Connie Kaye Delp Heckert, author and educator, was born November 2, 1948 in Jefferson, Iowa. Her father Leland Delp worked as a blacksmith, and her mother LaVone Delp was a homemaker. Connie Delp married John W. Heckert on June 20, 1970 and the couple raised a daughter Stephanie. Heckert worked as a medical records librarian for Iowa State University Veterinary Clinics until 1972 and then became a freelance writer. She received her B.A. from Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois in 1976 and her M.A. from the University of Iowa in 1984.

In 1985, Heckert taught English at Black Hawk College in Moline, Illinois. She continued as an adjunct assistant professor of English at Saint Ambrose University in Davenport from 1985-1993. Heckert has published a number of books, including Dribbles, a children's story about the death of a cat, and To Keera with Love: Abortion, Adoption, or Keeping the Baby, a story of a teen mother who gave her daughter up for adoption. Heckert also participated in organizations of writers, including the National League of American Pen Women and the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. She acted as a keynote speaker and teacher at a variety of conferences and workshops.