Author, speaker, and podcast host Tori Hope Petersen ’18 published her second book, “Breaking the Patterns That Break You” on Feb. 4.

“It’s a story about our identity in Christ — understanding what he says about each of us, and how we can walk confidently in that, not making ourselves smaller for the sake of others, but becoming more of who he has created us to be, for his glory and our good,” Petersen said.

Petersen, an All-American track and field athlete at Hillsdale, now hosts the “I Love You Already Podcast” and started the Loved Already Conference for women in 2023. She speaks around the country and published her first book, “Fostered,” in 2022 about her journey through the foster care system.

“After I wrote my first book, I received a lot of feedback from readers about how they wished I would share more about my healing journey,” Petersen said. “But I hadn’t felt quite ready to put that process into words, because I was still navigating my own healing.”

Petersen said for her second book, she wanted to write from “the perspective of not having it all figured out, but figuring it out.”

“I wanted to write a book that wouldn’t make readers feel like me, the author, was standing from a stage telling them how to get it together,” Petersen said. “Instead, I wanted to write something that would feel like people were walking hand-in-hand with me as we were journeying, figuring it out together.” 

Petersen grew up with a mentally ill mother and never knew her father, who died a month before she was born. This background led Petersen to enter the foster care system at age 4. She reunited with her mother for a short period before re-entering the system at 12, according to previous Collegian reporting. Petersen stayed in foster care until she turned 18.

“When I was writing my first book, it felt like I was just writing out what happened to me,” Petersen said. “With this second book, it felt like I had to dig a little deeper to understand what happened to me, and how I dealt with the pain in the worst and best ways. It took a lot more reflection that sometimes I wanted to push away, and I had to take a lot of responsibility for the patterns that I continued to engage in.”

While a student at Hillsdale, Petersen majored in Christian Studies with a minor in psychology.

Associate Professor of Psychology Collin Barnes said Petersen took classes with him while she was a student.

“She was fun, energetic, and a good student,” Barnes said. “I have fond memories of her.”

Petersen said her first book takes the form of a memoir and details her early life in foster care, while her second book tackles the repercussions she faced as a result of a tumultuous upbringing.

“It communicated what I accomplished, but throughout that climb there have been dark valleys, and this second book communicates those,” Petersen said. “I actually think those stories are more important to tell. People thought my first book was deep and vulnerable, but this book feels more so.”

While a student, Petersen said she submitted works of writing to various campus publications but was never published. She said that didn’t keep her from continuing to write.

“I didn’t change my voice to make it more acceptable in the spaces where it wasn’t heard,” Petersen said. “To the aspiring writer who keeps putting themselves out there, and being shut down, please know those moments do not define your work or you. Some audiences won’t want to hear what you have to say right off the bat, but once your voice resonates with people, and once people start listening, the people who turned you down, denied you, or silenced you will no longer have a choice but to listen.”

Petersen said since her book’s release, she completed a book tour and visited six cities in one week, including Arlington, Texas; Longmont, Colorado; Vienna, Virginia; and Defiance, Ohio.

“Working with Tori has been an absolute joy and privilege,” said Christina Hanks, Petersen’s director of publicity. “She brings such a rare blend of authenticity, wisdom and unwavering compassion to everything she does.”

Hanks said Petersen has a special ability to point people toward healing and hope.

“Her heart for others is evident in every page she writes, and I know it will continue to impact countless lives,” Hanks said.

In the future, Petersen said she hopes to write another book, but for now she will continue to speak and teach while caring for her family.

“The messages that I have been receiving on social media have been overwhelming, and I am so thankful,” Petersen said. “The book seems to be doing exactly what I prayed it would — helping people heal what is underlying, and affecting them in ways they didn’t even realize.”