Heather Daleen Guthrie was born in Grand Forks, North Dakota in 1954. She lived as a child in the Midwest, and moved to the West in 1972. She has studied art at Cranbrook Academy for the Arts, the University of Colorado, University of Idaho, and Seattle Pacific University. She currently teaches art at Sandpoint High School, Sandpoint Idaho.

When she can escape, she spends her time on the wild and scenic rivers of the western states. She believes that some rivers travel in complete circles. She has three children.