Hubbing! For me, Hubbing is very therapeutic and gives me something to do. I hate when you find a neat project or picture on Pinterest and click it to find out it's just a bogus/fake post with no description or instructions! Ugh! While I started Hubbing before I became obsessed with Pinterest, I kept Hubbing and sort of found my crafting and cooking niche because I was happy to share with anyone who was interested. I especially love when someone will leave a comment to let me know they made a project or recipe from one of my Hubs. It really makes my day! :)
You mention in your profile that you love to DIY. What helps you to keep coming up with new DIY Hub ideas?
My DIY Hub ideas are heavily inspired by my loves for recycling and repurposing, as well as the holidays. I like to bring old or unusual things back to life. When I see any project on Pinterest that strikes my fancy, I'll often try to incorporate it into whatever next holiday or season is coming up. I do this to save time, money, and to get the most out of my crafting and DIY projects so they're not piling up all around me-- but it also helps the creative process. This can mean falling in love with an Easter idea but tweaking it for a whole new Christmas spin or even ideas that aren't seasonal at all.
In your profile you also mention that you love to bake! What is your favorite thing to make and why?
I do love to bake! I think I love to bake so much because I was born in the wrong decade. I'm 30 but I was meant to be a housewife in the 1950s. I'm not sure what happened. My favorite thing to bake? Probably Christmas cookies and not even because of the cookies. I really love the ambiance, nostalgia and togetherness that are associated with baking Christmas cookies. The house is warm and smells delicious. A Christmas movie serves as a soundtrack while the tree is twinkling and sparkling in the background... I love making the same traditional Christmas cookies that I have made forever (Pizzelles and Spritz) with people I love.
I see that you have won numerous awards. Congrats! What has been your biggest accomplishment in the past 2 years and what do you hope to accomplish in the future with your Hubs?
Thanks so much! About a year ago I was offered a blogging job by a local mom and pop bookstore who had seen some of my Hubs via Facebook. I had so much fun writing for their blog which also led to a job in their brick and mortar location. It was the best. Even though I hold a college degree in Journalism, it was that domino effect that really made me realize, "Hey, I can do this. I made this happen." Sadly, I had to move and the commute would have been impossible but it was such a great accomplishment and opportunity. Since then I have had several offers to write other places and I now have a food blog. You can laugh-- I won't be upset-- but I would love to work for HubPages in some fashion AND be a guest on the Martha Stewart show. Those two daydreams have helped me execute some of my best ideas and Hubs and keep me doing it every day.
What inspires you the most to continue Hubbing?
My Hubbing skills have greatly improved in the last year. I look at some of my old Hubs and cringe a little. I'm in the process of going back and redoing old Hubs (even recipe Hubs) with better pictures and content. To see how far I've come makes me wonder what my success will look like in another year. I want to keep growing as a writer, Hubber, photographer, etc. A year ago I couldn't even do the simplest things with Photoshop and now I use it every day. I'm excited to see where this goes. It's a fun process, and who wants to give up something that's fun? ;)
I see in one of your Hubs you talked about how other people from the internet were stealing your articles and pictures. I am sure this was very difficult to deal with. What advice can you give to your fellow Hubbers if this happens to them?
It was a nightmare for sure but you have to stay focused and positive. Lean on another writer if you can. HubPages user kelleyward was such a doll and helped me so much when it first happened to me. There are plenty of awesome resources on HubPages and the internet that will help walk you through each step to help you get your copied content removed. That's the easy part. The hard part can be accepting it, moving on and continuing to write. It can be difficult to hear, but during all the chaos try to see the backwards compliment that it offers. Your content is awesome! Awesome enough to steal. There are writers and photographers out there who have their content stolen by the minute and they let it roll right off their backs. I strive to be more like them. I'm not saying you can't or shouldn't get upset-- you have every right to. Dealing with it is so much easier when you can stay positive. I've had many outside obstacles that have tried to drive a wedge between Heather Says and Hubbing and out of all of them, plagiarism is the last reason that would cause me to give up. So keep writing-- for yourself, for your readers and because it's the right thing to do.
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